The Somerset reporter., 1896-06-25

maps as the great American desert.
! Cities have sprung into existence and
railroads have been built which have
Spanned the continent with steel bands,
making those living In distant states our
neighbors, and bringing their products to
| our very doors.
| by the speclous pretense Of tariff reform
| and other false promises the voters of
| our country, and very largely the labor
| Ing classes, once more elected a Demo-
| cratic President, Senate and House Of
| Representatives, upon a platform inim-
! ical to our industries, denouncng protec-
ton as legalized robbery. and demand
| ing tariff for revenue only. They
| placed this government In the hands of
| In 1861 for Its disloyalty and rebellion. A
| party which ever since that time has
| been one of negation and opposition.-a
party that has persistently opposed all
/ the benefeent measures which has made
us indeed a nation commanding consider
| alton at home and respect abroad. When
the country had fully comprehended what
| mad been done CONSERVATION and fear
| suppanted confidence and hope. Bust
| ness was paralyzed.-many banks broke
and suspended Mills and factories shut
| down. Labor was unemployed or re-
| ceived largely reduced wages. our agri-
| cultural, numbering and other Industries
| were crippled and injured, by being
| brought into direct competition In our
| own markets with the products of Can
| ada and other foreign countries. a new
| tarin bill was finally passed sectional in
| fined or sound economic principle,-which
| President Cleveland denounced as a
| measure Of dishonor and refused to sign
| which does not and VIII not produce
| sufficient revenue to pay current ex-
| penses. Under it We have increased the
national debt some s15O00,OOO and we are
| adding to ii every month We have aug
| mented our interest bearing debt some
$246, 0O0. O0O by dsposing of bonds under
| doubtful authority for the ostensible pur-
| pose of increasing and protecting the
! gold
| when the Democratic party came into
| power. Much OF the money received from
| the sales Of these bonds has in fact been
used TO make good the constantly in
| creasing deficit caused by this revenue
| reform tariff legislation. When con-
| hdence shall again be restored and our
| revenues equal and exceed our eXpendi-
| lures the gold reserve will be all right
| and take care of itself We shall no
| longer be compelled to mortgage the
| country to foreign bankers by selling
bonds | agree fully with Senator Sher-
| mans views on this subject, whom | re-
gard as the greatest iinancier this
country ever produced.
| The Republican party believes in sub
| stituting for this Democratic sectional
| free trade deficiency tariff protective
| tariff which shall produce revenue enough
| to pay the necessary expenses of the gov
| eminent economically administered leav-
| ing small surplus to apply toward the
| extinguishment of our national debt. A
debt that had been rapidly reduced and
| paid off under every Republican admin
istration since the war. A debt every dol
lar of which is a Democratic legacy to the
| people of this country. We believe fur
| ther that this tariff should be SO framed
| as TO make protection an aim and factor,
not Il mere incident or accident-as to
| all things that we can with reasonable eff
| fort produce and manufacture ourselves.
The empty tin cans of the laboring men,
prosperity and enterprise, sitting in sack
cloth and ashes at the outer gates imper-
atively demand a return to this sound
protective policy. And it will surely
come. Nearly four years of Grover
| Cleveland and Democratic misrule have
| been great educator to the average
| voter. We know that nation to be
| great, independent and powerful, must
| have a diversity of industries, must be
| able to supply largely within its own
| borders those things essential to its well
| fare. Our Democratic friends can no
longer deceive by shouting in their plat
| forms and by their speakers and press
| about the markets of the world, and at
| the same time ruthlessly strike down the
| reciprocity treaties tnat were given a
| preference in many foreign markets.
| What we desire first of all, Is our own
| markets. They are the best markets in
the world We have population that
| consumes more per capita than any other
| on the face of the globe.
| They claim to admit, free of duty what
| they call raw materials, unmndful OF
| the fact that what is one man b raw ma
| terial Is usually anotherS finished pro-
! duct-and that the line of demarcation
| between them is very uncertain-and as
|
| Australia and Canada and place the
| wool of the farmer and the rough lumber
| OF the saw mill on the free list. We in
| sist that the correct principle is to put
| SO FAR as we can. upon the Tree list those
| things, luxuries excepted, which we can
| not produce ourselves and to tax those
| which come into competition with us in
our own markets. We contend that every
| dollar sent abroad for what we can easily
raise or manufacture at home Injuries our
| workingmen by depriving them of EN-
lln md DO Vt.rl, a..
| country. We believe 1t is the part of wis
| dom and patriotism to enact such tariff
laws as shall be in the interest of our
country and our own people, rather than
| foreign countries and their products.
| We advocate in honest dollar that shall
| be good everywhere. We claim to have
the best goVernment,,our people are
| equally entitled to the best money. We
| demand and now have IA sound currency
| based upon gold, the standard recog-
nized and adopted by every prosperous
| civilized nation of the globe. We know
| there is Il limit to the amount of silver
| currency that Il fiat of the government
can float and use at a par with gold. We
see convincing evidences of this fact in
| the many tons of silver piled in the vaults
| of the treasury of the u. s., which no
| effort can scatter abroad and keep in cir
| culation. The insane cry for a free coin
| age of silver at "a ratio of sixteen to one
| means silver basis,-a debased and de-
| preciated currency and Il radical change
| IN all values,-a scaling down of all the
| deposits in our savings banks and trust
companies. 1t would rob every deserv-
| ing soldier and soldiers widow of near
| one-haf their pensions. 1t means that
gold Shall so into hiding and flee from our
| land cease to be money and part of our
| circulating medium, and become a COM
| modify. 1t means in part at least, both
| national and individual reputation. dis
| honor and bankruptcy by paying all pub
| lie and private Obligations In currency
| worth some 81 per cent of its nominal and
| face value. A contamination which can
|
| debtor class: which would sacrifice the
| best interests and honor of the whole
| country to enrich a few silver states and
| silver mine owners. 1t Is a delusion of
| the same genius as the fiat money craze
| which was SO prevalent in this country
| some 10 to 20 years ago, and Is equally
| pernicious TO yield to 1t would be TO cut
| loose from progressive and highly civ
| ilized nations and adopt the currency sys,
| TEN of China, Mexico, and Peru. The
| purchasing power of the dollar would be
| SO reduced that labor would be insidi-
| ously robbed of II large share of it's earn
| lngs and especially would this be true of
all fixed salaries. History furnishes no
| instances of u wealthy progressive ma
| ton like ours in a time of profound peace
committing the supreme folly of chang
| ing its standard to dishonest and de-
preciated currency. And as sure as tides
| and sunrise come, the triumph OF the Re-
publican party next November will In