The Neihart herald. [volume] (Neihart, Mont.) 1890-1901, 1895-05-25
Eli Perkins on Politics.

d. Landon eli Perkins, and the re-
suit is given in the following:
"What are your politics." asked
Eli, looking over his glasses.
straight republican, replied the
reporter, modestly.
"Republican," replied Eli, savage
ly; swell you have got gall-to
come here to interview a rock-ribbed
democratic Randall democrat. What
do you want me to say"
"We want to inquire if you are
altogether pleased with the work of
your party"
"Well-no-1'm not" said Eli,
scratching his head. "I'm not alto
gether pleased"
"Well, what is the matter?"
"I'll tell you, my son." said Eli,
slowly wiping his glasses, "I'm
afraid the party has gone back on us
Randall democrats. I'm afraid they
have lied to us. They said Tariff
for revenue i'll their platform and
then they let a lot of one-horse
rebels from Tennessee and West
Virginia knock Tariff for revenue
into fithereens. Why, instead of
getting the revenue, we are running
in debt s15O,O00,0 900 a year. They
told us they would not lower wages.
Then they cut off the tariff 30 per
cent, and down went wages 30 per
cent and the boys are mad. The
free-trade democrats got us Randall
democrats by the throat. They
wasn't honest. We were led into a
trap-a free trade trap"
what other lies did the free-trade
democrats tell you?:"
"They said protection did not pro-
tect wages nor create new industries,
and they made us believe hat tin
couldn't be made in this country.
Why, up in Portland yesterday
Joseph S. Megler, the great Wash
ington salmon Gamer, told me he
had bought his tin from American
manufacturers for $4.S5 a box when
he always paid $3.50 for Welsh tin"
"Then," continued Eli, "when the
crash came AMI II mills stopped
and wages went down, what did
those free-trade democrats tell us?
Why, they lied again and said it was
the silver bill. The silver bill!
Why, the republicans bought s4l9,-
100000 worth of silver in thirty
years and coined it and the country
was prosperous. We put Cleveland
in and he bought S1,0O0,OOO worth
OF silver at the market price, AZ
cents for a dollar, coined it, and put
it out for S14,O00,OO and went all
to pieces. The silver bill! 1t was
that undemocratic free-trade tariff,
and we Randall democrats know it
now"
"Well, what do you Randall dem
ocrats propose to do" asked the re-
porter.
awe can't do anything,'' said Eli.
of we were in power we'd put that
tariff back again. We'd stop selling
gold bonds at 4 per cent interest to
Rothschild, but sell them to Ameri,
can democrats at 3 per cent. We'd
help struggling Hawaii. We
wouldn't sink a republic and put a
negress on a throne. We wouldn't
make wool free, kill our own sheep
and buy s30,0O0,O0O worth of wool
in Asia. We'd keep our dollars at
home. We'd put that bounty back
on sugar and run sugar all over
Texas, Louisiana, Nebraska and
California and take out cotton. Wed
put a tariff on fine linen that is cost
ing us s2O,OOO,OOO a year in Ger
many and Ireland, make the factories
come here as did the tin factories and
send flax all over Minnesota and
Oregon andy the way, l met one
of these free-trade democrats yester.
day." said Eli, sup at Portland. He
used to be a Randall democrat.
said to him:
George, what did you change
for?
"'Well, I've got a reason he said
"'What was it?'
"'Ill tell you; | did it to disgrace
an uncle of
"'What had your uncle done?'
asked.