The Minneapolis journal., 1902-12-10

The argument most frequently heard
against touching the tariff in any partic-
ular and against the agitation of the sub
ject, usually begins with this statement:
that the people OF the United States are,
In an unexampled degree, prosperous.
All this L believe to be true; and he
is an enemy Of mankind who consciously
or Intentionally proposes a change of a
single line or letter of the laws that would
destroy or impair the prosperity which
now exists. After announcing the pre-
mise, to which every intelligent and patri-
the camp and not Of the march
these disciples Of the maxims, Let
we'll enough alone" and Stand pat" pro-
ceed to their conclusion with a sublimity
Of bad logic as unexampled as the pros
perity which they so justly praise.
Why should we not approach the con-
sideration of a, change In the tariff sched-
ules in precisely the same spirit that
| controls us as we approach all other mod
| ifications in existing statute? Why should
| we not Danish forever this apparition Of
imaginary danger perpetually invoked to
paralyze the mind Of inquiry when it
turns toward tariff duties? Our motto
should be, care in everything, fear in
| nothing. F .@E: IT, .,
1t is a slander upon the fundamental
| truth of the world to shy that the pros
perity Of the people ever has been or ever
| can be impaired by doing what Is right
and just and fair. What evidence is there
to sustain the assertion that correction
of the grossly excessive duties would has
| ten the days Of extreme commercial activ-
| ity to close? None whatever. save the
cries of those who want to be let alone,
but who ought not to- be let alone, re-
| peatedi by a coterie Of statemsen who have
| become imbued with the calm philosophy
Of the citizen Of Arkansas. who refused
to mend his room in dry weather because
1t was unnecessary, and did not mend it
when 1t ralned, because it was impossible.
1t Is also urged that If some duties are
too high, that they do no harm. and that
the injury inflicted upon the country by
an attempt to reduce them will be greater
than the good that can be accomplished
by their reduction. If this. argument be
sound. then we should hesitate long before
we touched the subject at all. 1t Is not,
however. supported by the facts as they
are known to exist. If competition were
effective in every field of industry, exces-
sive duties, generally speaking, would do
| little harmi but 1t is matter of common
knowledge that in some commodities the
| force of. competition has either been
wholly eliminated or seriously impaired
and with respect to such things, whenever
there Is a, full demand at home it is possi-
| Bile. for the home producer to raise the
! price to the point OF extortion and in
many instances at this moment the possi-
bility has, become reality, and buyers
and consumers are now paying more than
fair price for what they buy and con-
sumo. 1t IS said that high prices are the
| cr1terions of a healthy and prosperous con-
dition. and I am Inclined. to admit the
proposition We must. however, agree
upon a definition Of the phrase "high
prices The term is fully met whenever
we have prices which afford good liberal
profits to those who engage In business
High prices do not require for their bene-
| fic1al effects those extraordinary profits
| OF which we have been the witnesses
within the last three years.
| 1t Is also claimed that those who favor
reasonable tariff revision are endeavorina
to so adjust tariff duties as to encourage
! tmportations and thus deprive American
producers Of the market they now have
and American workingmen Of the labor
which they now perform. This is not only
false, but either ignorantly or maliciously
so. We who believe that the time has
come IN which to make certain changes
are IN favor Of no modification that will
ADMIT, except through fair reciprocity
which will Increase rather than diminish
the work to be done in this country, sin
gle dollar of imported commodities. We
do not favor the reduction of any schedule
below the point at which the American
manufacturer can, if he will, monopolize
the whole American market at a fair price.
| we stand for Tariff duties SO adjusted that t
| the potential competition from other coun-
tries will prevent producers at home from
exacting more than a just and reasonable
price for what they produce. 1 repeat
| that all restrictions laid upon the ordinary
| laws VI sale and exchange are made and
must continue to be made. with a view OF
giving to the workers Of the United States
the utmost labor and the highest wages
"a =,
ules along protective lines entirely apart
from reciprocity, 1t should never be for
gotten that they are not to be adjusted tC
invite competition from abroad or to in
crease importa tions. On the" other hand
they are expressly designed to exclude
competition and prevent irnportations:
trust that you will take it for granted thai
am not now, considering those instances
IN Whlch absolute monopoly at home ma,
make 1T necessary to make the potentia
competition OF the world effective by the
entire suspension for the time being O,
duties upon the commodities so monopo.
iized.
am not in favor of prescribing OF
maintaining tariff duties higher than they
should be viewed from the protection
STANDPOINT, simply to give an opportunity
4 to reduce them through the medium of re
clprocal treaties with other nations Thi:
policy may have prevailed to some exten
Ill lAe tdrlH law Oh 1891, and it has We
! many disciples. No true friend of reel
procity will either encourage or defend tn.
practice. 1t at once brings the whole doc
trine Of reciprocity into disrepute, and i
Is an open letter to the world that we hav
entered upon a scheme of duplicity an(
deceit.
l now draw more closely to the doctrine
itself. The truth is that considered q.
economic principles. protection and rec
lproclty are not only widely separated, bu
are the exact opposites of each other. W.
ought to- understand that in the domain
Of the competitive commodities, rec
1procity does not sustain, but DESTROY:
protection. Protection is intended tt
practically exclude importations upon thu
subjects that 1t embraces by giving to tht
home producer an advantage in the hom,
market. Reciprocity. to be of any ad
}, vantage, or to be opera tive in any sub
stantia1 degree, is intended to encourag gt
importations In the subjects it embraces;
and to give to the importer at least al
equal chance in our markets. Obviousl,
am not now speaking Of reciprocity i,
the importation of those commodities
which We; do not and cannot produce
These commodities are already 1arsel,
upon the free list, and there is but littI,
opportunity to promote reciprocal treaties
in those things which by nature we mus
, import. Protection, as both Hamilton
and Blaine have said in the maturity O
its design, was and Is intended to enabl,
r the domestic producer to hold the market
OF his own country by excluding ng~competi
tion from abroad. Reciprocity in til,
! ma turfty Of it's design is intended tn on