Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1912-10-24
WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED
IF DEMOCRATIC TARIFF BILLS
HAD NOT BEEN VETOED.
The Disaster Which Threatened One
County In Connecticut Would
Have Been Experienced In
Almost Every County In
the United States.

resents Fairfield county, Connecticut,
In congress. and he has recently pub.
lished a startling document in which
he shows the effect the Democratic
tariff bills passed during the recent
session of congress and vetoed by
President Taft, would have had upon
these industries II enacted into law
He lists the factories In alphabetical
order and shows In connection with
each one just the percentage of re.
duction in the duty upon the article
which II manufactures. The showing
fills four pages of a newspaper and ii
has not only awakened Connecticut to
shuddering realization of the dan
ger II has escaped, but II has aroused
all New England to the menace of a
Democratic victory.
Mr. Hill shows beyond question that
IL these Democratic bills had passed
practically every industry in his dis
trict and In the entire state Of Con-
necticut would have been put upon
free trade basis and very large
proportion of them would have been
obliged to close their doors. Manu-
facturers from all over the country
who have seen this exhibit are writ
ing to Mr.. Hill to thank him for max
ing II and to tell him that they had
no idea how near to extinction they
had been. They had not realized the
deadly menace to their industries
which was hidden in the Democratic
tariff bills and they had not realized
the Unreasonable debt they owe to
President Taft for vetoing them. One
correspondent from Delaware writes
that Congressman Hills disclosures
had "set the state on fire." and that
Is hardly too strong term to use to
describe the intense interest aroused.
Another article which has recently
appeared and which has produced al.
most as startling an effect upon those
to whom II was Immediately address
ed as that of Congressman Hill, is an
editorial In the American Sheep
Breeder" This editorial calls atten.
ton to the fact that neither Colonel
Roosevelt nor Professor Wilson made
any reply whatever when asked what
their attitude would be on the ques.
ton of protection to the wool indus
try, while President Taft answered by
wire, calling attention to his veto OF
the wool bill and the expression OF
opinion which he gave in that veto.
The editorial very properly draws
the inference from the silence Of the
Bull Moose and Democratic candidates
that the wool industry need not hope
for any consideration at their hands,
and II quotes the message of President
Taft to show that he realizes the alb.
solute necessity of protection In order
that the industry may prosper, and
that so long as he is in the White
House no free wool bill can become a
law.
The American Sheep Breeder"
goes to many thousand men engaged
In the sheep industry and ii is not in
any sense a political newspaper. II
Is devoted to the interests Of the
sheep industry, however, and its ex-
preston OF editorial opinion that
President Taft and the Republican
party alone can be trusted to safe
guard that industry, can hardly fail
to concentrate upon the Republican
ticket the vote Of all those vitality in
terested in that industry.
The Democratic managers realize
the deep-seated distrust toward their
party which exists on account of it's
attitude on the tariff question and are
trying desperately to make II appear
that the tariff plank in their platform
does not really mean so very much
They plead that the Democratic pro
gram would be to reduce the tarig
gradually so as not to disturb bust
ness, with the idea that ultimately
the country could reach free trad
basis by easy stages-which is Ike
the old story about gradually reduc-
ing the feed which is given to your
horses until by dint of habit he learns
to do without any feed at all.
But the country will not be decei,
ed. The country knows perfectly wcl
that Democratic victory would mea,
a long period of tariff agitation w
nothing certain except that in the ~
bills would be passed under wh.c
there would inevitably be enormci
importations of foreign products with
corresponding contraction and starna
ton Of domestic trade and manufac
ture. The country did not fail to take
note OF the tariff revision bills passe6
by the present Democratic couPres
under the boast that they did not cor
tain line OF protection. The conn
try knows that but for the courage
Gus vetoes Of President Taft these
ruinous Democratic measures would
now be on the statute books and In
all probability the Industries affected
by them would be languishing and
thousands of men out of work.
II is the knowledge OF these facts
that is responsible for the strong and
steady drift toward Taft that Is re-
ported from all sections OF the coun.
try and that is the forecast of a
sweeping Republican victory.