The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1892-10-29
Hon. E {. Day and Hon. W. D. Hill
Speak to the Democrats at
Electric Hall.
Able Addresses and Convincing
Arguments Made by
Both Gentlemen.
The Hail Filled with an Audience Which
u In Full BY n,pathy With the Doc
trines Enunciated.

rally OF the fight, and the audience showed
their sympathy with the doctrines enun-
ciated by their demonstr atoms of applause.
Every mentor of the name of Grover
Cleveland was greeted with cheers. The
German Democratic Flambsaux club were
out in full force, and made an imposing ap-
pearance az they marched to the hall. with
their bright uniforms and lighted torches.
and headed by a good band OF music.
Mayor JohnSC. Curtin presided. and n. w.
knight introduced the speakers OF the even
ing.
Il. G. Day, the democratic candidate for
attorney general, was the first speaker. be
talked principally on the tariff, and while
touching the general issues involved in that
question, dealt with illustrations which
conveyed forcibly to his hearers the truth
of the contentious OF the democratic party
on that question. He said the tariff was
the paramount issue of the campaign. The
democrats were contending that congress
had no right to exercise its taxing power
except to the extent necessary to pay the
expenses Of government honestly and eco
nomically administered, and in levying
these taxes care should be taken that the
burden should rest ON each in proportion to
his ability to bear them; that luz
uries should bear the heaviest por-
ton, and necessities the least. The
republican party held that it was not only
the power. but the duty of the government
to so arrange taxation that certain citizens
might enter into business that would be
Improbable but for tariff laws. Mr.. Day
then analysed the tariff system under
which the country was now operating and
cpva ayqrnnleH tn Drnva TINT the dIff0rGnCo
between domestic and foreign articles rep
ragented by the tariff went into the pockets
81 the manufacturer. If the tariff system
of the republican party were ever carried
to perfection. this government would get
no revenue whatever from duties. as the
affect would be to shut out the foreign
article altogether and give home manufac-
turers entire control of home ma kets.
He then pointed out the difference
between the report which Mckinley
made up when he reported his bill,
and the claims Of the republican speakers
and newspapers. The first said the law was
not designed so much with reference to
p ices as it was to encourage a system OF
home production. The republican speakers
and papers, however. claimed that 1t cheap
ened prices. Mr.. Day dwelt at some length
on the pretensions of the republican orators
that the tariff oheapened goods and made
wages higher. The manufacturers, he
said, were no less selfish than other people,
hHu Wcic " bc&SihB chkASpS w D'SooSs
them merely for the purpose of raising the
wages of their employees. Workingmen
themselves knew that their hardest fights
against reductions in wages were against
those industries which were protected most.
He claimed that tariff legislation did not
effect wages except to decrease the pur-
chasing power of money. Wages In this
country were higher in the imp detected in
dustries than in the protected ones. A
comparison of the two classes of labor in
AL.- -~-- .~ A ~.naspn nr,I EJ1 prSnA I'VE
also that in the unprotected class the differ
ence was more in favor of the workmen
here than it was in the protected GLASS. Nj.
Day was listened to throughout with great
attention and loudly applauded.
Hon. w. ID. Hill, formerly member of
congress from Ohio, but now a resident of
Montana. was the next speaker. He had
SCI we'd in the house while Gen. Harrison
was in the senate, and Mr.. Hill was also in
congress while Cleveland WAS president.
He had opportunities to meet both Harri-
son and Cleveland, and could say that no
matter which was elected the country
would have an honest man in the White
house. But Cleveland represented a prin-
ciple which. if carried into effect, would be
for the interest of the whole country. The
question was one of taxation. The consti-
tuition left 1t to congress to say how taxes
should be collected. Thu government had
but two systems-lnternal revenue and
tariff. As an example of how the internal
tax was collected Mr.. Hill said the govern
ment charged the distiller SO much on
every gallon of whisky he made. The dis
tiller, when he sold TO the saloon keeper,
made him pay this tax. The saloon keeper,
in turn, waited for a democratic meeting,
aud then got even. Laughter. So the
consumer eventually paid the tax. Laugh.
ter. AS to the tariff, he told the story of
the pirates who preyed on the of
Europe. taking the merchandise and
crews from vessels to the island of
Terrific. and threatening that unless ran
som we're paid. to conhscate the one and
murder the other. This was the origin OF
the word tariff. Laughter. If it meant
anything it meant highway robbery on the
high seas. Applause. As with the inter
nal revenue SO with the tariff. the consumer
paid the tax. Mr.. Hill said q great dea
had been heard about free trade in thi,
oampaign. He held in his hand copies o.
the messages of every president from
Washington to Harrison. II any republir
can could show him a word about free trad,
in Cleveland's messages, he would vote 70
Harrison. There was no such thing as
free trade party in this country. Reading
from a copy of the Mckinley law he gave
list of the articles which had been put on
the free list for the benefit of the laborinl
man and the poor. Among them wer'
%aconite, acorns, arsenic. wood ashes, bees
broken glass not fit for use, ice Ga goo
thing for Montana, ipecac ESQ that tn,
people in the n alarial districts might vomi
free of duty. etc. At each enumeration
there were shouts of laughter. But ont
message of a president said anything tina
sounded like free trade. 1t said he wanted
the tariff 30 amended that trade would b
u~nhampered. 1t was a message of Presi
dent Arthur.
The contract labor law was next touche'
upon. In 1868. Mr.. Hill said. the republi
can congress passed a law that ''all con
tracts made by immigrants. where ther
was a pledge that the wages received shoulS
be used to repay the expense of bringin
them here, should be held to be valid an,
could be enforced in tho cou, ia, and oper
ate as a lien on any land or property tina
might eyer be owned" This law Rename,
on the statute books for twenty-thre
wears, until Martin A. Foran, a demoora
of Ohio, int oduced Il bill to repeal IL, an
the bill was passed by a democratic house
Meantime hundreds of thousands of labor
ers had been brought here under contraC
to take the place of Americans. Not sat
istied with the repeal of the obnoxious law
the democrats the following year passe
another, making it a penalty to impor
labor under contract. 1t was the first la,
ever pdBsed by the American congress- 70
the protection of American labor.
Going back to the tariff. Mr.. Hill took u
the matter of the tin works said to b
started up in this country. lie read a lette
f. om the manage of the tin plate works a
Norristown. Pa. The letter said the pre-