Bisbee daily review., 1910-08-23

we maintain a policy of "the closed door" at home.
 For this is what our tariff is It amounts to a Chinese wall built around this country. Our customs houses interfere with trade Com merce is beneficial to a country; therefore commerce should be free. It should be encouraged, not dis couraged. Free men have the right to free trade. It is a natural right, like that to free air. To pass a law that an American citizen may not buy what he pleases in England or France or Germany and bring it home with himwithout paying a whopping big fee at the custom house for the privilege of toting home with him what he has bought and paid for with his own money is monstrous.
 The tariff for revenue only may be justified by government necessity. although thinkers are coming to the belief that the honest manly way is to support the government by direct taxation without any indirect meta ods whatever But a tariff for the protection of the plutocracy and the plunder of the people is so iniqiutous that lovers of their country are ap- palled.
 The Mckinley tariff was thought to be the upper limit, but the powers that be. with the insatiableuess char acteristic of greed proceeded to en- act the Dingley law
 This they admitted was too high. but they explained that the duties were purposely made so for the req son that they intended to negotiate reciprocity treaties and lower them.
 The last speech Mckinley made at Buffalo was in favor of reciprocity. The Kasson reciprocity treaties were negotiated, but Mir. Roosevelt, al though he declared solemnly that he would carry out the policies of Me Kinley. did not, during his two terms as president, lasting nearly eight years, say one single. solitary word about the tariff or about reciprocity. The republican leaders used to call reciprocity the "hsndmaiden Of pro tection." If so. this handmaiden. like Hagar, was turned out into the will derness. Mir Rooseelt promised to "shackle cunning; he did so with rope of sand.
 But the people were growing res tive. It was not foreseen that in 1910 the senate committee and Sen ator Lodge would declare that the tariff had nothing to do with the cost of living and join the Ananias club. The people suffered under the burden of high tariff and the exactions of the tariffbred and fed trusts.
 Realizing that since the war the democratic party has seated a pres ident only twice, and that Grover Cleveland was a stalwart tariff re- former, winning in the tariff for rev enue only issue. and fearing that the popularity of Bryan and his demo cratic tariff reform platform would land the commoner in the White House. Mir Taft placated the people with specific promises or tariff re- vision downward made during the 1908 campaign, and reiterated after he became president
 Congress was assembled in special session and it revised the tariff. but in the wrong way. Instead of tariff revision downward, we were given tariff revision upward The pledge was broken. President Taft signed the bad bill. Jn his astonishing speech at Wiaona he admitted the wool trust dictated t's schedules. it is notorious that other trusts issued their orders and they were obeyed.
 Thus we have the Mckinley tariff. which was bad. followed by the Ding i ley tariff, which was worse. followed by the Aldrich-Payne tariff which is worst What next? Democratic tar if reform.-Houston Chronicle.