Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1892-12-29
THE PREsIDENT.s THEORY.

THE PRESIDENTS THEORY.
why Protection Has Defeated tho Repub-
ucan Party.
There has naturally been good deal
of curiosity as to the presidents theory
of the result of the election. This Curl
osity is now gratifed by the publication
of the following extract from the let
ter which Mr.. Harrison recently wrote
to ex-Gov. Cheney, of New Hampshire.
in notifying him of his selection as
minister to Switzerland:
81 Was leader imprisoned, and, save from
the little visit to Mr.. Reid, knew or thought
but little about it. Protection has failed be-
cause the wage-earner has refused to share his
shelter with the manufacturer. He would not
even walk under the same umbrella
Mr.. Harrison rather prides himself
upon his capacity for phrase making,
and he doubtless considers this um-
brella simiIe one of his happiest hits in
that line. We are glad to be able to
say that we entirely agree with the
president in his analysis of the causes
of the result. 1t is. in our opinion, alb
solutely correct
The theory of Mckinley protection is
that the manufacturer draws money
from the taxpayers of the country for
the purpose of distributing it among
his employees According to this theory
the aim of the system is to secure for
the wage-earner higher wages than he
could otherwise get, these higher
wages being paid him by the manu-
facturer as the agent of the govern
ment. In other words. protection is
designed to afford shelter to the en-
ploye through the interposition of q
benevolent manufacturer. This is evil
IDENTIFY Mr.. Harrison's understanding of
the theory on which the Mckinley law
was framed, and the president inter-
prets the theory correctly.
When the president says that ''the
wage-earner has refused to share his
shelter with the manufacturer" and
that The would not even walk under
the same umbrella" he attempts to
state systematically the prosaic
fact that the employe has rejected the
whole theory of protection and does
not want to hear any more of it.
Ever since MIR. Cleveland sent his IA
nous message to congress five years
ago the wage-earner has been consider
ing this subject. He has had preached
to him, in the most eloquent language.
the beauties of this theory that his en-
ployer stands to him in the relation of
beneficent divinity, who is devoted
first of all to the interests OF his en-
ployes and whose constant aim is to
give them the largest possible share of
the money which the government takes
from the people at large and gives him
for the purpose of such distribution.
He has had five years to consider the
soundness of the theory and to observe
the practical workings of the system,
in his own case and in a multitude of
others.
He has pondered upon the famous
''fat'' circular, in which a republican
United States senator was quoted as
authority for the statement that ''the
manufacturers get practically the sole
benefit of the tariff laws" and that
they ''make large fortunes every
year" He had seen the largest of
these fortunes made by the greatest of
these manufacturers. and then has
noted how this theoretically benefi-
cent divinity reduced the wages of his
Homestead employees in order to main
its. He has observed, as Mr.. Powder
ly remarked in his North American
Review article, that in discussions on
the tariff laws in congress it was
never advanced as reason why they
should be passed that capital would be
protected-thc argument always was
that labor should be protected" and he
has reached Mr.. Powderly's conclusion
that, while ''our government has en-
acted protective legislation in the in
terest of labor" it ''quiesceptly allows
the manufacturer to absorb the bulk
of protection" And because of all
this he has decided that the theory is
wrong, and that he does not want any
more of it.
Protection has failed because its
alleged beneficiaries have made up
their minds that they were not bene-
flied. They had been taught that this
was a government of the people. by
the people, for the people" The at
tempt was made to persuade them
that the Mckinley theory of a govern
ment of the manufacturer, by the
manufacturer, for the wage-earner,
would be an improvement upon the
Lincoln ideal They have tried it. and
they have decided that SIT will not
work" They do not want any more
''shelter" of this sort.
The failure of protection, which Mr..
Harrison confesses. has always been
inevitable. It was only necessary that
the attention of the people should be
concentrated upon the matter to insure
such verdict as has been rendered.
N1n 10 fha
which it was based is that it offends
common sense. The idea that the
Carnegies ought to be the source of
shelter" to the wage-earners, and
that the interest of the wage-earners
would be their chief concern, was too
much for human nature long to stand.
1t has failed, and it can never be re-
vived.-N. Y. Post.
THE PLAN OF REFORM.
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