The advocate., 1892-06-22

II
lief from gamblers and speculators, and
in the other the farmers of the south
were utterly without remedy in the
hands Of a speculative combine, because
the tariff wall kept out those who could
have relieved them.
Now, Mr.. Chairman, my friend from
Nebraska [Mr. Bryant in his brilliant
speech formulated the Democratic plat
form in such attractive colors that he
was loudly spplsuded upon the Demo
cratic side. What was that platform?
After all the force of his logic, after all
the splendor of his rhetoric, after all the
driving In the direction of free trade, the
gentleman shirked the issue when he got
to the actual enunciation Of the results
of his own logic His speech favors free
trade, while his platform does not.
He announced his ideal Democratic
platform; not platform you would have,
but platform you should have; plat
form you could have if man was sitting
quietly by his fire at night with his feet
In his slippers, cigar in his mouth, hot
toddy by his side, nothing to disturb him,
and ideal Democratic dreams in his head.
Now, what was that platform? 1t is
very pretty; it has all the vague charms
Of the underlined; 1t has all the boundless
beauty of landscape that has no limit.
He says this phrase, "tsrif for protec-
tlon," Is the only thing of which he COM
plains. He says, in effect: 81 do not OBJ
ject to q tariff if It's incident is to give
protection" ~ do not object to protec-
tion II it comes by way Of a tariff which
pretends to be for revenue" II do not
object to 1t If 1t does by indirection what
the other fellow says 1t should do directly;
but l object to tariff which says in plain
terms what it Is meant to do" Laugh
ter on the Republican side.
Here are his words:
am not Objecting to tariff for revenue. If 1t
were possible to arrange system just as be-
lieVe 1t ought to be arranged, should collect
one part Of our revenues for the support Of the
federal government from internal taxes on whls-
key and tobacco. These are luxuries and may
well be taxed. l should collect another part
from tariff leViedupOn imported articles, with
raw materials on the free llst-the lowest duties
upon the neceSssries fife and the highest duties
upon the hxurles Of life. And then should
collect another part of the revenues from q
graduated income tax upon the wealth Of this
country.
That is beautiful proclamation. Il
is like the old ish-trsp, with one mouth
down the stream and the other up, and 1t
catches 'em a-comin' and a-gwine."
[Great laughter.] Mr.. Chairman, If the
tariff is right, it is right. Favoritism ia
a necessary incident to any general tariff
system. Whatever tariff you impose,
protection is necessarily incident to it,
sne II protection is wrong, then the Incl
dent is wrong. If you are to have
tariff at all, protection is part Of its ma
ture; necessarily flows from it. If pro-
lection is wrong, then the tariff is wrong,
and so per cent. tariff is just per cent.
less justlaable than 45 per cent tariff,
and that is all there is of 1t. [Laughter.l
Mr.. Chairman, the gentleman says, 1--WE
will levy a tax upon the necessaries of
llRe."
Why should the necessaries of life be
taxed at allS Where Is there a govern
mental principle on which it can be de-
fendedY