The Goodland republic. [volume] (Goodland, Kan.) 1891-1907, 1896-06-19

establishments shared the fate CT the
weaker banks, and thousands more
just stopped" MF. Cleveland called
congress together in extra session to
repeal the SHERMAN Law" and the re-
publicans periodically u swallowed
their principles and helped him to do
it. Mr.. Sherman, in urging the senate
to come to vote, said that if it did so:
"Ih ten days the skies will brighten,
business will resume its ordinary
course, and the clouds that lower upon
our house will be in the deep bosom of
the ocean buried"
Such language by the republican
leader in the senate plainly negatives
the idea that fear of tariff changes was
the cause of the trouble; for according
to him we were going to have good
times just as soon as the law which
bore his name was repealed. And this
was the bright promise of every great
money center IN the country.
The panic was actually started by
the bankers in their intense desire to
force the repeal of that law and bring
the country squarely to the gold
standard.
1t was intensified by the closing of
the East Indian mint, beating down
the market price of silver and the
prices of commodities at the same
time. twas made still more severe by
the repeating act itself, which shut off
our own supply of money.
The panic in the United States was
the same in kind and character as
those which had struck Europe and
Australia, save that for several reasons
it was more severe. Our being the
great debtor nation Of the world, when
the scramble for gold began the pres
sure was naturally concentrated upon
us. Then it reached US almost Incl
dentally with the closing of the East
Indian mint, the fall of silver, and de-
cline of prices referred to above. In
the face of constantly shrinking values
it was impossible for individuals to
meet1their liabilities, there was no en-
couragement for men to start new en-
terprises, and as a result the general
depression is just about as severe now
as at any time since the whirlwind of
the panic swept by,
Mr.. Sherman's beautiful figure from
Shakespeare has not been realized, as
ten days, ten months and more than
two years have passed since that glow
ing picture was painted for the edifca-
ton of the senate and the country. It
is as plain as anything in economics
can be that the revision of the tariff
did not plunge us into all this misery,
and it is equally plain that another re-
vision will not extricate US.
1t is assumed that we are now living
in an era of free trade, and that the
success of the republican party is nee
essary for the restoration of "pro-
tection.n
The truth is that the present revenue
law is long, long way from being
free trade measure. The duties are in
many cases a little lower than those of
the Mckinley bill, and a few additional
articles have been placed upon the free
list. But these are simply matters of
detail. No two republican tariffs have
been exactly alike. the duties being
raised OF lowered from time to time
and the free list extended or curtailed.
The Mckinley bill itself placed several
thousand articles on the free list, and
the bill of Wilson German only in
creased the number a little. The great
est objections to this apply to perhaps
not more than a dozen items, such as
wool and lumber placed on the free
list, and small reductions in the rates
upon a few others. With Europe suf-
fering much the same as we are, it can
scarcely be contended that these
changes have filed our country with
poverty and suffering. No one will
seriously claim that our markets are be-
ing "fooded" with the productions of
Europe. Surely the placing of wool on
the free list has not had the effect of
gripping the American wooden manu-
facturer In fact business is stagnant
everywhere except in a few silver
standard countries. It began with the
demonstration of silver in 1873, each
step enlarging the use Of silver bring
ing some relief, and each blow struck
at that metal making the situation
worse. Those who claim that England
is now being enriched at our expense
by the German Wilson bill are wide Of
the mark. In England complaints
among the producing classes are almost
as general as they are here. But that
country is the worlds greatest creditor,
and when in 1890 she became involved
in trouble she saved herself by max
ing draft upon US for gold, and she is