The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1892-08-19
FREE TRADE UNPOPULAR.

The free trade plank which the
Democrats adopted as part of their
platform at Chicago is not proving as
popular as they had hoped. and as the
matter is more widely discussed, is
is found that the people are not yet
ready for radical change in our eco
nomic system. Commenting upon
the Democratic position upon this
question, the Chicago Daily Neaos
which has always been warm ad-
mirer of Grover Cleveland, says:
THE effect of the out-and-out free
trade plank in the Democratic plat
form is gradually becoming apparent.
Voters who favored the moderate pol
icy advocated by President Cleveland
in his messages to Congress haze become
alarmed and are .tt0cking to the protection
banners. They prefer McKinLeyiSna to
CObdeniSm.
The interview in last nights issue
OF, the Daily Nea0S with Congressman
Cutting of San Francisco is but one of
many straws showing which way the
wind is beginning to blow. Other
States besides California are opposed
to free trade, or at least unprepared
for it. The Independent and conservative
v0te of the country IS against 1t, and there
is an element of considerable strength
and influence within the Democratic
party itself which repudiates it. Sam
Randall's teachings have not yet
passed entirely into oblivion.
Mr.. Cleveland and his campaign
managers will have to do something
to counterfeit the mischievOus effect
of Mr.. WatterSOn'S free-trade plank or
the battle in November will go against
them.
This is frank admission that free
trade is unpopular and that something
must be done to counterfeit the effect
that the official utterance of Democra-
cy is having upon the country. The
New York San sounded the same note
of warning some time ago, and recon-
mended that.the ghost of the so-called
force bill be substituted for it as an
issue.
There are other evidences going to
show that everywhere Democracy rec
ogniZeS it has made mistake, and
various means are being taken to
break the force of the open declara-
tiOn that has been made. Many of its
representatives take the same position
as that assumed by the Minneapolis
Times in an editorial yesterday morn
ing in which it attempted to show
that free trade is nothing more or less
than Republican bogey;" that
there can be no free trade so long as
there is custom house taxation, and
that we must have custom house tax
alton to raise the enormous revenues
annually required by the general gov
eminent, because it can be SO raised
more easily and cheaply and with less
friction and ANNOYANCE there than by
any other means. But this is simply
beating around the bush in an attempt
to dodge facing the facts. What to-
day is known as free trade and is so re-
garded in the discussion of the SUBJ
ject, is what is known as the
British system of levying import du-
ties. 1t is this system which Democ-
racy has declared fora system which
calls for the levying of duties in such
manner as to afford no protection
whatever to our industries. The
Democratic platform declares that
any tariff law which does afford such
protection is unconstitutional. There
is only one meaning to this; thatis war
upon the policy of protection until it
is utterly eXterminated. The people
realize this, aud as the Chicago Daily
Neaos says ''prefer McKinleyism to
Cobdenism."
1t is too late for the Times or any
other representative of Democracy to
attempt to place different construc-
tion upon the official declaration of
their party, for to do so is like locking
the barn door after the horse has been
taken. In 1888 Senator Vest declared
that the object of Democracy was
war of determination upon the pro-
tectiye policy. Roger @. Mills in
speech at East St. Louis on Sept. 25,
of the same year, virtually makes the
same declaration, while the Liverpool,
Eng, Courier, commenting upon the
position the Democratic party has
taken this year says: