The Red Cloud chief., 1904-10-07
FOR REVENUE ONLY
A DEMOCRATIC POLICY AND
HOW " WORKS IN. PRACTICE.
The Wilson Tariff Inv and Its stu
penAous and Disastrous Failure,
with -Four Years Of Accom- panyinx
Business Disaster.

The Democratic policy has often been
announced 10 be "A TARIFF FOX
REVENUE ONLY" And what this high
sounding policy always in practice has
produced Ii DlMINISHING REVENUE
AND INCREASING DEFICIT.
The great business depression which
overlook the country during the last
Democratic administration wae due not
merely to the anti-protection features of
Democratic tariff tinkering, but to the
very serious falling of In government
revenues which ii occasioned.
When there IL n Condition of uncer.
tainty and instability" in business, which
:. Mr.. Parker himself has admitted follow
ed past attempts in the tnrif tinkering
line, the imports OF certain classes OF
dutiable goods are always sure to fall OH
even with the decreased tariff. for the
reason that the people consume less for
eign luxurics In hard times than in good.
With the foreigners flooding the Ameri-
can markets with articles that can Just
as well be produced by American labor.
our own people naturally have less tnnir
cial means with which to buy foreign
laces, silks, teas, wines, perfumes, dia-
monds. works OF art, etc.
As u tNSuuc pTouutiuk "'"H"'' '"'
Wilson tariff law was a stupendous fail
ure. Its authors showed colossal busi.
ness incompetence In their failure to
make II supply anywhere near the
amount Of revenues required to meet the
expenses Of the government. The revc-
nue. from the Wilson bill fell short OF the
estimates of its Democratic trainers 10y
no less n sum than $751; 100000, and
this, including It's sugar import tax. to
which many of the Democratic leaders,
including President Cleveland himself,
had been bitterly opposed. This bill not
only did direct damage to manufacturing
industry everywhere throughout the
country, but It had disastrous effects on
the nations credit, because in causing
the revenues to drop heavily below the
expenditures il forced the government to
draw for its routine expenses on the
treasury gold reserve, which was needed
to preserve the gold standard of value,
and this shrinkage In the gold reserve in
turn necessitated the enormous bond Is.
sues in which syndicates secured theft
notorious "rake-offs.'
All through 1894 trade dcmoralizatio
increased, and the government revenues
for the first six months of the year turn
ed out to be about $40,OOO,00O less than
the Democratic Secretary of the Treas
ury, Mr.. Carlisle, had estimated they
would be in his report OF December,
1891. Nevertheless the Democratic lead
crs failed to heed the warning, but went
ahead with their free trade tariff bill
without paying the slightest attention Ia
whether or not the bill could produce
enough revenue for running the govern
ment.
Davis Looks Out for His Own Revenue.
The House OF Representatives not only
struck off the import taxes on coal, iron
ore, and wool, which were exclusively
protective duties, aud therefore logica
subjects for revision, from the Demo
cratic standpoint, but it refused to con
tinue the sugar duties, which We're d
revenue tax OF the most productive char
acter. The Senate, through the infiu
ence of IL. q. Davis, now the Demo
cratic vice presidential candidate. whose
vast fortune was represented chiefly IL
coal lands. replaced the duty of 40 cent?
per ton on coal. which was an utterl,
insignificant source of national revenue
but Il restored only such part Of tn,
sugar duties as could play directly int
the hands of the sugar trust. Consid
cred merely as a law contrived To pro
luce sufficient revenue, the Senate bill
was undoubtedly superior TO the Hous
bill. The Senate sugar tariff, II is true
produced eventually hardly one-half a
much revenue IA had been yielded by tn
sugar tariff OF 1883, but there was never
theless collected from this source, in tn
FIRST full year under the amended Wilso
act. the sum of S20,S00.O00, none o
which revenue would have been obtaine
no the vnvarpp,ant pndar fha IVnnaa hill
free-sugar provisions. But the publ
refused for very obvious reasons to Civ
the trainers of the Senate amendment
any credit for this achievement. On I'll
eve of the passage OF the Wilson bi
Ia the upper house IL was discovered tina
several Democratic Senators. who's
votes controlled action on the sugar d,
ties, were speculating In Wall street
sugar trust stock. The angry publ
clamor over these disclosures was follow
ed by an open letter from Presider
Cleveland to his supporters in the Hons
declaring the senatorial changes to |
'outrageous determinations and vol
tions Of principle'-an assertion whicI
In view Of the platform of the majorit,
was certainly not unwarranted Fro
the floor of the Senate, the Democrat
leaders retorted publicly with niue
show of Indignation. When, fnall
after a long and stubborn struggle. Il
Senate tariff bill prevailed and passe
both houses, President Cleveland refuse
to put his name 10 1t, and left the b
20 become a law without his signature.
From bad to Worse.
The result Of this haphazard rcckonir
on the revenue was a law which new
produced a surplus. Even with its sug,
import tax the yield Of the Senate bi
In the succeeding year, fell short OF Il
estimate Of its authors by no less a su,
than $S7,O00,OOO. For this exceeding
ill-timed miscalculation, the Democrat
Fifty-third Congress is properly held r
sponsible for the necessity OF subsequei
bond issues. 1t is true that both house
had added TO the bill n tax OF two p'
cent ON incomes over $1,000, n IN
vague, indefinite way had r%eckoned th'
the product of this tax would make goo
whotever deficiencies might arise fr0l