Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1892-10-27

Equally Opposed to Our Protective Sys-
tem-What the English Manufacturers
and Newspapers Are saying-OpenIy
Opposed to Our Tariff.
There can no longer be any doubt that
the British free traders are not only very
much displeased with our protective tar
if policy, but are anxious for Democratic
success in the coming election in order
to see the tariff destroyed. One of the
most striking evidences of this is found
i'll a collection of clippings from British
newspapers and trade journals which
Hon. \. {. Bowen, of Denver, made
while spending a few weeks in England
They show the greatest bitterness on the
part Of the manufacturers, who say that
the American tariff, under the Mckinley
law and its reciprocity features, is abso-
lutely destroying British commerce in
the countries where they have been fos-
tering trade by large expenditures for
years.
The British journals make no secret of
their hope for Democratic success. The
London Times says: "Englishmen can
feel little sympathy for either of the par
ties engaged in this ignoble struggle, but
undoubtedly our interests as trading
country must make us wish success to
the Democrats, who now, for the first
time, go to the polls as the avowed cham
pions of free trade"
Commenting on the advantages which
our reciprocity treaties give American
hot D..+
The COlliery Guardian, very inf1uen-
tial British industrial journal, COM
planned bitterly that the very countries
where Englishmen have invested great
sums in public and private enterprises
should give American manufacturers
great advantages over those of England.
1t says frankly that the protective policy
which the Republican party has fostered
and the Democrats opposed has not only
made the United States large PR
Queer, but with the additional leverage
of reciprocity is forcing our products
into the countries where the English
have heretofore had their own way. Or
this subject it says of the Republicans
and their policy:
Their effort is to obtain the mouop
oily of the trade of the New World, and
they are SO influencing some of the
countries that produce from the United
States Is being admitted duty free,
whereas the goods. of other nations have
to pay heavy duties. The Mckinley
tariff affords an excellent bargaining
power when negotiating trade treaties
which we in England cannot possess.
seeing that i'll return for any concessions
they might make we could give theEi
nothing, because we already admit daty
free almost everything we import.
Last year, it will be remembered, we
had one prominent example of this new
ly inaugurated policy of the United
States In the case of its treaty with that
large and interesting market, Brazil,
which placed US at great disadvantage
in our trade with that country. The
hardship of that treatment to our manu-
facturers cannot be denied, for what
ever development there has been in the
industries and commerce of that coun-
try has been in great part brought
about by English aid British capital
has been found to construct the rail
Ways and other public works, and pri-
vate undertakings have been extern
sively assisted out of English pockets.
eff therefore any nation had right |
20 have its goods received in Brazil Oh
the most favorable terms it was the |
British and not the United States, which |
has done nothing to foster the develop |
ment OF the country, and till the new
treaty was signed charged heavy duties |
on all Brazilian products imported to |
its shores, whereas for years we have |
levied moor at any rate very small-du- |
ties. The people of the United States |
are now therefore reaping where we have |
sown, and our government, which has |
been appealed to by the chambers Of |
commerce and various trading bodies. |
appears to be unable to obtain for US bet
ter treatment.
Another instance of this new policy |
is their treaty with Cuba and Porto Rico.
1t will be almost impossible for our pro-
ducers to compete against those Of the
United States i'll the Spanish West India |
islands, and the hardware manufacture
ers of the midlands, in endeavoring to |
get our foreign Office to move in this |
have represented that their bust
ness with those islandS-which Is not az
all ble-will be practically |
There was Il general belief of the loyal