Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1900-08-30

$3.50
This, my friends, is still not a COM
plete schedule of the changes of the
! opinions of the president. The last
one, as well as the others, involve
consequences of very grave import
ance to the people. The president in
his last annual message said: Cur
! plain duty is to abolish the customs
tariffs between the United States ami
Porto Rico and give her products free
access to our markets. The secre-
tary of war in his annual report also
declared: 1.-THE highest considers
tions of Justice and good faith de-
mand that we should not disappoint
the confident expectations of sharing
in our prosperity with which the peo-
pie of Porto Rico have gladly trans
ferred their allegiance to the United
States. We should treat the interest
of this people as our own. L wish
most strongly to urge that the Gus
toms duties between Porto Rico and
the United States should be removed"
Mr.. Chairman, [ have quoted b ut
~terances of both the chief magistrate
and his wal adviser insisting upon
free trade between Porto Rico anil
the United States, the president de-
claring it to be "our plain duty" and
the secretary insisting that Justice
and good faith demand it,"
a bill was introduced into the house
of representatives by the chairman of
the committee on ways and means
(Mr. Payne), and in the ena by the
senator from Ohio (Mr. Foraker), to
crystalize these recommendations in
to law. The ink upon these bills was
scarcely dry before the most sudden
change of views known in our ad-
ministrative history occurred. The
reasons for the change are so start
ling that 1 will not to state
them myself lest they be under the
suspicion of pernicious p~artisanship.
[ will quote from the speech of Sena-
tor Redfeld Proctor, of Vermont (sec-
rotary of war under President Harri
son., made in the senate March 30th
of the present year, in which he gives,
with some degree of indignation, the
reasons for the change. After recit-
ing the history of the proposedlegisla-
ton, and quoting the views of the
president and secretary of war, he
says: ~"Following these recommended
tions a bill was introduced in this
body by the senator from Ohio, the
chairman of the committee, giving
Porto Rico free trade. A like meas
ure was introduced in another body;
but, presto! with little notice or ap-
parent reason a bill comes to US levy
ing a tax upon Porto Rican exports
and imports.
as it strange that some of us, in
lack of an official statement, or ap-
parent reason for this sudden shift,
should be slow to give up a line of ac-
ton which we believe to be based on
principle and justice, which we be-
lieve to be the only honest and con
sistent course? 1t is charged hat this
change was demanded and brought
about by the sugar and tobacco inter-
ests, and also, it is stated, by organ
lied labor.
:, 81, however, have failed to see that
the representatives of this latter in
terest appeared before the commit
tee. 1t is practically admitted that
free trade with Porto Rico does not
harm these interests materially, but
Mr.. Oxnard, for the Sugar Interest,
and Mr.. Myrick and Mr.. Frye, presi-
dent of the Tobacco Growers ~associa-
ton, claimed before the committee
that it creates a precedent hat will
harm them if adopted IN reference to
the Philippines and Cuba. 1t will be
time to cross those rivers when we
come to them, and in mgoPiHien the
crossing will not be difficult when the
proper time comes for action"
Fellow-citizens, the Porto Riean
tariff bill was. the outcome of the
most shameless exhibition of the
power of trusts and the most ignoble
surrender to them made by any adj
ministration in the history of our
country. The surrender was made, as
declared by Senator Proctor, not be-
cause free trade with Porto Rico
would materially reduce the profits
of the trusts upon sugar and tobacco,
but it being the first outpost of fed
eral legislation for the government of
colonial possessions. the trusts took
the administration by the throat, be-
cause their campaign contributions
had largely contributed to its cleo
ton, and demanded that the bill be
throttled because it would establish 4
precedent for future legislation in re-
spect to the Philippine islands and
Cuba. Was ever the inordinate greed
and power of trusts more defiantly
exhibited than is shown in the story
of national humiliation, by the dis
tinguished republican senator (Mr.
Proctor) in the extract from the
speech l have just read! This country
has cut off the trade of Porto Rico
with Spain by the Paris treaty, and
then taxed it's commerce with us in
disregard both of the Declaration of
Independence and the Constitution of
the United States. The Constitution
says that all "duties, imposts and ex-
cises shall be uniform throughout the
United States To this constitution
al maxim of taxation should be add
ed, if the republican policy is to pre-
vail-provided the trusts consent.
CAUSES OF THE WAR WITH SPAIN.
Fellow-citiZens, 1 voted for the dec
laration of war with Spain to drive
the cruel, treacherous Spaniards from
the western world. In discussing the
causes of hat war / said in the house
of representatives on the Gath of
March, 1898 that:
Language seems impotent to depict,
much less to ~exaggerate, the crueltieS per-
petrated by. Spain III her efforts to ex-
terminate the Cuban population. The
wholesale carnival of blood visited by the
4 early Spanish Conquistadores upon the I'M
resisting aborigines of the West Indies,
Mexico and Peru at the beginning of
| Spanish sovereignty over America, the
atrocities of the Duke of Alva in the
3 Netherlands, the massacre of the Ar
Imenians by the Turks, and the scalping
of helpless women and children by the
Apaches do not surpass the recent crimes
of Spain in Cuba. 1t is estimated that
more than 400, 900 Cubans have already
persisted by Spanish cruelty | declared
; months ago that the United States should
not longer hesitate to intervene in behalf
Il f.Aodnnn y