The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-10-17
TO WEST VIRGINIANs.
Mckinley shows that Tariff, Like
Money, is Net "A Sectional Question.

WetZel counties, West Virginia, Major Nc
| Kinley said:
number of witnesses here to-day to the
| promises which your spokesmen have
given, as to what West Virginia viii do on
| the Sd day of November. If you do as well
| as you promise, l assure you the people of
Chic and my home city will be more than
| satisfied. / am glad to meet and greet you
in Canton to-day. 1 remember two
years years ago to have passed through
fhS haye t1wR so"Ren for ssterSyile t bd and to
gether with your now distinguished Senator
Elkins, upon the pending questions dividing
| you that at the end of that campaign
| you recorded a splendid victory for the
70 the Republican strength in the United
| States Senate. ! trust the people of West
| Virginia have not changed their minds
since that election and that they now,
as then, in favor of a protective tariff. of
| sound money and of honesty in public as
| well as in private transactions.
! Il am glad to receive this visit from my
| fellow-citizens of West Virginia. You come
not only from, the great oil center, but
| from two of the agricultural counties of
| northern West Virginia both. / believe
| coal mining counties both widely traversed
| ested in the material DEVELOPMENTS of the
| resources of your State. Such being the
case, l am surprised to be told by one of
! your sDokesmen that one of these counties
| has in past elections been supporting
| policy which is certainly opposed to her
| best interests. L am glad to be assured
| that she means to no longer support a
policy that has retarded the growth and
development of the resources of the United
! States; a policy that robs your farmers of
| good markets and of good prices and your
| miners and laborers of good wages-the re-
| dictionary and un-American policy of free
| trade.
IF there is a farmer or laborer here or
| one elsewhere who may read what / say,
| who doubts the truth of this statement, /
| beg him to contrast. If he will, first, the
| this country in 1892 with that of the farm
| ers and laborers of other countries in the
world; and second, to contrast the COM
| parative advantages of a protective tariff
| against a free-trade policy, and his own
condition now and during the past three
years in contrast with that of the previous
three years. Let him but examine the
| prices paid for his products or for his labor
] in 1892 1894 and 1885 under threatened or
ceived W i in in 1880, 1881 and 1882 under under AZ pro- m
| tective-tariff law, and if he does not find
| the change from the old system TO the new
| disastrous to him, then we will be perfectly
content for him TO sustain by his vote the
present policy and cast his lot with the
| party. which, in nart at least, continues
Gentlemen of West Virginia, passion
| and prejudice have no place in such an ex-
animation. Party predictions should not
Partisan or sectional bitterness cannot
| properly enter into this consideration. Let
| the facts alone; let his own personal ex-
| perience be his guide; let him be governed
| by the truth and abide by it, and the Re-
| publican party will be entirely satjfied with
| his decision. My friends, the policy of pro-
| lection to American farms industry, enter
| prise and labor is broad national policy.
| is sound in truth and wholesome in prac-
| tice. 1t is not narrow and provincial, but
! wide in its blessings and its benefits. al
| ways promoting industrial growth, serving
| national ends, rewarding individual effort
and advancing just aspirations and hopes
| of the American people It is the doctrine
| of true patriotism the welfare of our coun-
try and ,ccountrymen first; our home and
our families first; and ardent, sincere and
genuine Americanism that loves our
flag better than any other, and
interests than the interests of
any. other people or of any other nation
State against another, or one group or sec
| ton of States against another; but it is
for the benefit of ALA policy that Injuries
| all. 1t is only perfect when universal, and
it is true to this principle only that the
THE way some OF your orators used to
talk to you was as if the tariff was good
| positive detriment to the West Virginia
farmer and laborer; as if it could benefit
miner of West Virginia; as If the. wheat
| and grain grower in Kansas or the beet
| producer of Nebraska would grow rich by
planters of Texas and Louisiana become
| impoverished under it. Time and again
| you have heard them declare that while
| protection might be good thing for New
| England it was curse to the West and
| had three and one-half years experience
| under partial free trade. In vain did Re-
| publican speakers and papers remonstrate
against this madness, but of no avail; and
| 50 the people give 1t a trial. With what
| result? Is it not true that partial free
| not true that partial free trade has injured
| every interest and every industry in West
Esia o seaSi,I mG peope anu de de
| it's destructive operations? Have not both
producer and consumer been injured? The
| Southern, in common with all the other.
States steadily advanced under the pro-
| toctive system; if there was a difference
between them and the Northern States it
was in their favor steadily every year from
| 1870 to 1890 simply because their resources
were greater and their development more
| general and rapid. The census of 1890. and
| other reliable reports, show the greatest
| gain in the South of any other part of the
decade from 1880 to 1890 may well challenge
| admiration and pride. | doubt if similar
| exhibit of such remarkable advancemen
towards commercial and manufacturing
| premacy or the advancement and uplifting
| of agriculture can he shown on any other
| page of the worlds history.
| In August, 1855, eight years ago, / de-
| Chautauqua Association of Atlanta Ga. in
| which | endeavored to point out to the
| people of that and other Southern States
| the great advantage it would be to their
| material interests to sustain and advocate
! the protective policy, and in that connec-
| tion cited the statistics of the advance
| ment of the South under the American
| protective system as the best possible argu-
| to 1880 the growth of the South from 1880
| to 1890 is sill more remarkable and | want
| to call your attention to some particulars
| of it. According to the statistics quoted by
! Gen. James LongStreet. in a Republican
| speech at Augusta, Ga, the 9th of the
! present month, he said:
| . Between 1880 and 1890 the true valua-
ton not the assessed valuation of real
and personal property in the South in
| creased from $1,641 900 to S1f 534.0 .000 a gain
| of S3, SOC. .000 or 80 per cent; while the New
| England and Middle States combined
| gained only Sc 900, 900. or an increase of only
| p per cent. The value of farm property in
| the South in 1880 was g. 3l4 600 900: in 1890
| So 1S2, OOo,ooo gain OF 81 per cent. The in
| crease in farm values in all other sections
/ was about so per cent In 1880 the South
| had 1851. PA 900 invested in manufacturing
| In 1890 she had S65s, 2sS 900. a gain of 156 per
| cent. while the gain of the entire country
/ was about 121 per cent The value of the
/ manufactured products of tho South in 1880
was s457. .454 900. In 1890 it was S9l7 $50 Gee a
| gain of 100 per cent. In 1S& the factory
| hands in the South received S75.917. 600 In
| wages. In 1890 they received S222. lis 000 In
| 1880 the South had invested in cotton manu-
featuring s21.976. coo; in 1880, $61 900. and
| now about $120. .000, 900. In 1880 the South had
| 5l0 Ofel invested in the cotton seed oil in