St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-03-29
THE "LOGiCAL CANDIDATE.

THE ILLOGICAL CANDIDATE"
1t is as the candidate OF his party for
the presidency i'll 1896 that the speech of
Gov. Mckinley last night must be read.
Notwithstanding the mild protests of
papers like the Pioneer Press. the coun-
try. regardless of party divisions, has
regarded Mr.. Mckinley as the illogical
candidate" in '96. This is because the
retreat from McKinleyism sounded in
the tariff plank Of the Minneapolis
platform was, by common consent. DIS
regarded Ill the general recognition that
there is an irrepressble conflict being
waged on the political field of this ma
ton between the old spirit of paternal-
ism, which appears under the various
guises of monarchism, oligarchiSm, So
cialiSm and Republicanism, and the
spirit of individualism which takes the
name of Democracy and one of whose
banners is inscribed with the legend
free trade" 1t is struggle which no
tempOrizing, no treachery will quiet,
and which must be fought out here as
it has been everywhere fought out, to
the complete triumph Of one or The
other of the contestants.
In the light cast on it by his leadership
in this unfinished struggle. the speech,
which we print in full this morning,
will be read by Democrats as well as by
the disciples of Mr.. Mckinley, but,
saving its narration of tariff history and
its criticism OF the pending bill, no one
will find anything new in it. Every
thought has been expressed before by
him. sometimes better, sometimes worse.
He still insists that a nation grows
ricner by taxation; that protection
makes wages higher; that the foreigner
pays the taxes levied on the goods we
buy of him; that the nation is prosper
Gus; that we have protection. and that.
therefore, we are prosperous because
we nave protection.
ProtectioniSts fall readily into three
classes. The first is the patriotic class
| who admit that protection is designed
| to increase the cost of the domestic
product, but insist that it is necessary
that the sacrifice be made in order that
| these manufactures may be established
here and the nation thus made indie
| pendent of foreign nations. The sec
| ond class embraces those engaged in
| these manufactures and who correctly
| appreciate at its money value the adj
| vantage of partnership with the gov
eminent in which the government fur
| niShes the power and allows them ali
| the profits. The third class embraces
| the unthinking, the guIlible, the gulled,
| the fossils and the place hunters who
care nothing what the policy of party
is so they get there"
| Mr.. Mckinley belongs to the first class
We willingly accord him honesty and
| sincerity. He was too earnest to fee
that the promise to revise the tariff
made in 1888 meant reduction and he
forced his views upon his party and
| crystailized them in the act of 80. He
is now too honest to accept the plank
| adopted at Minneapolis which declared
| for tariff OH imports coming into com.
| petition with the products Of American
labor equal to the difference between
| wages abroad and at home," and in his
| speech construeS it as a demand fol
"a protective tariff which shall serve
the highest interests of American labor
and American development" demand
which, if his logic were carried into en-
actment. would exclude all comps tine
importations.
Concessions of sincerity and homes ty
however, are made at the expense of the
estimate Of his intellectual ability to dis
Germ the true relations of events. Tt
insist that people can be made richer
by obliging them to pay more for the
things they use, whether made at home
or imported, IS an abSurdIty only
equaied by that other absurd compile
mentary proposition, that the foreigner
pays the duty as q sort O
license for the privilege of sell
ing his goods in our market. Tn,
tariff still Is not tax. and, if it Is, the
foreigner pays it. The same incapacity
to see the true sequence of causes anC
effects that is shown in his ascription O
the present depression to 1.-The menact
of free trade" to the fear of decreas,
of taxation, appears in his sweeping as
sertion that the panic of 1857 was 18th,
direct result" of the act of that year, TO
which the young Republican party wa
responsible, which reduced taxes.
reveals that mental confusion which i
unable to distinguish a cause from
coincidence.
Democrats-the real as distinguished
from the doughfac SHAVE reason to
congratulate themselves that the com
ing Republican presidential candidate
thus proclaims the doctrine of ultra pro
lection, and rejects the latest plank o
his party, absurd even from revenu,
point and trebly ridiculous from pro
tectionists. We have already pointet
Out the danger our party RUS in tn,