Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1903-10-01


army OF thinking men, the great body
of the comon people, the great body
of the laboring men, must stand as
zone against combination, centraliza-
"tion, and the trust power of the pres
lent day"
Again he said:
THE protective policy is selfish, and
IF this law is to remain upon our
statute books, you should be selfish
and vote for those men and the policy
that will aid YOU"
II these criticisms do not mean abso-
lutte hostility to the protective policy,
| it. would be difficult to assign them
any meaning whatsoever, and If the
democrats, as represented by their
leader, are opposed to duties levied for
protection, and if their platform ex-
presses accurately their views, it fol-
! lows inevitably that they favor duties
levied upon the free trade plan.
| have endeavored to make the issue
presented by these platforms sharp,
because | want every voter In the
State Of Iowa to know precisely what
the democratic party proposes. | do
not intend to allow my distinguished
friend. their candidate for Governor,
! W CSSdpC tIlC LII thS po-
sition his party has chosen. 1t is al
ready apparent as shall presently es-
tablish, that he Is energetically en-
deavoring to obscure the real issue for
which he stands. 1t Is altogether vain
for him to test the capacity of his vo-
cal chords in attempting to show that
there are certain duties that are too
high, and that there are certain So
| nI 1, l. snI,
to bear any duty at all. The inquiry Is,
and he must face 1t: Shall our i'm
port duties, whatever they are, be laid
under the policy of protection or shall
they be laid under the policy of
free trade? AS republican he
might be heard to say that the
duty on steel rails Is too high.
AS a democrat he must say that there
should be no duty at all. am perfect.
ly willing to see every man in Iowa
who in his heart believes in free trade,
! vote the democratic ticket; but I am
unwilling to see any man who in his
heart believes in the policy of protec-
ton. vote the democratic ticket be-
cause he believes that some duties are
too high. Every such man belongs In
the republican party, and he ought to
take his place there bravely and con-
! Scientiously, and lend his influence to
see that tariff duties are maintained at
their proper point, neither too high
nor too low. Let us do away with all
cant, strip the situation of all preju-
dice. and meet the question as honest,
patriotic men ought to meet all the
grave concerns of life. II you are a
protectionist; that is If you believe
that fair and reasonable duties should
be levied to protect those home indus
tries which need protection, you are
q republican, and you will be false to
your highest duty If you do not give
republicanism all the strength of your
voice and your vote, even though you
believe that the system needs read
justment. If you are free trader, II
are follower of the democratic plat
form, if you are supporter of the
democratic candidate, you cannot be-
lleve in revision or REIMBURSEMENT of
the tariff, you must believe in
a revolution of the tariff and the
substitution of a system that has
no protective feature in it, and which
opens every market in your country,
not only to the unchecked, but the in
vited, invasion of every nation In the
world. l have done with definitions,
and proceed with happy confidence to
the examination Of these opposing
policies.
have heard 1t said, sometimes by
republicans, that protection Is prac-
tically sound but theoretically I'M
sound I make no such concession
deny and repudiate the sentiment
whether it comes from friend or foe.
Protection is as sound theoretically as
1t is efficient practically. The chief
purpose of government is to prevent
natural consequences and to restrain
the operation of natural law. Free
commerce is no more sacred than free
booting or free killing. Tariff laws
are the weapons with which Nations
fight for commercial supremacy. The
, Government is under as high obliga.
. ton to prevent the capture of our mar
kets by foreign goods, If thereby the
, general welfare will be promoted, as II
I is to prevent the capture Of our flag
by foreign army. 1t has the same
l duty to protect it's people against un
limited importations, if thereby we are
f enabled to produce for ourselves, as
2 it has to prevent the general issue Of
2 bank notes in order that the integrity
: of our currency may be preserved. Tc
| say that we cannot divert the natura
4 channels of trade to our advantage, Ii
4 to impeach our intelligence. l canno
+ dwell however, upon this interesting
+ although abstract, phase of the propo
e sition. | reiterate that tariff laws
t founded upon the policy Of protecting
|. home markets, are not only of tn,
d highest efficiency. but of the strictes
+ national morality, and I have littl,
patience with the theorist who base
l. his objection to such laws upon tn,
l. proposition that they contravene ma
a tural right.
h With what proof does our experience
/ supply the debate? Examine with me
;. if you will a monument, the genera
y condition of the Republic when protec
e ton was first proposed. The countr
2 was young in years. small in populs
q ton and almost wholly undevelopeG
}, Nature had bestowed her gifts wit
r a prodigality not equalled in any Xix
t, territory in the world. To utilize thes
a treasures and y-epare them for tn
n use of man, required infinite labor an
IL vast capital. large population and
complete Investigation Of industr!
b. Most of the countries of Europe wer
II well advanced IN production, labor wa
is cheap, and capital already centralized
Of Under such circumstances free CON