Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1909-04-06
AMERICAN TARIFF LAWS
THE TARIFF OF ABOMINATIONS
BY FREDERIC j. HAsKIN.

, the encouragement of certain manufac-
lures" John Randolph, of Virginia, OPP
posed that amendment, saying that the
bill referred to no manufactures of any
sort, except the manufacture of presi-
dent of the. United States. Others sought
| to write in the title that it was intended
ito increase the profits of certain manu-
| features" to transfer the manufacturing
capital of New England to other states"
and many other such propositions. OF
course, none of them was accepted.
When the news of the passage of the
act of 1928 was received in New York,
many of the ships in port lowered their
| flags to half mast, i'm token of what they
believed to be the death-blow to Amerl-
can shipping. In Charleston, s. c., the
same course was pursued. Here il was
| the British vessels which took the militia
| tive. Many of the American vessels,
| thinking that the lowering of the Brit
itsh flags was due to some bad news from
home, followed suit out of respect to the
| Britons.
The act of 1928 was passed only after
the most strenuous campaign of education
| that had yet been seen in America. Hez-
ekiah Niles was early in the field with
his Register. published in Baltimore. He
established such a wide reputation for
eandor and fairness, and proved himself
such an unselfish devotee of the truth
first and protection afterward, that his
Register gathered to itself a greater in
huence in directing the currents of pub
lie thought than any other single agency
/ in the country. He printed both sides.
| And he did not resort to the doubtful ex-
pedient of printing the weakest speeches
| in favor of free trade and the strongest
| in favor of protection. He selected the
strong speeches for the former as faith
fully as the latter and both sides on the
tariff read the Register.
Another man whose name was connect
culation of pamphlets and leaflets. The
influence of these two men upon the SEN
timent of the time cannot be over-esti-
mated. Their publications went into eve
ry school district in the land, and the
store-box debating societies, a hundred
times more common then than now, took
their cues from these publications.
The free traders got into the field much
later, and their efforts never were as sue
cessful as those of the protectionists.
They had memorials to congress prepared
in every county, and these became the
local platform on the tariff question. The
| campaign of education went merrily on.
and the elections for the twentieth con-
gress gave the free traders the ascenden-
cy that enabled them to pass the tariff Of
Rbominations Although defeated before
the country and in the congress, the pro-
tectionists were heartened by the work
ings of the act. and their campaign after
the law went into effect became more ag-
gressive than ever.
l. parhapc he raaI raaa son for fha tariff
of denominations lays behind the year in
which it was enacted. The agitation that
sprung up in 1926 for revision of the
tariff was brought about by the wooden
manufacturers. The cotton manufactur-
ers had got to the point where they could
export cotton goods, and were not so
much concerned about a revision. Al
first It was only demand for increases
in the wooden manufactures schedules.
But the lessons of a century have taught
that one industry cannot appeal for aid
and support from the government without
letting down the bars for demands of a
like nature from others. 1t was the ex-
pansion of the campaign from woolens to
the whole list Of manufactures that led to
the unforeseen political complications and
deep-laid intrigues that produced the
tariff of denominations.
This tariff led to intense opposition to
protection in the south. II also showed
the high water mark of protection from
the beginning of the government down TO
the civil war. But although 1t was high
tariff it brought in revenue enough to sup
port the government. Further than that
it laid the foundations for notification,
and the troubles that were to come there
after.
There was certainly no law ever enact
ed by the congress of the United States
that bore such remarkable evidences of in
sincerity as the act of 1925 No one was
/ satisfied with It, There is abundant evil
dence that even those who had been re-
sponsible for it became ashamed Of their
part afterward. Some tried to reconcile
their action with their previous and after
records, but to this day the annals OF
debates stands out as a mute witness to
the bad faith Of the time. Up to that
period of American history the tarin
question was not as much party ques-
ton as 1t was matter of geography. But
thereafter politics crept into the situation
more and more, and 1t was not long be-
fore party alignments were made with re-
spect to the tariff. Notification was In
the air, even before the passage of this
act, and it served only to give fresh Inn
petus to that doctrine. Copyright, 1909. by
Frederic ]. Haskin).