Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1892-02-08

anected would be to sluggishness and in
difference. would ask your attention to a
matter of historical experience, full of sug-
gestion, which thus far seems to have been
entirely overlooked, and that is, that Sir
Robert Peel in dealing with exactly the
same problem as now confronts our tariff
legislators, but from British standpoint.
adopted the tentative method, and owed all
OF his great success to the fact that he
did adopt it. At the time Mr.. Peel
took Office, in 1871, the British tariff was in
every feature extremely protective, or bet
ter extremely restrictive on British foreign
commerce. as it had been for centuries
1t was more complicated and taxed greater
number of articles than the Mckinley bill
The first measure or bill for tariff reform
introduced by him in 1912 was very con-
sentative and proposed little more than
the removal of duties from crude materials
and essential to manufacture, with q view
of cheapening the cost of manufacture to
British manufacturers, and has since been
characterized in history as an elabor-
ate attempt to foster trade by reduc-
ing import duties, at the same time
continuing protection. The measures en-
countered the most violent opposition
Precisely the same arguments were brought
forward in favor of the continuance of the
Mckinley tariff as were advanced in sup
port OF the then existing British tariff law
The same predictions OF impending disaster
to domestic industries as are now made
were showered upon parliament and the
public The bill proposed by Sir Robert
Peel became law. No further important
tariff legislation was proposed until 1915,
but IN the three preceding years the bene-
fetal influence of the tariff reductions of
1872 had become so manifest in reviving in
dustry and commerce. that Mr.. Peel's
chief opponents in the former
year became his chief supporters in the
latter and voiced general public sentiment
in demanding further and greater reforms.
a bill was accordingly introduced and
passed in 1915 removing or reducing the
duties on large additional number of arti-
Giles, but still maintaining protective duties
both upon manufactured articles and agri-
cultural products, and it was not until 1916
that Sir Robert Peel directly attacked the
prOtectionist system by introducing and
passing the bill which repealed the corn
laws and greatly reduced or entirely re-
moved the duties on manufactured prod
ucts.
After this, although Sir Robert Peel did
not remain in Office, his policy was con-
tinued, but it was not until 1852 when the
last relic of the British navigation laws
were swept from the statute book, that the
policy of Great Britain became wholly an
tagonistic to the maintenance and advance
ment of any laws restrictive to freedom
of exchange or the imposition of
taxes for any other purpose than reve-
nue.. From this brief review of British
experience it is clear that if Sir Robert
Peel, in 1912, had attempted to re-
form the British tariff as q whole and
adopted any course other than the tenta-
tive one he would not have been success
full. And l venture TO predict that if we
now adopt the same policy history, on a
grander scale, will repeat itself. Every
relaxation of the existing restriction on
trade will increase trade, and the blessing
of freedom and of exemption from all I'M
necessary taxation will be sounded by the
masses of our people.
BY adopting the tentative method and
sending to the senate few simple bills en-
acted by the house-biIls removing duties
on wool, salt, COAL lumber, tin plate and
the liSe-the Democratic party will define
and formulate the plan and a scope on
which tariff debate in the coming presi-
Dental contest shall be conducted Every
senator who votes in opposition to the re-
moyal of taxation from such articles as
above specified, puts himself at once on the
defensive, and in a position sure to be po-
lltically uncomfortable. The masses have
been and probably always will be slow
to comprehend the tariff question when dis
cussed generally; but they will not be slow
to recognize and appreciate the effect of the
taxation on commodities that enter directly
and largely into their consumption and in