Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1904-08-11
OUR MATERIAL INTERESTS.

From a material standpoint every in
terest of the people Of the Ninth Con-
gressional District Is identified with the
success Of the Republican party.
The hide-bound, and especially the
time-serving, Democrats affect to believe
that the people of the United States are
becoming too msterlalistic; and they try
to direct the thought of the people along
impractical, sentimental lines at the sacrl-
Zee of common sense. The very fellows
who do this are in it for what they can get
out of it. Did w. F. Rhea make bis
three races for Congress for the benefit Of
the people of this district or for his own
interest? Is Mr.. Joseph G. Wysor making
his contest for Congress from purely dis
interested motive? Is he so dead in love
with the dear people that he has no smbi-
ton to promote his own personal in
terests?
The Republican policy of Protection has
30 developed the material interests Of the
Southwest as to make it the mort pro-
gressive section of Virginia, and that pol
icy is now being assaulted as robbery" by
the Democrats, who have not declined tt
benefit all they could by it. Has the vas
increase in the material wealth of this sec
ton resulted in injury to the character o
its people?
Since the opening of our coal and iror
mines and the development of our lumber
interests there has been such demand
for labor that every man who desired EN-
ployment has, without any trouble, beer
able to secure 1t. Then, there hes beer
an increase of nearly one hundred PEI
cent. in the scale of wages; in many in
stances the advance has been even greater
Though all classes Of our citizens have
been materially benefited by the changed
conditions, none have been helped &c
much as the waee-earners, the men who
support themselves and their families by
honest, daily toll. They are now in con-
dition that enables them to send theil
children to school, to provide suitable raj
ment for their wives and little ones, and
to add comforts to their humble homes
that were before unknown to them.
A striking illustration of what free trade
or low tariff policy will do for the laborine
classes was furnished during the last ad-
ministration of President Cleveland. The
mines were practically closed and the lum-
Der camps were idle in every county in the
Ninth Congressional District Men bad to
beg for work and could not get it. When
they did get temporary job it was fol-
wages that were totally inadequate to the
necessities of their families.
Another class of our citizens who have
been materially helped by the industrial
policy of the Republican party is the
farming class. Agriculture in Southwest
Virginia has never paid 80 well as it hes
done since Mckinley was elected and the
Dingley tariff went into operation. The
farmers of this section have been getting
prices for their products that ought to
have satisfied the most grasping and ex-
acting. Even now, during Presidential
year, with the minority party struggling to
destroy the party and policy that have
produced such happy conditions, prices
have. renamed high and firm. There is
not single thing produced on the farms
of this section that does not find ready
market and at prices that are as good as
they we're last year. In fact, some things
rate higher than they did last year. Wool,
lambs, wheat, corn, cattle and many other
products bring better prices in 1904 than
they did in 1903.
1t is no unusual thing to hear intelligent,
conservative Democrats say that they do
not wish to see any change in business
conditions, that things are good enough
for them now. This being so, Why do
they insist upon putting the Government
under the control of men who declare
their purpose to 80 radically change the
noIicy of the Government that great
changes in business conditions are bound
to follow? The Democrats in the Ninth
District are offering no reasons for
change in our governmental policy, except
pretended apprehension about the negro