St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-04-09
TARIFF AND WORKINGMEN.
As Viewed by One Of the Wage.
Farmers.
Written for the Globe. !
NukiDED WI

body poiitic," conveys an exact truth,
though many of the persons using 1t
may never have analysed it. This body
polite, like the human body, has its
vital functions which cannot be inter
fered with without entailing disastrous
results. What would happen to the
individual, says a noted writer, If all
the functions of the body were placed
under the control of the consciousness,
and man could forget to breathe. or
miscalcuate the amount of gastric
juice needed by his stomach, or bunder
as to what his kidneys should take from
his blood, is what would happen to a
nation in which all individual activities
were directed by the government.
Trade is one of the vital functions Of
the body polite, and in order that
the body be normal and healthy, 1t is
necessary that this function perform its
duties freely and unrestrictedly. Gov
eminent must keep its hands of. 1t
oversteps its limits when 1t undertakes
to legislale so as 10 give one man 4 bus
mess advantage over another. This is
the true American principle, whatever
protectionists may say to the contrary.
"A fair field and no favors''-what more
can any manly American ask?
Another trite saying. with a world of
hidden meaning and truth, and in line
with the propos. tion above laid down,
is this: Business is business" the
meaning intended to be conveyed there
by is that business enterprises are not
rifa i,l nd
should not be so regarded. And it is
we'll that it is SO: for were it otherwise.
man could never hope TO attain state
of self-reSpecting freedom.
Men engage in business primarily for
the purpose of making profit for them
selves. But SO divineiy appointed are
the affairs Of this world that no one
can really do good to himself without
at the same time henehting humanity dt
large. And the same rule applies also
to evil actions. Trade in all Its forms
is engaged in from the same motive.
Each party to the transaction parts
with What he has for something which
he would rather have. Whether trade
with Chinaman, Mexican, a Span
lard or South Sea islander. my motive
IS always the same. l AIN not seeking
to benefit him, but to crafty my own
desires. On the other hanG. the for.
eigEer occupies towards me identically
tie same relations. Now. what right
has any earthly power to step in he
tween us and say that We shall not SO
exchange the products Of our labor?
None whatever. If any power arro-
gates TO itself such right Ii usurps its
functions and strikes Il needless blow
at individual liberty.
In my last article / briefly showed
that all trade. in its last analysis, was
but uarter-the exchanging of com
mOdtieS for commodities. This seems
SO plain that Il wayfarlng man, though
a fool, should be able TO see it with only
one eye open. But here comes along
William Mckinley, the great apostle of
protection. and proclaims himself blind
In both eyes. In one of his Minneapolis
SPEECHES he says: Nv hen you buy the
foreign goods you don't buy the domes-
domestic goods you don't make the
domestic goods. And when you don't
make the domestic goods yOu have got
no employment for domestic labor"
No doubt Ibis is good projection logic.
1t sounds very pretty, at any rate, and
was received with applause. But in
behalf of the wage-earuers / would ad-
monish thee. Billy, To "colne down off
the perch" excuse the slang)
and tell us how this can be-
Ii VIC buy the foreigners goods we
must sell something to him in
return, must we not? There can be no
buying without selling, can there? And
il we must sell him goods in order to
buy his goods, these goods must be
made III this country, mustn't they?
And being made in this country, they
would be domestic goods, wouldn't
they? Or would Billy have them made
III this country by newly imported, I'M
naturaliZed labor, style them foreign
goud-, and thus conduct trade in
foreign goods for foreign goods? For
doubtless Mr.. Mckinley stands on the
same platform that did another eminent
champion of pIote ction, the late Hon.
William ID. (Plg Iron) Kelley, of Penn
sylvania. VINO, in the house of repre-
sentatives, when reminded that there
was 10 tariff on labor. said: "Yes,
men are on the free list. They cost us
not even freight. We promote free
trade in men. and it is The only free
trade L am prepared 10 promote" Will
MIR. Mckinley please explain these
things?
what we want in this country is to
produce for ourselves" says the logical
Mac. Well, don't know about that;
but rather think we will have to obey
the fiat of the Creator and eat our bread
in the sweat of our brows. Ii there is
any way to secure the products of labor
In any country without producing them,
would like to hear of it, and would
endeavor 10 get patent right OH the
process. Producing is everywhere car
RED on in response to demand. This is
dOnn a 1Ir nd
morrow am going to work for pair
of shoes. Somewhere shoemaker is
engaged in making them for me. The
farmer who raised the calf which fur
nlShed the Skin out of which these
slices are made, the village butcher who
skinned it and sold the pelt, the rail.
road company which transported
it to the city, the tanner who
dressed it, the thirteen men.
three women and one boy
who had Eand in fashioning the shoes
in the factory, the wholesale iobbe,
who next bought them, and the retail
dealer from whom will finally procure
them-are all producers of these shoes
They engaged in their respective Dusi
ness for Tie same reason that 1 engage
in mine-because they could exchange
the products of their labor for thu
products OF the labor of other persons
So with all the complex transactions O
Dur industrial system. Production al
ways arises in response TO demand, an(
no product can he sold in the marke
unless its purchase is offset by the sal,
OF some other product. There can be II,
imports without "exports''-no buy
ing without selling. While setting twp,
am as truly producing the pair o
shoes as though l were tending tn,
machine which sews the soles OF wer,
cutting out the upperS.
If, however, Mr.. Mckinley will evolv,
some scheme whereby we can get good
without producing them, we will assur
him a greater homage than he has eve
received or ever will receive in hi
swinging around the circle as 4 pros
pective presidential candidate on tn
issue of protection. Seine of US wage
carriers are so peculiarly CONSTITUTED
that we really don't love work for it
owl, sake + W., did ,,o