New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1894-04-10
SENATOR HILLS SPEECH.

| strong and convincing speech on the Iarll1 Dill.
Most of his party friends will denounce him.
| for their folly has brought ruin. His speech Is
| not merely a powerful argument against the
| income tax for he assails with unanswcrahie
| logic the purposes and principles on when the
| whole Tariff bill was framed. \ single sen
| tence near the close shows the scope OF MS
reasoning: 1--WE have no moral right to dciip-
erately discard S7GO0o,0o0 Of tariff revenue
| and thereby create deficiency TO he supplied
| by other and more Objectionable taxation mat
| is not reform: II is folly. ii is impotcnry. II Is
| scarcely less than criminal under the cXiSuhE
| conditions of the country.
| The Senator begins by criticising the FrcSi-
dents Hawaiian policy-"a blunder. sometimes
worse than a crime" The Silver Repeal bill. he
| plainly suggests. has not produced that hlGh
| degree of prosperity which some of our ON
Gals anticipated and others predicted. Pass
| ing to the pledge and duty Of tariff revision
| he holds that IAN extreme reduction OF tarn
| duties when the country was prosperous ana
| its labor we'll employed would now be criminal
! folly" with industries paralyZcd ana working
| men idle For the disaster he holds the PreSi-
dent directly responsible for, though fore
warned before the panic. 'he convened Congress
| six months later when the panic was suoSidlhS
| which should have been avcrtcd. The justice
| of this criticism cannot be denied But Sen
ator Hill holds that the President not only de
| cdod 10 nrolonc the operation of the Mckinley
| tariff at least another year but after proStfa-
tion Of industries obstinatcy insisted upon the
| extreme measure of tariff reduction he had
previously urged. His Secretary reported De
| cember 10 deficit of S2S.O0O,OO for the year,
and only twenty-seven days later reported Jan
| as lrpSi-
dent drove through the House the same Tariff
| reduction in January which he had described
| and urged In his message December IA Dill
which. in the face Of prostration Of Industries
| and PARALYSIS Of business, sought 10 double
| the deficit by discarling customs revenue ana
! IN fill the void with an income tax 1t would
| be difficult 10 state the case against the IarH
| hill more strongly And elsewhere the Senator
saws that the authors deliberately set them
! selves ut work to make extreme reductions, I'M
necessary changes and violent alterations in
existing tariff rates for the very purpose OF Gre
| ating n necessity for the tax upon incomes.
| Mr. Hill SAYS. Notwithstanding this most en-
| phatic condemnation of the tariff changes pro-
posed that he will reserve discussion Of them,
| but now protests In the name OF Ncw-l DIX
| against the income tax lie shows that ii would
deprive this State of an important revenue;
that a corporate tax is in fact taxation or the
property Of shareholders, whether large or
| small; that the exemption of $1,000 far exceeds
| that Of any other country where such taxes
exist and unjustly taxes Il small class, accord
| inc IN Mr. Wells not onc-tcnth Of the Wcll-O-dO
people: that il is by nature nqusitOra and in
| character condemned as contrary TO principles
Of free government by decision Of the SUI
preme Court: and that, though intended to hit
| the rich II would be distributed through rents
and otherwise so as TO fall upon the very classes
| II aims to exempt. 1t Is a tax not asked by any
part Of the Democratic or Republican party in
the campaign Of 1892, and the Senator protests
against the Democratic party being made the
tail of the POpulist kite"
| Taking broader ground against the whole pol
| lev Of cutting down tariff duties and imposing
direct taxes, Senator Hill declares with Jcffcr-
| son and the Fathers that indirect taxation Is
| preferable to direct taxation Of any kind" Re
publicans will agree with him that, under their
policy Of indirect taxation. industries have
augmented, manufactures have prospcred, work
ingmcn have found remunerativc employment.
| labor has been properly shielded from foreign
competition. and the best and highest interests
| of the whole country have been subscrved many
| of which benefcent results would have been I'M
| possIblc under any system Of internal or direct
| taxation" He declares his belief that "tho
| substitution Of internal or direct taxes for Gus
| tom House taxation means the reduction Of
| wages TO the European standard. II means the
| degradation Of labor" DENY IL or disguise ii
| as we may no other result IS possible under
| existing European conditions" Senator Hill
| has evidently read the election returns. That
| his argument will create sensation in the Sen
ate even Mr.. Voorhees, probably understands.
Senator Hill has dealt q heavy blow, not
| merely at the income tax, but at the general
| spirit and purpose Of the pending Tariff bill 1t
is difficult TO see how he can support, without
| stultifying himself, any such measure, even
| though in some details II should be altered.
| His objections go to the root of the business.
1t is an extreme and violent change, at n time
when such a change is criminal folly. 1t makes
sweeping and unnecessary changes, for the sake
of cutting off indirect and imposing direct taxes.
| 1t would PROSTATE industry and degrade labor.
| No minor changes Of detail will put the pend
| ing measure beyond these scathing criticisms.
| They may not arrest it in the Senate, for the
| Democratic party when IL is bent upon scf1c-
| structon could not be arrested even by the
| splendid abilities of a Douglas. But the ar
raignment of the Wilson tariff by the Senator
| from New-York will have its weight outside
the Senate Chamber and voters by the thou
sand will listen 10 ii and feel its truth.
| Justice would not be done to Senator Hill IL
| he were not honOred for his manly and really
| eloquent vindicaton of the business men of
this city. He speaks but justly, and yet in well
| chosen words, Of their services and their char
acter, Of what they have done for industry, for
commerce. for learning and benevolence, and
| for the rescue of the Nation In times Of need.