The independent., 1902-11-06

hCoD anu ia ICICnL
years, and the new directions they
have taken, ought now to especially
arrest the attention and apprehension
of every thoughtful, sober-minded
citizen.
1T was not long ago that the demo-
cratic party in advocating the reduc-
tion of tariff taxation to the revenue
needs of the government, based its
insistence largely upon the right and
justice of cheapening for the masses
of our people the prices Of the necessi-
ties of life, and withdrawing so much
protection from favored few manu-
facturers as allowed them abnormal
profits at the expense of the great body
of the consumers. But the eXactions
from the people on account of protec-
ton were made in such a stealthy and
unobserved manner by adding them
to their daily purchases, that it was
difficult to impress upon the consum-
ers of the land the extent of these ex-
actions. While this process was 60
ing on imported articles not produced
in this country were charged with
such high rates of duty as not only to
greatly enhance their cost to the pur-
chasing consumer, but to create a sur
plus revenue beyond its needs in the
government treasury. This surplus
represented clearly and definitely a
small proportion of the unnecessary
added expense of the living of our
people on account of high protection;
and its aggregate was ascertainable;
but the amount of the exaction thus
represented was insignificant as COM
pared with the amount which protec-
ton permitted our own manufacturers
to pocket from the consumer"
You can see, no one can help but
see, that what Cleveland calls tariff
reform" is tariff for revenue only"
He cares nothing for the revenue of
the citizen. 1t is all for the revenue of
the government at Washington. He
has not one word to say with respect
to any other principle of government.
although he speaks of the "unadulter-
ated, wholesome, and beneficial prin-
ciples of genuine democracy" yet he
cannot think of any principle, except
tariff system Of taxation for gov
ernment revenue only. Not one word
can he say in favor of a tariff that
seeks to protect American labor
against competition of foreign labor.
or American capital against the COM
petition OF foreign capital, or our
American industries against foreign
industries. To such a tariff he OBJ
jects, because, as he says, it supports
trusts.
1t does not occur to Mr.. Cleveland
that wbj1n hn ic or 10 ~;
FORM" apparently, for electing Mr..
Flanagan to congress, and that while
Mr.. Fowler is advocating a protective
tariff for the purpose of replying to
Mr. Cleveland and of keeping himself
in congress, much more important
principles of democracy are neglected.
is 1t true, as some think, that Cleve-
land is shifting the argument from
the currency to the tariff for the pur-
pose of keeping Mr.. Fowler in con-
gress, not for the sake of voting for a
protective tariff, but for pushing the
Fowler bill? and that he talks tariff,
not fer having Flanagan in congress to
vote for a revenue tariff, but for the
Fowler bill? | cannot undertake to
sit IN Judgment upon Mr.. Cleyelanl's
AAACt1'C CoJ Dut llIC IC0uII Will US, InaI
II Fowler is elected then there will be
a vote for the Fowler bill; and if Flan-
agan is elected, there will be a vote
for the Fowler bill. There have been
such tricks played in politics, and it
is not at all improbable that Cleveland
knows what he is doing, and that he
sees in the Fowler bill a measure of
far more Importance than a revenue
tariff, although he is teaching that
I" tariff reform" deserves to be ranked
| among the "unadulterated, wholesome.
and beneficial principles of genuine
democracy" and that nothing else is
comparatively, of any Importance
not even the Fowler bill is to be men
| Toned.
II we are compelled to lay aside the
income tax and the money question,
and must confine the discussion to the
comparative merits of republican tar
iff and tariff which Mr.. Cleveland's
wing of the democracy will give us
then | would say, give us the republi-
can tariff.
A republican protective tariff, if it is
true to the principle of protection, will
give us free trade in all commodities
which we cannot produce; and low
! prices for all Such commodities r.