The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1892-11-16

The republican soul of Mr.. Henry
Clews, banker of Wall street, is greatly
perturbed over the result of last weeks
election, and he fears we are entering
upon an era of incertitude and distrust,
in which business will anguish and
everything be at skies and sevens, until
it is known what the democratic party
is going to do with the country. In the
latest circular sent ont from his Office in
Wall street, Mr.. Clews says:
The new situation introduced is a very
wide one. 1t means a coming change in the
position and prospective value of nearly
everything bought and sold within our do
main, and first-thoughts therefore afford a
very imperfect indication of what the after
thoughts may be. Radical changes are i'm
pending in every branch of business, and
national reconstruction is before US. The
next two years therefore must be a period
of anxiety to some. but perhaps equally of
rope to others. The misfortune is. that
manufacturer may have to wait for at least
eighteen months (unless an early special
session of the new congress is called, which
does not seem improbable) before they can
know what are to be the conditions of the
tariff under which they will have to CON
duct their business, which is of course cal
culated to create Generalization. On the
other hand, there must be, on a wide range
OF products, a disposition to defer pur-
chases until the lower duties and lower
prices take effect. Manufactures, how
ever. have generally one certainty before
Shem-that duties will be reduced; and it ia
therefore to be expected that they will use
every endeavor to anticipate the future
conditions by producing at reduced costs
and thereby encouraging mption.
The situation will have its encouragements
as we'll as its discouragoments, Consumers
of imported raw materials will have the
near prospect of getting them free of duty,
and openings for extending our EXPORT
trade may be expected to throw open to US
important new markets for a wide range of
manufactured products. Still, balancing ia
the most favorable sense the disappoint-
ments and apprehensions of one class with
the hopeful expectations of another, and
even conceding that the final outcome of
the great change may prove as beneficial as
its promoters predict, it Is not to be con.
cealed that the best we can reasonably ex-
pect. for the next eighteen months or two
years, IS unusual caution in every branch
OF business, the deferment of new enter
prlses, the cessation of extending industrial
plant, a continuous pressure on prices and
q hand-to-mouth condition of business. II
Is to be remembered, however, that these
conditions will be mainly confined to the
industrial portion of our population; the
agricultural milf in thu unaon3i,,o will ,a,-
the benefits of two successive years of great
hsrvests and, it is to be inferred from their
votes. will be exhilarated by the PROSPECT of
cheaper living and cheaper labor.
Mr.. Clews is giving himself a great
deal of unnecessary anxiety. When the
democrats secured control of the presj-
dency and the house of representatives.
by the election of 1884, they found tariff
duties averaging about AZ per cent. AZ
ter two years of controversy they for
mulated their policy in the Mills bill,
which slightly increased the free list,
but still left Il schedule of duties aver
aging about Al per cent. The reduction
they proposed, therefore, averaged about
seven per cent. Certainly that was not
calculated to bring the country to the
verge of destruction.
-Four years later, when the republi-
cans came into power again, the old As
per cent duties were still in force,
These were war taxes for whose reduc-
ton there had long been a popular de
mand. But the republican party was
not satisfied to leave even these duties
alone. 1t immediately upset business
by beginning the work OF marking up
duties. Does Mr.. Clews think that
raising the tariff disturbs business less
h lowering II? If he does. let him ask
any merchant or manufacturer, and he
will be Informed to the contrary.
Mr.. Clews is solicitous, too, for the
welfare of the manufacturers. He be-
lleves that they will be greatly en-
barrassed because the democrats will
give them less protection. Yes, the du-