The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1904-09-01
Fol DE RoL ABOUT 1893 PANIC
Statement Of Cannon and Littlefield Com.
pared with the Cold Facts of History

1t is u pity that such able men and
attractive orators as Speaker Cannon
and Congressman Littlefe.d should put
forth such campaign rot as they have
been doing on the Vermont stump to
the effect that the panic of 1893 was
due to the Democratic victory of 1892
because OF fear of lowered tariff. "The
people wanted change, and got
it" they say, and so on.
Botn these gentlemen know, as every
ordinarily, intelligent citizen knows,
that the 1893 panic and its following
hard times were part of worldwide
business storm, that swept over high
tariff and low tariff countries alike,
that it Frustrated South America, Aus
tralia and India before it reached here,
that it began several months before the
Republican party went out of power and
two years before the tariff was touched
by the Wilson-Gorman bill, and contin-
ued nearly two years after the Repub-
lican party returned to power and
over a year after the restoration of the
highest tariff we have ever known in
the Dingley bill.
They know, as does every American
school-boy, that whatever the tariff or
party in power, financial revulsions have
come almost regularly once in 10 years,
and once in 20 years with great
severity and long duration; and that
the only exceptions are in favor of low
tariff. Thus we had one, long and
severe and a chief factor in leading to
the formation of the constitution:
Before there was any tariff at all in 1883
A temporary one under a . per cent
to 10 per cent tariff .......... .1793
Another, under embargo and high
war-tartn, prolonged ............. .1S07-14
Another, following the first distinct
lively protective tariff chat of 1916 1888
Another, though the tariff had been
twice increased Din 1924 and '2S) ..1S27-2s
Another, long and severe, beginning
four years after the tariff was low
cred (by the bill lof '33) ............ 1887
The next came four years after the
high tariff Of 1912 and was soon
ended after the enactment of the
Democratic tariff of 1916 (enactel
after 1t had begun .................. 1916
The next lasted but few months
Though almost simultaneously was
enacted the lowest tariff we ever
had OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES. 1857
The next came under the Republican
war tariff Observation-Disclosures. 1867
The next, the longest and hardest we
ever had was under the highest
tariff we had ever had up to that
time Observation-Disclosures. 1878
The next followed close upon the 1889
raising of the tariff .............. .1SS4-5
And the next close upon the enact
ment Of the Mckinley tariff, the
highest up to that time ........... 1890
The next, as above explained in .... .1S03s
And under the highest tariff of all has
come the regular decennial depres-
sion or Observation-Disclosures. .l9O3-4
These dates disclose what is plain to
any thinking man, that while high
tariff, by over stimulus to speculation,
may hasten and intensity panics and
as a consequence lengthen the ensuing
hard times, and while low tariff may
alleviate and shorten them, they will
come about once in so often, regardless
of either, as they have always done in
this and all other countries. That of
1898 was longer and harder here than
anywhere else because of the Mckinley
tariff and the Sherman silver purchase
act, passed by Republican bargains and
votes. The exceptional degree of sever
ity of that of 1889 was also due to Re
publican policies.