Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1893-11-25
\ Lame Defense,


the assertion that coal is to be placed upon
the free list at the demand of the enemies of
the administration and in opposition to the
protests of its frends.-Cumberland Nc"S
And yet it is even so.
For it is as certain as the night
follows the day that if there were no
republican demand for free coal there
would be no democratic supply.
The Nc,cs may twist and squrm, but
right here it is anchored.
Again:
The Frostburg JOURNAL and its conireres
of the democratic school persstently repeat
the assertion that if the tariff on coal is
abolished it will be done at the bidding of re-
publican manufacturers ofNcw England.
The JOURNAL is an independent
labor paper, having no "contreres of
the democratic school" in a party sense.
Moreover, it is the only paper we
know of claiming with unquestionable
precision and implacable logic that
free coal in the Wilson tariff bill is a
democratic answer to Il republican
demand.
The Nc,rs next holds that this idea
is untenable because committee,
Southern in feeling, would not likely
concede 50 much to New England sug-
gestion or dictation
There is nothing in that hypothesis.
There is no more sympathy among
Georges Creek republicans fora South
ern committee than there is among
the New Englanders.
From the Southern committee stand
whitley whet between them, morally
considered. Materially, however, the
magnitude of New England interests
would in Southern eyes overbalance
those of Georges Creek.
The Ne,cs says:
The committee of ways and means proposes
to put coal on the free list because they
believe tie democratic purity demands it,; be-
cause the President is thought to approve it,
and because it is IN fultilment of the pledges
oil the ChlcaSo platlOrln'
They 0he committed 5eliere' and
"the President Mought," etc.
What can be more absurd than that
1.-THE democratic party demands" free
coal for republican benefit!
Or that the President is thought to
approve of it for the same reason?
Or that the Chicago platform pledged
acquiescence in the free trade wishes
of high protection people
We defy the JOURNAL to mention the name
of one New England firm that has made an
unqualified demand for free coal
They have been wanting it for years
Indeed, the memory of men hardly
goes back to time when, nor to the
name of firm that has not wanted it,
This is supported by this quotation
from that conclusive authority, the
Coal Trade Jopnal:
New England manufacturers claim that
coal is a raw material and rs such should be
free Of duty.
In this the JoHwnl also differs with
the Netrs, which says the
Manufacturers of cotton and wooden goods
everywhere have demanded that the burden
of tariff reduction should be distributed that
if the duty on the product of their mills is to
be lowered they would ask for reduction of
the duty on the fuel they used, and there is
nothing unfair or unjust in the proposition.
If there was any force in the Netrs'
apology for the manufacturers de-
mand, it should have appeared in 1890,
when the duties on nearly all manufac-
lures were raised from about so to over
90 per cent.
If coal had been at all Increased
above % per- cent. at the same time, the
manufacturers could reasonably argue
as the Ne'cS reports.
But coal was severely left just where
it was before, and now the Ne,cS-the
Cumberland NerS actually says 'there
is nothing unfair or unjust in the
proposition to reduce the duty On
coal if New England is to be made to
come back to the protection of 1889,
Miners ought to be able to see
through this injustice that coal had
no share in the tariff rise, but must
share in the fall
Remember, this is not committee
logic. 1t is the argument of the man
ufacte,ers, as reported by the Ne~s-
an argument in which the NenS says
there is nothing unfair or unjust :"
By the way, these are the same
manufacturers by whose interests we
stood lately to the tune of about 900
majority,
And they seem perfectly willing to
see us continue making sublime fools
of ourselves
Lost sympathy.
The Mars Copdolcs with the JOURNAL, and
regrets its perturbation of mind at the pros
pect of "ncvitable interruption" to the