The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-10-25
"FREE EVERYTHING
Mr.. McCleary Turns His X-Ray on
Free Lumber in His Pipe
stone Speech.
Plan of the Democrats, Like Cob
denis, Is to Divide and Con-
quer," He Says.

Pipestone. Mimi. Oct. 25.-Congress-
man McCleary addressed large and en-
thusiastic meeting here last night. He
paid warm tribute to Governor Van
SAINT as a man who "believes that it is
the duty of a governor to execute the law
as he finds It,"
One subject that Mr.. McCleary dis
cussed with special satisfaction to all,
even the democrats, was the free lum-
ber' matter. He told how, some weeks
peg. w. H. H. Graham, copy of Bull
letin numbered 126, issued by the United
States department of agriculture. on farm
buildings. with the request that the con-
sui get from the lumber yards of Winni-
peg bids for furnishing the bill Of lumber
given in detail on pages 80 and 40 Of the
bulletin. the lumber being that required
In the construction of certain barn de-
scrlbed in the bulletin. The best bid that
the consul could get in Winnipeg was
$526.9O
MIR. McCleary also sent the same bull
letin to every county seat in the second
district. with the request for bids from
the local lumber yards on the same bill
of lumber. In order that the bids in all
| cases should be correct, Mr. McCleary
asked those to whom he wrote to get
the bid In good faith, as If asked for by
bona fide purchaser living in the vicin-
ity, who was DESTROYS Of knowing how
cost. The bids in the second district va
ried from $500 to $3.50. Even the high
| est bid In the second district was S76 80
lower than the lowest bid in Winnipeg
Mr. McCleary showed that there is no
lumber produced in Canada anywhere
| near Minnesota, the land in Canada north
| of Minnesota and Dakota being prairie,
so that we cannot hope to get cheaper
lumber from Canada than we get from
Minnesota lunbermen.
He also showed plainly that free lum-
ber' will not preserve our pine forests.
Those forests, he said, belong either to
the government or to private individuals
| or corporations. If the forests yet re-
main in the possession Of the government,
| they can be conserved through admins
trative orders of the interior department
under proper legislation for the purpose,
all Of which is wholly unrelated to the
tariff. If the timber belongs to individ-
uals or corporations, it would be cut into
| lumber and sold. because that was what
| 1t was bought for. The tariff would have
nothing to do with this result.
| MIR. McCleary showed that there is much
lumber shipped from eastern Canada into
New York, Pennsylvania and other east
ern states. The supply of that section,
however, is chiefly drawn from Michigan,
Wisconsin and the head Of the lakes"
so that the price in the eastern states is
fixed by this supply from our lumber
states. AS a result, the 50 tariff on Ca :
madam lumber is paid by the Canadian
lumberman and goes into the United
States treasury. The only effect Of free
lumberman to keep that tariff money in
stead Of turning it into our national
treasury
But Mr.. McCleary's best point on this
subject was his revelation of the true in
wardness" of this democratic cry for free
lumber. He showed that it was simply a
part Of the general scheme Of the demo-
cratic leaders to overturn the protective
tariff system under which we have pros
pered so. greatly. SO, that democracy may
have some show to win in 1904. On this
point Mr.. McCleary said:
The plan is to divide and conquer as
advised by Golden. the English free
| trader. That IS, the democratic leaders
fearing to make an open battle on the
subject of the tariff are trying to under
mine the Dingley law by attacking it ir
detail and adapting their arguments tc
local conditions. For example, in New
England they are trying to get congress
men committed to free hides in Con.
necticut and elsewhere to free WOOL ir
the large cities, where there are many
workingmen to appeal to, to free fooc
products, and on the prairies Of the west
to free lumber
What would be the result if any repub-
llcdn congressman were so Dllnd as tt
allow himself to get committed to any Of
these things? Why, he would, in order
to do anything along the line of his
pledge, be compelled to cooperate witt
all the other men who have similar
pledges. That is, the man pledged to free
lumber would have to work with the mer
pledged to free wool and with other mer
pledged to free hides and with other me1
pledged to free food products. And all O.
them would have to throw themselves
into the arms of the democrats, who stant
for free everything. That is, the mar
pledged to free lumber would be practic
ally pledged to free everything, and would
thus be bound hand and foot and required
to work against the really great and i'm
portant interests of his constituents"
When Mr.. McCleary got through, there
was not enough left of the free lumber
plank of the democracy to make a tooth
pick.