The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-07-25
MKINLEY A PHILANTHROPY t.
A Fact About the Tariff Hitherto Not
Known by the People.


Known by the People.
From the New York Times.
There's SIS gone to smash )" growled the
man who was leaning over one side of one Of
the Central park bridges.
"Ain't that rough" he demanded, speak
ing to Times reporter, who happened to
be alongside of him.
The reporter didn't know what had hap
pened. The man explained that he had
sneezed one of his eyes out of his head, and
that the eye had fallen to the pavement be-
low and broken into pieces.
"Glass eye, l suppose~ said the reporter
"Well, rather" answered the man, ibid
you ever hear of q man's sneezing any other
kind out of his headp
The reporter wasn't sure, but he thought
that he never had.
Fifteen dollars that eye cost me" said
the man. big price, amt it, 'Twouldn't
be so big though If it wasn't fer the tariff. "
"Is there duty on glass eyesp ASKED the
reporter.
Certain. Amt there duty on every
thing that man can usel Find me some
thing that nobody wants and it is free. All
the rest pays tax. These eyes pay 90 per
cent"
"You don't mean itr'
Eyes; do mean it. Sixty per cent. is
the rate. 1t used to be less, but Mckinley
put 1t up to 90 per cent?
"Why, should think that a man who
had lost his eye was entitled to kind treat
ment from the government. He ought to
be able to get glass eye as cheap as it
could be made anywhere in the world. 1t
seems to me that il an eye-maker should
come to me-supPosing that | was q con-
gressmau-and ask me to protect his goods
from competition with the pauper-made
glass eyes of the old world, I'd tell him to
Tbof 81 -
one-eysd man pay ia K OF 60 per cent. for
glass ball to fill up his empty socket.
That's an outrage"
The man that had lost his eye gave the
reporter one-sided look of gratitude for
this speech. That's ~hatiI think" said he.
but must tell 20 J" he Went on, what
q ole.eyed friend of mine says about the
tariff on eyes He says that he's inVesti-
gated the thing pretty thoroughly and has
made up his mind that Mckinley put that
big tax on, not for the sake OF giving pro-
lection to eye manufacturers, not so much
for the encouragement Of an infant indus
try, as for the purpose OF making peop.e
more careful. He says he knows this to be
fact; says that Mckinley told him so
with his own lips.
"Says be, Il asked Mckinley if he didn't
think it al outrageous thing to make us
poor fellows pay duty of % per cant. on
our glass eyes just to help along some man
ufacturer with pull.
ITO this, according to my friend, McKin-
ley answered.: 1t amt the manufacturers
that I'm thinking Of. Ny idea is 90 make
artificial eyes 30 dear that it won't be every
body that can afford to buy one. Whya
Why, so as to make people more careful
when they're driving nails, when they're
splitting wood, when they're tending lathes,
when they're going about in the dark,
when they're out cunning, when they're
talking politics with men bigger than them
selves, when they're
"'Hold on says my friend, don't say
any more, Mr.. Mckinley. / think catch
your meaning. You think that If eyes sold
two for 25 cents, and extra nice ones for
S715 cents, half the people in the country
would be wearing them. You want TO
make them so expensive that only rich peo~
pie can afford to have them
THAT was Just the idea, Mckinley said.
He couldn't have stated it more clearly il
my friend had allowed him to go on talking
for a week. His whole notion of putting on
the tax was philanthropic he said.
CHOW what do you think OF thatF asked
the man who had lost his eye OF the Times
reporter.
II think, )" said the reporter, "that in JUS
tice to Maj Mckinley, that story ought to
find its way to the public"