Iron County register., 1911-02-02
RECORD OF PLUMBER
THE REPUBLICAN PARTY AND
THE TARIFF.
Facts That Account for the voters
Turning to Party That VIII A.
ford Relief From Monopo-
listic Extortion.

In view of the history Of the last 70
years one can hardly wonder that the
people has lost confidence in the Re-
publican party as an agent Of tariff re-
vision. In his message to congress In
December, 1881, President Arthur said
that there ought to be a revision OF
the tariff, and he recommended the ap-
pointment of commission. The COM
mission bill was passed, and the COM
mission appointed. After an exhaust
i've inquiry it made its report in which
reduction of about rs per cent. was
recommended. Congress threw the re-
port into the waste basket, and set
about the work of revision In the OLD
way. The new tariff, that of 1883, DID
not meet the demands of the people.
Certainly there was no reduction OF 20
per cent. or anything approaching IT,
The senate passed one bill, and the
house another. In conference tnlro
bill was agreed to in which the duties
were higher than in either OF the two
bills passed by the houses.
This interesting tariff lasted just
seven years. There was, from the pro-
tectionist point of view, no need for
any extensive changes, and yet in 1891
the whole subject was taken up again
and as result we got the Mckinley
bill, which was one of the most ex-
treme that the country had known.
Perhaps it will be remembered that
Mr.. Blaine, then secretary of state, ap-
peared before one Of the congressional
committees and denounced the meas
ure, saying that there was not one line
in 1t that would open single market
to American products. And ne was
quite right. Here, then, we see that
the country was blessed with two ex-
treme tariffs in the short space OF
seven years. The people rebelled
against the Mckinley tariff and the re-
sulting high prices, and in 1890 and
again in 1892 they struck a severe
blow at the Republican party. The
next tariff was the Wilson-Gorman tar.
iff, but as the Republican party had
nothing to do with that, we pass 1t
over with the remark that it was de-
fective chiefly in its failure to redeem
the Democratic pledge
In 1896 the campaign, as everyone
remembers, turned almost wholly on
the money question. Probably two
million Democrats voted for the Re
publican candidates, and they did 1t
on the money issue alone. They GER
tainly had no sympathy with the tariff
views of Mr.. Mckinley. Yet when the
Republicans assumed power they
turned their back on the money ques-
ton and took up the tariff, OF which
little had been said in the preslden-
tial campaign The result was the
Dingley tariff, which was more Of
fensive even than the Mckinley tariff
1t was an extreme application OF pro
lection" But there was further
breach of faith. Many of the Dingley
duties were made higher than they
otherwise would have been made ir
order to furnish basis for trading
with foreign nations through reciproc
ity treaties, This was publicly admit
ted by Mr.. Dingley himself. But NJ
reciprocity treaties were negotiated
All that were proposed were killed
yet the high duties were maintained
So for eleven years the country hat
to submit to these high taxes, thougl
the intention and pledge was to trad'
them down-Indianap News.