Turner County herald. (Hurley, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1895-09-26

struction, but it went far enough to
open our markets to vast amount of
cheaper commodities, thus depriving
our American workers Of correspond
ing amount of employment. 1t was
low enough, however, to rekindle the
fires OF foreign industry while in u
measure quenching our own. You say
that wages are increasing. After the
verdict OF ihe people last fall, making
it certainty that no further damage
could be done by afree-t trade democrat
ic administration, confidence was re-
stored and with it an unstable revival
of business, an increase of wages in
some lines only-not all.
During the passage of the present
law wages shrank to an abnormally low
rate, owing to the fear Of the passage
of measures such as were pledged by
the Chicago democratic platform, both
as to economics and finance, hence no
manufacturer or merchant felt safe,
and which caused the low rate Of wages.
1t is a conspicuous fact that the pros
tration of business began the day it
was known that the democratic party
had been placed in power, and it con-
Linued until the day it was known that
you and they had been swept from con-
troll and could do no more harm. This
is the true and only cause OF the recent
rise in wages and the revival in busi-
ness, but the wages now are not, and
will not be, as high as they were under
the tariff act of 1890.
1t might be a proper question to ask,
if a low tariff will produce such bene-
fetal results as you say, why was it that
it did not stimulate confidence? Why
did not the country, with such pros
pect in view, spring forward to pros
perity and increase it wealth and pur-
chasing power, and why should the
prospect of a low tariff cause loss as
regards the former, of over 50, 900, ,O00,
900 and the latter of over $1,000. 100000
per annum? Such was not the case
with the prospects of higher tariff in
1890. In 1916. when the low tariff was
|passed Lord Brougham, while advising
the flooding of our markets, said in
Parliament that, ut was even worth
while to incur a loss of the first i'm
portations in order by the glut to stife
in the cradle these rising manufactures
Of the United States, which the war
mad forced into existence contrary to
the natural course of things"
| Under the present law our imports
have increased over 81 per cent, and
already are filling our bonded ware
houses from cellar to roof, and more
warehouses are needed to accomodate
the foreign commodities, while their
factories are running night and day in
anticipation of again flooding our mar
kets with their wares, and, if neces-
sary, to be sold ever at loss of the
| first importation in order by the glut
to break down our manufactures, that
y protective policy forced into exist
ence, as you might say with Lord
Brougham, contrary to the natural
: course of things"
u It's not surprising that your Eng
lsh friends should have applauded you
when you assured them that the barri-
er against the admission OF their manu-
, factures into the United States had
| been thrown down, never to be raised
again. Such condition is what Eng
land has been hoping to enjoy in this
country, and which it has been her
: policy to force upon all of her colonies.
Failing to force upon this country such
conditions when we were colonies o.
: England. you would now hand over to
her all the commercial advantages
which our fathers struggled for seven
years to retain. You would make of
! this nation commercial appendage to
i England and Europe and cause us to be-
come nationally dependent upon them
But the downfall of the democratic
free-trade party dissapates this fear.
J When the people realize and under
stand this tariff question, and the inan-
cial question, especially as they are ap-
: plicable to our national conditions as
proclaimed by the republican party
) and they are fast obtaining that knowl-
edge, as che vote of last fall evinces-
: then they will uphold that party which
} stands for American, not foreign, in
terests, and we will then manufacture
all the competitive commodities of our
own people, and by reason Of the in
creased volume of American manufact-
ure, which protective policy only
} will create, we will be able to decrease
the cost OF manufacture and retain and
J maintain the high rate of American
labor, to maintain which Is the sole and
only necessity for a protective tariff.
And if the American workingman does
J not comprehend this condition. he
surely will, should he eyer again have
the misfortune to confront inadequate
tariff rates on either manufactures or