The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1894-09-12

ing of democrats was held in this city
this evening The features were the
speeches of Speaker Crisp reviewing the
work Of congress and of secretary Hoke
Smith against the free coinage Of silver
Speaker Crisp declared his personal
preference for the free coinage of silver
Much enthusiasm was displayed. Speak
er Crisp spoke as follows:
when the Fifty-third congress met
in August of last year IL was confront
ed with difficulties which seemed almost
inSurmOuntaDle. Trade was paralyZed,
manufacturing had almost ceased. labor
was idle, our banking Institutions were
failing and the confidence, life and soul
of commerce was utterly destroyed. In
SO far as this deplOrable condition was
attributable to legislation the republican
party was responsible. For more than
thirty years that party had made our
financial and economic laws. Until the
meeting of the Flfty-third congress the
democracy was without power The con-
ditiOn which confronted US, while not
wholly, was very largely due TO evil
legislation. In 1873 the free coinage of
silver had been discontinued and gold
became the standard of value In 1873
partial coinage was resumed. In 1890
this law was repealed and soon there
after coinage of silver practically ceased.
These acts Of the republican party re-
suited in so lessening the volume of
money Of final redemption IS To decrease
the price of all commodities. increase
the burden of all debtors and impair the
confidence OF the people in the power Of
the government and OF banking institu-
lions TO redeem their outstanding obli-
cations \ 10 aud practice which al
lows a CT zen to ,3y mis- obligations TO
the government a. silver and ct the
same time permits .m % demand gold
In redemption is msuifestly unreasOn-
able and unjust, and in the nature of
the case must impair confidence and
tend 10 produce panic
For thirty yeas The republicans had
been building up ,arim walls around the
country and in 1890 passed What they
termed perfect protective tariff law. y
protective tariff restricts trade and COM
merce il limits the market in which we
must buy and depregses the market in
which we must sell. Ii is a lax upon a
foreign product. which the consumer here
must pay. By taxing mis- foreign COM
pettor you enable the domestic manu-
facturer TO increase tie price of mis- wares
to the extent of the tax and this, too,
the consumer here must pay. When you
buy foreign goods and pay the duty, it
goes into the treasury and is called a
tax; when YOU buy The domestic product
and pay the increased price. it goes into
the pocket of the American manufacturer
and is called protection
The location Of the mandatory de-
termines the name. out the rate of the
duty determines the price. Under such
a tariff You must buy IN a market where
competition is destroyed and where search
ty is created by law. You must SCI at
prices fixed in a market where free trade
and the law Of supply and demand pre-
val. Trade and commerce is the eX-
change of commodities. \ protective
tariff prevents US from exchanging our
surplus OF cotton. corn. wheat, meat and
other farm products. for the surplus of
manufactured goods abroad. We freely
export our product, but that for which
we exchange il Is - heavily taxed as to
make the exchange unproftable Com
merce ceases when faith is gone; one can
not buy unless he can sell, nor can he
sell unless ne can buy Commerce and
agriculture go hand in hand; when one
ceases the other languishes. The laws
which destroy the one make the other
Improbable Taxed crude materials in
jure and depress manufacturing 1t
wants the markets Of the world. but I'M
der the protective tariff has not been
able 10 enter them. A protective tariff
fosters and builds up trusts and monopo-
lies. 1t creates no wealth, il only pre-
vents its natural and just distribution.
Thirty years Of such a system did much
70 produce the conditions existing when
the F'ifty-third congress met.
What has that democratic congress
so far done for the people? The first
matter considered was the financial
question. What should or could be done
on the silver question? We had pledged
ourselves against the makeshift Sher-
man law and in favor Of both gold and
silver as the standard money of the
country. By an agreement, arrived at
between democrats, we determined to
take the sense of the house on the free
and unlimited coinage of silver at sew
eral ratios. After full debate a separate
vote was had on each, and on the repeal
Of the purchasing clause of the Sherman
act The result you know. While not
protesting to understand the question
fully in all its bearings, I have always
been in favor Of the free coinage of sill
ver-I am IN favor Of it now l believe
the fears Of our friends who oppose II
are largely imaginary, and believe the
enactment Of such a law would afford
great relief to the people Of the country.
So feeling, I need not say that to me the
result OF the vote on free coinage of sill
Yer was great disappointment. This
question is not settled.
The Tariff Struggle
with our great struggle for tariff re-
form you are familiar. Thirty years of
class legislation had built up in this
country large trusts. large monopolies
and large combinations Of capital. All
these interests were arrayed against us,
and in the bitter contest through which
we passed were earnestly and actively
aided by a compact republican minority.
All THAT wealth., all IIldl energy ana all
that great Intelligence and capacity could
do, was daily and hourly done to defeat
The cause of the people. Under these
conditions our progress was slow. The
house framed and passed a tariff bill.
This went to the senate. After a long
and tedious struggle the senate passed
this bill with amendments.
Finally the question was presented in
such fashion hat we mus either accept
the same amendments or have no bill,
thus permitting the 0dious Mckinley
law to remain upon the statute books.
When We were convinced such was the
true situation we did not hesitate a
moment; we accepted the senate amend
nents, and the bill became a law
This bill Is not all we hoped for. II
contains provisions we depIore, provl-
sions which the house by separate BILL
Immediately repealed, and yet taken as
a whole, it goes further In the direction
Of relief to a tax-ridden people than any
congress since the war. Its reduction of
rates is greater than those proposed in
either the Morrison bill OF In the Mills
bill 1t places wool. copper, tin, lumber
salt, binding Irvine, rOags and bagging,
agricultural implements and many other
articles on the free list In nearly every
schedule there are large reductions. In
the iron. steel and wooden scheduI1s