The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-04-11
STRENGTH OF THE PROTECTIVE
THEORY.

| scarcely be likely that Democrats
would ever again denounce a high oro-
! tective tariff as unconstitutional, or
regard it as 1.-The eliminating atrocity
OF class legislation "a fraud and a
robbery, ETC., expresses the belief
that this sort of thing will no longer
be tolerated by the Democrats them
selves" and claims that there is
growing Democratic contingent in al
most every state of the Union who re-
gard the protective policy as essential
to the industrial welfare of the coun-
try" and then adds the following:
The Democrats of West Virginia do
not regard the tariff on bituminous
cCal as unconstitutional" The Demo-
Gratis OF Ohio and other western states
DO not now believe that the tariff on
WOOL is the eliminating atrocity of
ciass legislation" The Democrats of
Connecticut and New Jersey do not
think that the tariff on buttons, hats,
SILK goods and pottery are "a fraud
and a robbery" The Democrats of
Alabama are not now wounded by the
lnfraction of 1.-THE fundamental law
by the duty on iron. The Democrats
OF Vermont are feeling decidedly kind
" toward the tariff on marble The
Democrats of California do not de-
nounce the tariff on wines as "a rob-
berry of the many by the few" The
Democrats of Michigan believe that
their lumber interests are fully deserv-
ing of consideration and protection,
and do not object to a tariff in their
behalf
The Democrats of Wisconsin believe
IN their beer as the elixir of life and
lean little toward an ''unconstitu-
tional" tariff on that article. The Dem
ocrats of Kentucky think that they
more than make up in the quality of
their whisky and tobacco for what the
people may lose by means of "the Gull
minating atrocity of class legislation
in the shape of a protective tariff on
those favorite Blue Grass products.
The Democrats of Massachusetts have
nothing to say against the restoration
of an adequate tariff on wooden goods
The Democrats of Missouri are fully
persuaded that the whole country
would be hamstrung if the tariff on
hams should be abolished. Indeed, the
Democrats of all states and sections
declare that of all things in the coun-
try their particular interests and in
dustries now require protection. The
free Silverites of all political stripes
aver that the government has no other
duty so important or so imperative as
to properly favor the silver mines of
the country.
The New York Mail and Express for
that is the paper from which the above
is clipped, doubtless considers that it
points out the most difficult thing
revenue only has to contend. So in
deed, it does; for the chief strength
of the protectionist lies in his appeal to
the immediate, selfish and local inter-
est of the people, and thus hopes to
and does influence their political action.
There is nothing perhaps which so
much influences men as their personal
interests. They are often led by per-
sonal interests, or what they consider
to be such, to sacrifice their principles,
they compromise with conviction and
give up the general welfare to gain
personal ends. Therein lies both the
weakness and the strength of the Dem
ocratic cause. It some times calls for
a sacrifice of a personal or local in
terest in order to promote the general
welfare; and it must be admitted that
all the people are not quite equal to
such a thing, and hence the Republi
can so far as winning support to his
policy is concerned, often has the Dem
ocrat at disadvantage But not
withstanding Democratic principles
sometimes seem to require the aban-
donment of personal interest for the
public good; the sacrifice of local, tenn
porary advantage for the permanent,
general welfare, yet it is not difficult
to maintain those doctrines by right
reason, or to prove that through secur-
ing the general welfare there will also
in the end be secured the greatest
amount of permanent prosperity to the
individual
Moreover, this rather full emu
meration of local demands for pro-
lection helps to illustrate the evils Of
the theory of protection, for if only the
protectionist will enumerate all the in
dustries that demand the use of the
taxing power of government to foster
them, every intelligent man and woman
will be able to see that for their per-
sonal or local advantage to get which
they subscribed to the doctrine of pro-
lection cost them too dearly; and that
the local protected industry is SO heav-
lily taxed in order to protect the thou
sand and one other industries admit
ted to the blessedness of protection that
the supposed local advantage is all lost
in bearing the burdens that the doc
trine brings to the industries of the
atom