New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-04-05
PRICE THREE CENTS
Mr.. HORR IN RHODE ISLAND.
AN EXCITING TWO WEEKS CAMPAIGN.

rroVidence, Il. l.. April Al have devoted the
'ast TWO weeks to the campaign in Rhode Island.
ana am fully satisfied, that there is no better
Illustration OF what the protective tariff will do
ior State than that which has been done IN
thls, the smallest State in the Union I have
been over the entire Commonwealth Although
the state contains only about $50 SQUARE miles
or Iand Yet to-day it sustains a population Of
$4,000 souls. The State is one great hive Of
manufacturing industries. 1t makes no difference
which way one travels One cannot 20 in any
direction very many miles without finding fac.
tory, either large or small. Most of the factories
are OF enormous proportions. On the free trade
plan which. in the present condition of the world
would have this country devote itself solely
| to agriculture. permitting Great Britain 70 manu-
facture all its goods the State of Rhode Island
would not support comfortably one person where
| 1t now gives excellent living TO ten
After my meeting at Newport, | heard man
at the hotel, with the wel-known brogue Of Q
Yorkshire Englishman, inform a group of listen.
| crs that the people OF tine United States should
| not attempt 10 make or raise anything, unless
| they could make raise il cheaper than the peo-
| pie of any other part of the world A bystander
asked him. Well. if you break down the fac
tories in Rhode Island. what would you have our
people do?' Raise wheat" was his reply. That
is the usual answer of the average free-trader.
|
in Rhode Island? The tillabe land Of this State
has been occupied for one hundred years. If the
worlmcn Of Rhode Island were thrown out Of
work, whore would they get the land which
! 70 grow wheat? There is not enough tillable
! land In Rhode Island 10 raise the vegetables, hay
and common table food required by one-quarter
OF the people who live in the State Their bread
all comes from the West. One cannot grow
wheat on bare rock. To produce grain requires
soil With the advantages possessed by the West
| for producing corn, oats. wheat and rye. man
is insane to think that the people of Rhode Island
or Of New-England could for a single year devote
themselves simply TO agriculture.
The carrying out the theories of the tariff re-
formers would dcpopulate Rhode Island. In iced, it
would have the same result in all New-England,
with perhaps a slight exception in the State OF
Maine.
/ find in every part Of Rhode Island new in
dustries which have sprung up since the passage
Of the Mckinley bill Old industries have in
creased their capacity for production The State
| OF Rhode Island was never more prosperous, its
people never living more comfortably, than
| now. Think of State with population of
| 900 having in its savings banks S63,000-
600, and this money divided up among $4,000
| depositors. That fact is enough 10 silence
the calamity-speakcrs who just now invad-
ing this State in behalf OF the Democratic party.
The campaign here is being conducted entirely
upon National Issues. The speakers upon both
sides are devoting themselves largely TO the tarin.
| The Republican speakers are, however, also com"
| menting upon honest money. doubt If single
Democratic speaker has visited this State 50 far
who has dared 10 mention the subject of free
| coinage. The Congressman whom the Democrats
landed here to take part in the campaign had
every one Of them, voted tor free coinage The
IL.
done 10 prevent this issue being brought before
the people. Their only object in bringing Mr..
Cleveland TO the State has been TO give 10 their
campaign a sort of coorng in favor of honest
money. Yet Mr. Cleveland, in spite OF his we'll
known opinions upon that question. did not NEIL
tion the subject Of silver in the speech he delivered
in this State The Democrats Of Rhode Island
know full well that the great majority of thei
party in the country committed TO the free
| coinage Of silver. If / not mistaken, the
people of this State will show by their votes that
| they are not going TO trust such a party with
the management of the finances of their own
| Commonwealth
II makes no difference what part of Rhode
Island a man visits, his attention will at once be
called TO some large establishment which is
making goods under our protective tarin laws.
So far | have been able to learn, the only
institution in the entire State which is working
on half time is tie large rubber factory at Woon-
socket that factory is managed by a Democrat,
and bis raw material is on the free list The
increase Of the output of the wooen mills in
this State during the last eighteen months is
simply marvellous. The same can he said of the
different establishments which manufacture every
variety of cotton goods. The people of Rhode
Island usually well employed and no ore
denies that the wages paid operatives in this State
| l.. srl-
tented and happy.
! The popular interest in the political contest n
becoming intense. succession of meetings has
been held in the town of Woonsocket bv the
Republicans of that city which would do credit
TO any town in the United States in the most
heated Presidential campaign Here in the city
of Providence two meetings were held Saturday
night. in Music Hall and the other in In.
fantry Hall. The capacity of the two buildings
is fully Sin thousand people Both were packed.
Standing room hard 10 obtain at either hall
In the last fifteen years 1 have looked audiences
in the face in twenty States in this Union
during political campaigns. ! will say this for
the people of Providence: | have never in my
life stood up before Letter looking more iutelli-
gent and more apprcciatiye audiences than the
two in this city Saturday night. No man, care
not how preudiced he is could have looked over
those two audiences without coming 10 the con-
clusion that the real intelligence the higher
moral character. of the people Of Rhode Island
are in the Republican party. Tie contrast be.
tween those two audiences on the one hand. and
an ordinary Democratic gathering the other
was sufficient of itself to make every true Re-
publican rejoice, and should teach our Demo-
cratic friends lesson The Republican audiences
were composed of the kd-glovc element Of
the city. but Of merchants mechanics. intelligent
operatives and business If this statement is
not absolutely y-.orrcct. II is because am unable TO
! Judge people by looking into their faces.
| II is the vcrlc, o: every Rhode Island man
meet that this State has never before experienced
such a campaign a. this. Even The Providence
Journal" which for few years has been morti
flying the Republicans OF this State by its utter
ances and giving aid and comfort 20 the Democ.