Kansas City journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1897-1928, 1897-03-23

tected industries and a law which enables
these industries to collect the money di-
rectly from the people. If the government
has right 10 levy taxes upon the people
for the purpose of inducing men to estab-
lish Improbable industries which can only
be made profitable by compelling the con-
bitant prices for their products. then the
bounty system is a more direct and less
complex way of attaining that end, and
at least has the advantage of djrectness
and simplicity.
The majority of the committee seem to
think that taxation can be made d bless
ing ard that the support of the government
instead of being a burden upon taxpayers.
can be made TO enrich them. If this opin-
ion ifs well founded, then all the struggles
for. freedom which have revolyed around
the question of taxation have proceeded
upon Il false theory: and the American
colonists when they determined that they
er representation indulged a mistaken zeal
for liberty. The patriotic resolve of our
forefathers not TO use goods upon which
Great Britain had laid an import duty
Is right. because according TO the argument
the British importers were really paying
the tax over which the American colonists
Went to war. There cannot be found in
the wide range of economic literature an
authority with the few and rare exceptions
which only serve to emphasize the general
concurrence. who does not treat taxation,
direct or indirect, Il burden; and when
We remember that a protective tariff not
only collects more for the government than
Is needed for Its economical admnistra-
ton. but that 1t also enables favored class
es 10 collect more than the government it
self. the injustice becomes so clear and SO
enormous that it would be a reflection
upon the intelligence of the American peo-
pie TO suppose that il can escape their
swift and decisive condemnation
Claim 1t Fosters Trusts.
Tile bill fosters trusts" is another
headline, which is explained as follows:
m n rly rtENtn &c
fndefensible because of the extravaganza
which 1t encourages. it is still more SO on
promotes. 1t is not more certain that pro-
lection encourages extravaganza than 1t is
that II breeds unlawful combinations of
capital. Indeed. protection is justified upon
the avowed theory that competition should
be restricted. True enough. it assumes the
patriotic pretense that foreign competition
ought not TO be permitted against our
hcme industries: but they don't understand
the selfshness of human nature. and espe-
cially they little understand the selfshness
of that human nature which relies upon
the favoritism of the law to increase its
fortune. who suppose that these men. hav-
ing secured themselves against foreign
competition by the favor of congress. will
fail to secure themselves against domestic
eompetitiion by. by voluntary combinations
Treating of the effect of the bill on labor,
the report says:
The report of the committee on ways
and means is singularly silent upon the
old DreteXt that these high tariffs are
imposed for the benefit of American labor:
and the silence may be taken as concedinS
the Democratic contention that the intelii-
gerce and skill of the American factory
operative are all the protection which he
needs or desires. The labor argument of
the pIotectionistS can be reduced to an ab-
suIGity which makes it amazing that it
should ever have beer seriously advanced.
To say in one breath that the welfare of
latol depends upon its wages and tha.
its wages in turn depend upon its skill and
intelligence. and in the next breath to say
that the very intelligent and highly skilled
labcrers of this country cannot successfully
compete with ignorant and unskilled
labLrers of the Old World is equivalent to
saying that skill and intelligence are not
of great advantage to the laborers who
possess them.
The report concludes:
I'VE are unable To offer a substitute for
the pending bill because we have not been
allowed reasonable time to prepare one.
Congress convened in extraordinary session
on Monday, the 18th day of March. and this
referred to the committee on ways and
me&ns. which met the next morning, and
on Thursday it was ordered to be reported
to the house. The majority of the COM
mittee had spent the three months of the
last session of the last congress in the
fused to allow the minority three weeks in
which TO prepare substitute We are un-
willing to propose a measure that has not
been carefully mstured c and f Te must shsTe
against the passage of the committee 5
bill"
The night session of the house for the
debate on the tariff bill was to have be-
gun at o'clock. Speaker Reed had desig-
mated Mr. Hopkins. of Illinois, to officiate
in his stead, but Mr.. Hopkins had for
gotten the appointment.
Messengers were sent after Mr.. Hop
kim and at $50 he appeared and called
the house to order. About seventy-five
members were scattered through the
hCrse.
Speeches ir opposition to the bill were
made by Mr.. Robinson. Democrat. of In
diana: Mr.. Green. Populist, of Nebraska;
Mr. Carmack. Democrat. of Tennessee,
and Mr. Buckner. Democrat, of Michigan,
and at 1O:a0 the house adjourned.