The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1898-11-26

carlng that the war taxes will not be repealed
for at least another year. In the first place,
Government expenses have been greatly in
creased by the war with Spain, and they are
likely to remain heavy for an indefinite period
In the next place, protective duties can nc
longer be depended on to yield the revenue
they formerly did, for imports are declining
In the third place, repeal of the war taxes
would cause another enormous deficit, anC
thus drain away the gold reserve, as was the
case during the second Cleveland admnistra
ton. Lastly, no one objects to the wal
taxes. "
There are certain of the above state
ments which everybody will recognize a.
incontrovertibly true. One Of them is tha
the expenses of the Government have beer
so enormously increased since the war witt
Spain began and the hunger and thirst TO
territorial expansion seized the Admins
tration as to render it probable or certain
that they will steadily and largely increase
not decrease, for an indefinite period
The expansion policy must inevitably carry
with it largely increased army in the
land and more formidable navy in the
harbcrs Of Cuba, Hawaii, Porto Rico anC
the Philippines In addition, carpet bas
governments come high, as was PROVED
during the Reconstruction period, which
followed the close of the war for the Union.
The total debt incurred by Spain in hel
efforts to hold and govern Cuba is, in round
numbers 5000, 600, 600. Her indebted.
ness in respect to the Philippines is only
$40, 900, 600. Colonel Hecker, in his
official report Of his investigations in Cuba,
stated that the United States should spend
5000, 900, 600 for railroad construction in
that newly acquired territory. This tidy
sum is quite apart from the amount to be
expended by the Government on account
of river and harbor improvements, the
building Of docks, piers and warehouses,
the construction of camps and barracks,
and the erection of Notifications and for
providing other defences. 1t is altogether
independent, too, of the S22, 900, 600
which Colonel Waring reported would be
needed for such essential purifcation Of
Havana and its harbor as to render them
less dangerous to life. At present, being
their conditions are fatal to
human existence.
These vast expenditures do not include
those needed to maintain standing army
and navy for Cuba, and they have moth
ing to do with the like expenditures which
will be required to put Hawaii, Porto Rico
and the Philippines in good defensive con-
dition under the Old Flag. To do that
many appropriations of hundreds of mil
lions will have to be voted.
Another of our contemporary state
ments which is undeniably true is that
protective duties can no longer be de-
pended on to yield the revenue they form
erly did, for imports are declining The
present tariff was presented to Congress
and the country by its author, Represen-
tative Dingley, as a revenue tariff, guar
anteed to yield surplus of at least $50,
900, 200 annually. The guarantee was
worthless, as the Dingley tariff has never,
even in the time of peace, yielded revenue
equal to the expenses of the Government.
1t has yielded deficit from first to last.
In the aggregate, it has yielded less than
the previous Democratic tariff The rea-
son of its failure as a revenue raiser is that
it was made, to high degree, a really
tariff. 1t reduced importation
by making importation Improbable. By
doing that it reduced the sum of duties and
produced large total deficit.
The third of the Advertiser statements
is similarly true; it is that "the repeal of
the war taxes would cause another enor-
nous deficit, and thus drain the gold re-
serve" 1t would more than drain our
reserve of gold, on which the national cur
rency and credit are founded; it would
sweep it away as flood or an avalache
would sweep its course. Consequently, the
war taxes must be not onl y continued for an
indefinite period, but, according to the
statement of Senator Hanna, who is the
accredited prophet and spokesman Of the
they must be largely in
creased in order to meet the requirements
of what President Mckinley has called
F'the manifest destiny of the country,
in taking and holding far distant terrific
ries, and in joining the European con-
cert" These things are luxuries, and
cost a great deal of money. If the Ad-
insists upon having them, the
people must be taxed to pay for them.
They are really very expensive.
Senator Hanna declares that in order to
get the enormous revenues required tea
and coffee must be taxed. When Mr..
Dingley framed his tariff bill and subse-
1uently his war revenue bill Congress taxed
pretty much everything in sight. The
hings which it did not tax, because it was
afraid to do so, were tea and coffee, the
props and stays of "the poor man break
asst table - But that necessity, which
he President $ dream of manifest desti-
ny has made condition, not a theory,
las banished or stifed fear, and Senator
Hanna says tea and coffee must go upon
he tariff list
There is something fine, grand, splen-
lid, indeed, in the new phrase, terrific
ial expansion, manifest destiny and
European concert, but the realization
# their meaning cannot be had for moth
ny; great sums must be paid for it, heavy
axes levied upon and collected from the
people In entering upon our new and
trange national career of expansion and
lestiny and concert it is pity, we think,
hat the extraordinary cost of it cannot all
,e paid in money; so much of it will have
o be paid in the blood of our young men,
Who will be sent down to the deadly in
ested fastnesses of Cuba, Hawaii, Porto
Rico and the Philippines to fight possibly
ebels, certainly yellow fever and typhoid.
The Philippines are declared to be the
east perilous to health and yet such a
authority as Dean Worcester
describes them as rather unsafe abiding
,laces for those who are in no hurry to