Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1892-11-07
BLAINE AS SAMSON.
re DEMOLlSHES THE REPUBLICAN
HOME MARKET" CLAIM.

The Arguments of the "Man from Maine''
Accepted as True for the Purpose OF
Illustrating the Fallacy of Republican
Protectionists' Claims.
Mr.. Blaine has completely destroyed
the old Republican argument of home
market as a justification to the farmers
of the northwest of high protective
tariff He did it in few words at the
Ophir feast of Whitelaw Reid. 1.-THE
products of manufactures in each of the
four agricultural states of Ohio, Indiana
Illinois and Michigan" said he, "are
greater in pecuniary amount than the
products of agriculture"
What if we admit that this is true? II
might be claimed and fully proved by
census statistics that the output of the
protected factories of Illinois constitute
but small percentage of the total out
put of all the factories, protected and
unprotected, in that state. But for the
purposes of the argument we prefer tG
accept Mr.. Blaine's statement as he evi.
IDENTIFY intends it to be accepted-as
meaning that the value of all manufac.
lures in the state of Illinois is due to the
protective tariff.
When we accept Mr.. Blaine's state.
ment or Mr.. Blaine's terms we have the
right to question him upon it. We ask
then, why, if the manufacturing indus.
tries of Illinois have been protected up
to the point where they create values in
manufactured products greater than the
values of all the agricultural products of
the state, they do not create home mar.
ket for the agricultural products? Hi.
nois produces from 50,000,000 to 10000.
600 bushels of wheat annually. Her
population can consume not over 20, ,000,-
600 bushels. The surplus is sold at prices
fixed abroad. The great mills of the
state grind more for export than for
local demand. The state can raise 400.
900, 900 bushels of corn and cannot con.
sumo, after including the great consump.
tive capacity of Peoria and Pekin distil.
leries, unprotected industries, more than
three-quarters of it. These are the great
staples of Illinois agriculture. In dairy.
ing, the product of late years has per.
haps reached 100,000,000 pounds of but
ter annually, a quantity far in excess of
the demand of the state, and this com.
parison of the amount of agricultural
product with the Illinois population
might be carried into the raising of
meats, and throughout the entire list of
farm produce, with like results. There
is great farm surplus in Illinois every
year.
Protectionists have answered the de-
mand for home market with a promise
to make one. All they have wanted,
according to their theory, has been time
enough. But here they have state, ac-
cording to the highest Republican au-
thority, where protection has developed
manufacturing to point where the out
put of its factories is worth more than
the output of its farms, and yet the fac
tories are unable to furnish an ADEQUATE
market for its farms.
The conclusion is irresistible, accent
ing Mr.. Blaine's figures as true, which
they are not, that the labor cost entering
into the value of manufactured goods is
very small, owing either to low wages
or the employment of labor saving ma
chinery. In either view Mr.. Blaine dis
poses completely and forever of the de-
fusion of home market.
Can it be possible that he failed to see
the effect of his words? There are many
things in his hopeless and respondent
attitude to suggest that other Samson of
olden time putting forth the last effort
of his strength to overwhelm in one
common ruin those who had humiliated
him and brought him at last to an Ophir
feast to make them merry.-St. Louis
Republic.