The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1894-04-24
THE PROPOSED CHANGE RULES.

not likely that the Republicans will
maintain that tariff discussion is caus-
ing the New England mills to shut
down. The Mckinley law is still in op-
Grafton" And yet The Constitution is
the ablest paper published in the South,
and is one Of the most progressive papers
in the country. II is not ignorance that
impelled such paragraph. but
downright, intentional dishonesty, for
it was intended to create wrong i'm
preston. The Republicans certainly
do maintain that tariff discussion is
causing the stagnation in the industrial
situation, and The Constitution knows
perfectly well that their opinion is borne
out by the facts.
The Constitution is sufficiently versed
in the history OF tariffs and the effect
that threatened tariff changes have
upon the industrial situation to know
perfectly well that, its little sneer is
really lie, and that while the Nc
Kinley bill is still the law Of the
land, the threatened changes are ruling
the industrial situation. and that its
own party by its inability to formulate a
bin to supersede the Mckinley tariff,
is responsible for the present
situation. In full control Of
Government for fourteen months it
has not yet passed any measure to
''relieve the burden" of the people and
manufacturers who do not know what
the conditions ON which they are here
after to do business have been forced
through three seasons Of dulness and
stagnation, not daring to make goods
except on orders and receiv-
ing but few orders because buy
ers have not known how soon they
would be confronted with goods in the
hands of their rivals obtained under free
trade conditions With threatened
changes the buyers refused to order, the
mills not having orders dared not run,
and thus the proposed tariff, not the
McKinly tariff, has ruled and is ruling
the situation. This is shown equally as
well in our importations. No sane i'm
porter will order heavily
Of goods today for a market
where perhaps next week free
trade will rule thus affording his next
door neigbbor an opportunity to import
the same kind Of goods at far less rates.
Thus under Republican management,
when there was no dread of tariff change,
manufacturing was brisk and importa-
tions We're sufficient to pay the running
expenses of the government. Under the
Democracy with threatened change the
mills have ceased productions and i'm
portations have dropped to point where
the government is not collecting enough
to pay its bills.
And what is true of today has been
found true during every change in tariff
policy since the foundation of govern
ment. When change Of tariff is con-
templated aud bill has been formulated
the proposed bill. not the old one, governs
the business Of the country. Thus when
the Mckinley bill was under discussion
the importers hired every available
steamship to crowd In goods to these
markets before the Mckinley bill with
its advanced tariff took effect. IL was
the effect of the proposed change, not
the old tariff, that was operating.
An illustration of the point of this
article. namely that it is always the
proposed, and never the old, tariff that
governs the commercial situation dur
ing threatened change, is at hand in
the London Statist, which says: The
cause Of our small exports is still to be
found in the condition Of affairs in the
United States, and, unfortunately, that
country does not seem to be yet fully
aware how much it is injuring
itself by its foolish experiments. Until
the tariff question is settled in the
United States, and confidence there be-
gins to revive, no great improvement
in our exports can be looked for,
and at present the prospect of the
tariff discussion terminating is re-
mote. In March, 1893, our exports
to the United States were valued
at f2,027, 900, aud in March this year
they have been worth barely 81 ,OOO, 900,
or less than one half what they were
last year. The small purchases of
the United States have now lasted
since July. To show how greatly
our export trade has suffered dur
ing the past nine months from the small
United States purchases we give below
our total exports to that country since
July last compared with the correspond
ing period of 1929" and then follows
in detail the statement made above.