Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1906-04-28

SIER.
illegitimately. 1t Is not claimed that
any one was bribed 1t is only claimed
that it was used in the dissemination
of free trade literature, in the payment
of salaries to free-trade writer's. and
in the payment of legitimate campaign
expenses of free-trade candidates for
office. I utter no criticism of all this,
and / state it simply as a conceded
historic fact
i Resulted In Panic.
/ "The natural results of this law
were not felt for some years. Our
free-trade friends point to the first few
years following its enactment with
manifest pride, seeming to have for
gotten that the potato rot, which ex-
tended we'll nigh over Europe, created
an unusual demand for American
foods, which was continued by the
subsequent breaking out of the Cri-
mean war, while the gold excitement in
! California took large number of our
people from ordinary industrial pur-
4 suits, and that the unexampled inflow
of gold greatly contributed to our f.
nancial well being. But these things
could not last forever, and the natural,
the irresistible, the inevitable results
of insufficient tariffs followed in the
panic Of 1857.
History repeats itself. The eyes Of
the world are again upon our markets.
People who are compelled to find a
| foreign market for 20 per cent of the
products of their factories are not I'M
mindful of the unequaled consumptive
/ capacity of the American people, l am
not surprised therefore at the indica-
ton of the liberal expenditure of for
eign money in legitimate ways to elect
candidates pledged to reciprocal tar
ifs and to create sentiment in favor of
opening our doors for the increased
! admission of competitive articles. I
am not surprised at the subtle sophis-
try that is being promulgated that if
we will but admit competitive goods
from abroad there will be Immediately
thrown open to us an unprecedented
/ foreign demand for our food products.
1t is the old argument which was used
in 1916.
DO not misunderstood me. crIti-
| else neither the enterprise nor the
method by which it is sought to infl1-
ence political results in this country.
l recognize the appropriateness Of
both. Admission to the American mar
ket is, worth a contest. Entrance to
these markets on more liberal terms,
sometimes termed progressive repub-
,licanism, is worth well-organized
and systematic campaign and the ex-
penditure Of much money and those
of our. PEOPLE who fail to comprehend
the inevitable result of political poll
4 cies must be excused for lending will
/ ing and 'unrequited service. So while
recognize the conflict that Is upon
us and welcome it, too, I must warn
the people of Missouri of what is In
IIvolved in that conflict. They must not
1 forget that the admission of fifty mil
lions additional competitive merchan-
disc takes from our American labor
the opportunity of producing that fifty
4 millions of products. The production
! of $50, 100000 of merchandise calls for
the expenditure Of about $25 100000 in
wages. Should the proposed policy
prevail the men who now receive these
wages will then be out Of employment
and out of employment means out Of
the market as consumers of food and
i every other necessity of life.
Decrease in Consumption.
as there a farmer in Missouri with
so poor memory as to have forgotten
/ 1894, when we consumed As per cent
4 less wheat per capita than we did in
1892? Is there a farmer in Missouri
4 who does not feel the difference be
tween the consumption Of more thar
] six bushels of wheat per capita, as
!, against the consumption of less than
Il three and half bushels during 1894;
Is there farmer with SO short a mem
4 DRY as to have forgotten the effect
upon him of the loss in the price Of
live stock, averaging over 81 for every
horse, mule, steer, COW, calf, sheep an6
: pig between the years 1892 and 1896
Is there g farmer in Missouri who does
not now recognize the difference be
tween an average price of S1S.34 pei
head for every horse, mule, steer, cow
calf, pig and sheet in 1905 as agains
an average of only $13.41 in 1896--ar
average gain of nearly SIS per head?
do not misunderstood me- do no
object to increased importations o
: non-competitive articles Our import.
were never SO large in the aggregate
and never so large per capita as now
In 1895 and 1896, when our factories
were closed, a million men out of work
and million families out of bread, ou
: imports were less than $11 per capita
Now, with furnaces ablaze, factorie
operated overtime and no man out o
employment except from choice W,
are importing at the rate of over ST.
per capita.
81 welcome the Importation of tn
, things we do not produce. l welcom
the free importation of pig tin, ray
silk, crude rubber and other raw ma
terials which we do not produce an
x,I;ob &c con cnnod IN orr footorias