The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1902-07-31
REDUCTION OF THE TARIFF.
Would it be Accomplished Even With
Democratic Congress-?


MEssRs EDITORs:-I have read with
great interest your editorial in the
Sun of July % on Tariff Reform as
a Practical Political ISSUE" in which
you show the practice of protected
industries in carrying American
manufactured goods to foreign coun-
tries and there selling them for lit
tie more than half what we Ameri-
cans have to pay for the same goods.
l remember distinctly bearing Sena-
tor Ransom make that statement in
a public address as far back as 1887.
and he cited the instance OF a maker
OF hay rakes in Detroit selling them
in that city for 1913 and just across
the river in Canada for $11. And l
remember Mr.. Cleveland's tariff re-
form message on the same subject.
That argument has been rammed
into every voter in the United States
for years. and they all remember that
we Democrats had the Presidency,
the Senate and the House in 1898,
and after nearly a year of wrangling
the party signalIy failed. Mr.. Cleve-
land said 1.-The deadly blight of trea-
son blasted the councils of the brave
in their honr of might" in his cele-
brated letter to MY Dear Catchings."
in which he declared he would not
sign the Wilson-Gorman Tariff bill.
Suppose there were to be held a
Presidential election tomorrow and
the Democrats should carry the Presi-
dency and the House by ma jority
OF As and the Senate by ma jority of
10, and that Congress should meet at
once to execute the commands of the
people, so that could get an Ameri-
can made hay rake, or nails. or wire,
a typewriter or coil Of rope as cheap
lv as the man in BuenOs Ayres. Bril-
tain or Berlin. Do you suppose the
Congress would do it? Don't you
know that protectionist lobbyists
would tie up Congress. and the cry
of the Chinaman living on 3 cents a
day and the pauper labor Of Europe
and the demands and dignity OF
American labor would resound through
the land, and that Maryland and per-
| haps other border States would lean
to the Northward, and finally some
acute Democratic statistician would
figure out for publication that the
Bailey Richardson and Bryan-soms-
body bill had made general reduc-
ton of 3 1 per cent. from the Ding
| lev bill, so that it is now tariff OF
SO IA per cent. instead Of 50 per cent.
That's about what would become OF
it, Mr.. Editor.
! There was once negro Congress
man of my district, and he voted in
Congress for the Mckinley bill. On
his return home he called to see me
on some business, for | had been his
attorney for long time. He greeted
sponded with pretended or mock in
dignation: why did You vote for &
law to make ME pay $25 for Il coat
which without that law | could buy
for $139' TO this he replied: 'Well
counselor, that does look pretty bad
but there's at least a hundred way!
Of looking at that thing" Mr.. Editor
the point was yielded by the protect
ed infant industries in 1928, wher
they agreed TO Gays compromise u
reduce it 10 per cent. each year TO
10 years. The Supreme Court of tn
United States long ago declared i
was unconstitutional and robbery.
is no more nor less than system b,
which the manufacturing Nortl
keeps the agricultural South in vas
saage. If we had a Democratic Con
gress and President today do no
believe the tariff would be reduced II
per cent. below what it now is. |
you think it can or will be done
please explain in your editorial hov
it is to be brought to pass. The peo
pie have been ready or willing all tn
time and now are. The politician
will not permit it.
L. T. HICKS.
Henderson. N. c., July 90. 1902.