Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1902-11-27
.7-TUE - --E-ET-C II
FLAro FOOTED, FOR. FREE TRADE

The Party Of Robert E. Pattison Dc,
cares UnequiVocaIly In Favor OF
Unrestrictsd Foreign Coa1petition.
,r,' The, ProsgqrityI Of PENNSYLVANIA is
de- to Republican rule and not to Dem
iq,ratic Acknowledgement The Demo.
cratic party in $50 went out of power
'fhi this state and left a debt Of $40.
Oo6 600 For tue people to struggle with.
Now Robert f. Pattison comes along
, and asks tbat that party be put again
in power-9ag 9ht EsiH 5-. ..-1. ~
1.-The Democratic party stands for
free trade, the Republican party for
protection. A vote for Pennypacker is
a vote for the party of prosperity, a
vote for Pattison is an encouragement
TO- the tarif-smashers and free silver
dreamers, of whom X. E. Pattison was
one of the chief. If this is doubted,
read the following from the Albany
Journal:
In the preparation of the Democrat
ic campaign text book at least, just
issued by the Democratic congress
sional com.>ittcc. ,.evCiandism has
exercised tha prevailing influence. For
the first Ji!lc there is made, for the
DcmocIatin party, n straightforward,
uncauiggaai. en- .:atic declaration in
favor @. free Il. oe. cher" is no talk
about "taIiG revision - tariff reform"
or tariff 10" revenue only" reciprocity
is simpiy declared TO be "a sham and
hum-bug," while Of free trade it is said
that it would open our own markets
to benefit our own country. 1t is as
serted that "the greatest good to the
greatest number requires that there be
no barriers in trade in order that goods
may be as cheap as possible and the
cost Of living be reduced to mini
mum"
That goods as cheap as possible"
would mean wages as low as possible,
that the opening of our markets to all
the products OF foreign cheap labor
would mean destruction to our indus
tries, and that the reduction of the cost
of living to a minimum would result in
depriying thousands of American work
ingmon of even the minimum required
to defray the cost, are facts which the
Democratic text books ignores; but
which the American people have in
their minds.
The Democratic congressional com
mittee is entitled to such credit as is
due for frankness While it proposes
the destruction of our prosperity which
has developed under the Republican
policy Of protection for home indus
tries, the pauperizaUion Of American
labor. the ruin of American capital,
the enrichment of foreign nations at
the expense OF the United States, the
retrOgrcSSiOn of this nation TO the con-
dition of a debtor nation, it states its
proposition without circumlocution in
tended 10 bcfog the minds of the peO-
pie as to the real purpose of the Demo-
cratic party. Free trade, complete abO-
litiOn of the tariff, admission Of all
foreign products to free competition
VIII AIutI u an DID'thNl9 tildl 10 ILc
proposition which is squarely set be-
fore the people Of the United States.
American thought will instantly re.
vert to the condition that was precipi-
tated by the election of Mr.. Cleveland
IN 1892, when nothing nearly so radical
was proposed and when the tariff law
soon thereafter enacted by the Demo-
cratic congress, the so-called Wilson
law. was after all, though it made a
reduction Of the duty on many imports.
as whole n protective measure.
The Democratic declaration for free
trade, absolute free-trade, will make
the question whetncr this country will
uphold the policy that has made ii
prosperous or reject that policy and
cast prosperity to the winds, the para
mount issue in the cOngrossigs cleo
tions this fall and in the presidential
contest two years hence The Amcri-
can people made a terrible mistake in
1892; they will not repeat it in 1902 or