The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1904-09-21
BENTON, ROOSEVELT, TARIFF.
How the President in His Letter of
Acceptance Reverses Himself.
lPhiIadeIphia Record.l


The presidential defamer of the mem
cries of Jefferson. Madison, Monroe,
Jackson and other founders of the repub-
lc mad at least one ideal statesman of
the past IN Thomas Hart Benton. the re-
lentlesS Democratic foe OF protective tar
IFS. ship subsidies and every other gov
eminent scheme TO enrich the few at the
expense of the many. In his letter Of ac-
ceptance President Roosevelt says il is
a matter of regret that the protective
policy is not now accepted as def
nitely established. Repeating the fall
lacies of the tariff mongers. he hardly
asserts that every class of our people
IS benefited by the protective tariff" In
his Life Of BENTON he expressed widely
different opinions when he did not deem
IT necessary to trim his sails to catch the
party breeZeS.
or Massachusetts change Of front on
the tariff Of 1928 he says on page 81 of
the life with a semi-sneer at protection.
Political economists have pretty gen.
orally agreed that protection is vicious in
theory and harmful in practice but il the
majority of the people I'm interest wish it.
and il affects only themselves. there is
no earthly reason why they should not be
allowed 10 try the experiment to their
hearts content. But the trouble is that
il rarely does affect only themselves: and
in 1898 the evil was peculiarly aggravated
on account OF the unequal way In which
the proposed measure would affect diff
ferent sections. II DuTDOrtPd to benefit
the rest of the country. but il undoubted-
" worked real injury 10 the planter
states. and there Is small ground for
wonder that the irritation over it in the
region so affected should have been in?
tense
Yet the author of this. who says that
the milddariff of 1928 WAS a real evil"
to part Of the country. now expresses re-
gret that the system is not accepted as
definitely established in the Dngley
tariff
Referring to the debate on the tariff in
1893 the author Of the life says, on page
9:
'Clay's assertions as to what the tariff
had done for the west were equally i'll
founded. as Benton showed in a good
speech. wherein he described picturesque
" enough the industries and general con-
dition Of his portion of the country and
asserted with truth that its revived pros
perity was due to its own resources. en-
tireIy Independent of federal aid or legis-
latiOn
What Roosevelt affirms that Benton
said with "entire truth" there is just as
true nav. when tariff evils are aggra-
waited i'm ten-fOld decree nv the trusts
PENETRATED and fOstered by Dingleyism. in
detailing Benton's great attack on hariff
abuses and inidUitieS in 1929 Roosevelt
saws mage 290 Of his book:
But in sDite OF the clear Justice OF his
case, Benton was able at first to make
little impression on congress: and it was
some time before matters were straight
ened ont, as all the protective interests
felt Obliged TO make common cause with
each other. no matter what evils might
no perpetrated by them taking such fie-
ton
The tariff evils gainst which Benton
so elOduently inveighed as 10 win the high
epcOmimus of Theodore Roosevelt were.
after all. but trivial compared with the
brutal schedules of the Dingley act. Do
not the prOtectionists make common cause
NOW whatever evils may be perpetrated
lust as they did IN Benrons times? Are
not the truStS-thC new monsters pro-
dUced by the Dingley traiff-pourinR their
money in streams into the Republican
camuaigD fund in order to perDetuate the
tariff evils. and is not Theodore Roose-
welt their very humble servant? All that
he row saws in apolOgy for the trusts
and the tariff has he not completely an
swered hy anticipation in his Life Of
Thomas II. Benton?' Yes he abuses the
Democrats v-ithOut stint for faithfully
adhering to the principles which he adj
vocated in the enthusiasm Of his earlier
DAYS. before he became corrupt with am
bition and militarisrn