The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1894-09-19
liver I am in favor of it now

OPPOoS IL NV 'o' SS'y
l believe the enactment Of such a
law would afford great relief to the
people Of the country. So feeling.
need not say that to me personally
the result of the vote Oh the free
coinage of silver was great disap-
pointment. This question is not set
tied.
With our great struggle for tariff
reform you are familiar. Thirty
years of class Legislation had built up
in this country large trusts, larC
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
compact Republican minority. All
that wealth, all that energy and all
tha, 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. The House was
not satisfied with the amendments !;
the bill went to conference /; for more
than month, with daily meetings,
the conferees failed to reach an agree
ment. Finally the question was pre-.
sented in such fashion that we must
either accept the Senate amendments
or have no bill, thus permitting the
odious Mckinley law to remain upon
the statute books.
When we were convinced such
was the true situation we did not
hesitate moment, we accepted the
Senate amendments and SO the bill
became law. This bill is not all
we hoped for 1t contains provisions
we Geplore, provisions which the
House by separate bills Immediately
repealed, and yet taken as whole
it goes further i'll the direction Of
relief to tax ridden people than any
bill that has been considered in any
Congress since the war. Its re.
duction of rates is greater than those
proposed in either the Morrison bill
or in the Mills bill. It. places wool.
copper, tin, lumber, salt, binding
twine, bags 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 woollen
schedules there are many reductions
exceeding IS per cent On the basis
of the importations Of lS92-93 ON
woollen manufactures alone there is
reduction to the consumer of more
than Sl63,00O,0OO. On cotton, on
felts, on common velvets and on
hundreds of other articles the reduc.
tion is greater than 50 per cent.
The DILL places tax on sugar. A
large majority Of the Democrats in
the House opposed this. and as the
bill passed the House sugar in al!
it forms is on the free list.
The cane growers got no aid from
the Go. ernment; the Sugar Trust
got no aid from the Government.
The bill as it became law places an
ad valorem duty of 40 per cent. on
sugar; leaves the sugar refner lit
tie more than one.half what he got
under the Mckinley law, and repeals
the bounty of 2 cents pound. This
provision will pay forty million dol
lars into the treasury, and save the
twelve millioa we paid last year as
bounty. The bill contains pro.
sion imposing tax Of 2 per cent
on all incomes in excess of $4,000.
/ have thus outlined merely the pro-
visions of this great reform measure.
1t strikes at trusts and monopolies.
1t reduces the cost of the necessaries
of life. 1t to some extent opens our
markets at home and enlarges our
markets abroad. 1t promotes agri-
culture, it encourages manufacturing
and it will add to the comfort of mil
lions of our fellow citizens.
We voted upon proposition to
repeal the tax upon the circulation
of State bank currency. | believe
that our people would derive more
immediate benefit from the repeal Of
that law than from almost any other
legislation that could be had.
Against us on the question we found
many Democrats, all the Republicans
and all the PQpulists a majority
thus constituted defeated our efforts
and the repeal bill failed. This ques,
ton is not settled We have re.
pealed the Federal election laws,
laws which permitted the interfer'
ance of outsiders with our domestic