The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1894-08-16
THE TWO THEORIES.

A stump speaker now posing as a
Republican but popularity understood
to be a Populist, is reported by a Re
publican paper as making this distinc-
ton between the Democratic and Re
publican theories as to the tariff:
THE Republican party believes in
a tariff on those articles which Amer
lea can produce. The Democratic
party believes IN a tariff on those arti-
cles which America. cannot produce"
1t will be found when the utterances
Of the Republicans who address the
people Of Utah are examined, that they
contain assertions on various topics
which are just as untrue and absurd
as the foregoing. The only effect they
can have favorable to the party which
they pretend to represent, is that
which may be produced on the minds
of people too ignorant to know any bet
ter and too Indifferent to inquire as to
the truth
We do not believe that any thorough
Republican will maintain that the
tariff theory of his party is truthfully
represented in that paragraph we have
quoted. Nothing of the kind attrib-
uted to the Democratic party can be
found in its platforms. Comparison be-
tween the Mckinley law and the Will
son bill or the Mills bill will show that
no such distinction as that pretended
is made. All the tariff bills that have
been prepared have duties on articles
manufactured in America, as well as
some not manufactured here. Take
the list of comparisons furnished by
the Associated Press, showing the diff
ference in the rates of duty in the Nc
Kinley and Wilson bills, and a suffi-
Gent answer to the alleged Republi-
cans nonsense is furnished.
The distinction between the tariff
doctrines Of the two parties is that the
Republicans levy duties on imports to
protect certain classes, the revenue de-
rived being used for public expenses,
and also to further benefit private en-
terprises, and the Democrats impose
duties on imports for public purposes
only, for which they claim any kind of
taxes can alone be lesitimately levied.
but that they should be greater on
articles of luxury than on articles of
necessity, and that American indus.
tries may thus receive incidental pro-
lection.
High duties are consequent upon Re-
publican tariffs; low duties are a. fea-
ture Of Democratic tariffs. There is no
defined limit to a Republican tariff, for
it is regulated by the demands of the
protected classes and the compliance
of their servants in Congress. The
limit of Democratic tariff is the ne
cessities Of the government econom
ically administered. The Republican
theory is that public funds derived
from a tariff may be given awav to
favored classes. The Demcraotic the
DRY is that public funds may only be
expended for public uses.
II the virtues or vices of the two
systems are to be discussed. we must
have them both truthfully presented
1t will serve no good purpose to he
quarreling, denying, spitfiring and
wrangling over catch phrases and
windy fictions.
The Democratic party is ready to
stand by its tariff principles as enun-
Grated by its own opponents. And
there will be no doubt as to the issue
when they can be fairly put before the
people, undisigured by Re
publican fantastic disguises. The Dem
ocratlc tariff is the constitutional tariff
and is bound some day to prevail. The
Republican theory is only a makeshift.
and like similar political expedients
will certainly pass away.