Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1893-12-30
ANOTHER VIEW.
The Tariff Bill as Regarded by Re-
publican Leaders.
The Minority Report on the wiiSon Meas
ure Presented to Congress-Their
Criticism of the Pro-
posed Changes.
CONDEMNED BY REED.

submitted to the house Thursday. The
first part of the report, discussing the
bill generally, was prepared by ex-
Speaker Reed. The other members of
the minority-Messrs. Burrows, Payne,
Dalzell, Hopkins and Gear-prepared
the portion of the report dealing with
special features The report says:
The most surprising thing about this bill is
the fact that this proposition TO raise revenue
Wi Will lower the revenue OF this country S4OO0,
900 below the revenue OF 1898, which was only
s2,0DO,00O above our expenses.
This fact and the other fact that by this bill
the larger part OF the burden of taxation is
transferred from foreigners and borne by our
own citizens should always be kept In mind
during the discussion Had the committee, in
making what the chairman on the floor OF the
house has called political bill followed the
plain uncompromising declaration OF the party
which they represent, and abolished protection,
| giving us tariff Tor revenue only, our task in
commenting upon the result of the committees
t efforts s., would have been much more simple,
pledges and A Would have placed ''' in is: IS:
to o clear and Comprehensive discussion.
So far, however have the committee departed
| from the demands OF their national convention
that should have been much tempted to
borrow phrase from their own platform and
| designate the bill as '.eowardly makeshft,"
were 1t not that the results have been already
| too serious for mere epithets. Such phrase,
| even thus sanctioned, would be out OF pluce in
| q discussion which involves so much OF i'm
| portance to all classes of citizens 1t still,
! however, remains fact that the bil'presented
| can in no way be justified by people who claim
| to have obtained possession OF all branches OF
| the government upon distinct promise which
| they as distinctly repudiate
II it should be said that the pledges, solemn
| ly made on yea and nay vote after full discus
| sion, were not intended for action, then the
breaking of the pledges has the additional dis
| advantage OF premeditauon. II subsequent
| events have convinced the committee that the
democratic platform Is utterly wrong and inde-
neIsiOie Us VIII hs1W S ~ 10 pe, 'nsn ms Is
| committee did not have the courage to openly
| abandon the false doctrine and leave the coun.
try undtsturbed, so THAI 1t might convalesce
from the shock OF its great mistake.
But the committee, instead OF proceeding In
fits great work OF aboshing protection and pre-
serving the people from The load of taxation
| which they have always averred was the re.
suit of protection, has presented bill which is
| which has disturbed the conditions OF business
! so many times the last thirty years. 1t Is n
great misfortune that such is the case, for had
the bill been for revenue only, in the only sense
possible for that term, the people OF this coun-
try might have seen at one glance whether they
desired the one policy or the other, and the
question might have been settled once for all.
pose, stability and certainty which our busi-
ness prosperity so much needs.
Why Change Good Law?
AS to the new plan the very first question
one is disposed to ask Is: Why disturb exist
change in principle? II we are still to have
protection. why take this time to cause read:
iustment when the business conditions are OF
such character that the greatest umount of
disaster will be the result?
This other and fresher plan has all the faults
which the trainers OF this bill charged upon the
old. and very few or its virtues 1t is open to
all the derisive and harsh epithets with which
! the present system used to be overwhelmed.
1t taxes the people with tariff taxes 1t Gre
ates, or rather proposes to main tain, what they
used to call privileged classes, and is defended
by its authors by arguments and expressions
strangely like those which they used so hotly
TO denounce.
Free Raw Material"
| The new plan involves new method of en-
courdging manufacturers by giving them wha'
is called free raw material" so that wha'
goes into the mill pays no taxes and what goes
into consumption pays all the taxes. The man
rfacturerS pay no taxes on what they buy unt
the people the equivalent of taxes on all they
1t unfortunately happens, also. that free raw
material" is an elastic term, and what is one
mans free raw material is another mans nm
shed product The manufacturer in Massachu
selts Is told that he Is to be encouraged bv hay
ing free lumber to build his factory and to pacl
! his goods, but inasmuch that very lum bel
thus made free is the Maine manufacturers fin
ished product no wonder the democrats OF Ban
gor, the mills on the Penobscot being unable &
move saw, denounce class Legislation" with
i new appreciation OF what class Legislation
really means And with the dwellers on tn,
Peuobscot sympathize the lumbermen in Wis
'consin and Michigan, the Pacific slope, Ala
bama, Georgia and Florida No doubt III,
miners in Michigan struggling this yer!
moment with starvation realize that tn,
mos. odous class legislation there can possibl,
be Is the legislation which protects labor in th
mill and leaves II in the mines to the charity o
tie great cities.
; Needs OF American Wool.
If the woolens OF America need, as this yer.
bill assumes, 30 and 10 per cent 10 enabl
them TO have fair chance in our Owl
markets, where is the unlimited foreign trad
, which awaits them in countries where they ar
, stripped of the 30 and 40 per cent. protection
> and Obliged TO pay freight and all other charges
and fight business connections existing 10
NlNi. ,ftA
urged by the dominant party against the exist
: ing system We repeat, be against this bill. Th
difference is only one of degree II the presen
! system oe robbery" as these men have iterat
ed and reiterated, the proposed system is pre-
/ cisely the same
? II is true the consumer will no longer pa,
, tribute to the western farmer for the wool o
the sheep but tho New England and other man
1 ufacturers are sthl authorized to lay tribut
must pay, SO these men have always paid 80
:, 40 and 45 per cent. TO the manufacturer on ev
Q country will only receive by way OF rev
d enue, a lessened sum, unless increase
. mportutions signalize the decay OF American
!, production. 1t Is true that the coal miners o
: West Virginia and the ore producers OF Mich
y igan will be stripped OF their so-called robbie
gains entirely. and the railroads must lose tn
n transportation OF millions of tons OF freight
e but the manufacturers are thereby stimulate
= and aided so that they can, as the committe
. asseverate, still continue their prof table bus
- ness here and reach across the ocean for III
2 business of other countries and foreign trad
1
y Labor and the Tariff
Q The moral and social well-being of q natio
. does not depend so much upon its absolut
q wealth as upon the yearly distribution OF tn
a yearly gain Whatever can be said OF the pc,
= pie OF the United States, nothing can be nor
l. truly said than that the distribution OF III
g. proceeds OF united labor and capital has bee
t among them more even and fair than anywher
n else on earth. There have been great accumul;
tons OF capital necessary for the worlds deye
OpEent all over the universe, but in the Unite
States all this has been accompanied by III
nearest approach to general distribution thi
. the world has ever seen. This has not been a
F" owing 10 the tariff. but the tarir has been II
foundation OF II Labor organizations hay
n played u great and useful part in this distribI
lion. Men in general who employ labor are I
l. more naturally disposed to- pay high wage
"a under tarin than those who exploit the laborlr
~ man under free trade. but the tarf, by gviI
IS steady employment under the influence OF
N sure market. by establishing the orsanZatiC
!. OF industry under the factory system, has give
II 20 organized labor the material TO work upo
Is the fund or which II has demanded distribution
:. Protection has established the clusters
III great manufacturing and working cente
d which have given railroads the possibility
40 existence which no scattered population cou
Ia ever have created. The railroads which thei
IN great manufacturing towns and their need