Evening journal., 1912-02-02
NEW NEWS OF YESTERDAY
The Free Trader That Most
Impressed q Famous
PrOtcCtiOniSt
By Holland.

William Mckinley could never bring
himself 10 believe that all the political
leaders who in his day advocated prac-
tical free trade, or a tariff for revenue
only, for the United States were en-
tirely sincere ia their advocacy. He
also believed that almost all OF the
advocates OF this policy were merely
superficial thinkers But OF Frank
Hunt Hurd he held an entirely differ
ent opinion. In the years when the Nc
hinlcy tarin bill was a common topic
OF conversation end its author was
Governor OF Ohio Hurd enjoyed very
high reputation, not only in his State
Of Ohio, but also nationally, as
deep thinker upon economic questions.
His speech in Congress, in his second
term, on the question of the tariff was
thought by many competent judges to
have been an abler presentation of the
free trade or tariff for revenue only
policy than was even the speech which
was made by John G. Carlisle in 1882,
although Carlisle's speech made him
the inevitable candidate Of the tariff
reform Democracy for the speaker
ship Of the House OF Representatives
in that year
William Mckinley was one of those
who held that Hurds speech was a
better exposition of free trade prin-
| clplcs than was Carlisles.
Almost all Of the advocates OF prac-
tical free trade, or traiff purely for
revenue, are merely superficial think
ors, and many of them are not entirely
! u IlI ft,l "a 10. 4.
was still Governor of Ohio But that
is not the case with Frank Hurd. Now,
| between Hurd and myself the issue Of
protection versus that of practical free
trade has always been very clearly
and distinctly drawn. Still, it was with
the greatest pleasure that / talked
with him when we were both in Con-
gress about his train views, and |
want to say without qualification Of
any sort that, to my thinking, Hurd
Is the ablest thinker and most pro-
/ foundly competent eXpounder who has
preached the doctrine of practical free
trade.
He is the only American it has
been my good fortune to know who
has studied the subject and treated it
from an absolutely scientific and econ
omic point of view. | have often told
him that if we grant his premises
namely that free trade is the ideal
condition even for a country SO great
in area as the United States-then
there is absolutely no flaw in the logic
of his arguments His demonstration is
as accurate and as provable as that
of any problem OF mathematics or
Euclid We simply differ in the pre-
misses and Hurd has always been frank
enough to say to me that if my pre-
misses are granted, then my theory Of
the economie importance Of protec-
tion is unassailable.
Knowing what know Of the great
labor involved IN the preparation of a
tariff bill, / have thorough knowledge
OF the enormous amount of labor
which Frank Hurd devoted to the
study OF the tarif Question from the
economic side. It was not one-sided
study, for he approached the subject
from the point of view of protection
as well as that Of free trade. But, as
often happens, the great intellects
which prepare the tasks or work out
the problems are passed by in our po-
litical life, while some secondary
mind comes along, assimilates all that
the greater intellects have thought
and thereby gains some of the politi.
cal advantage possible to secure. This
is the fate Of Frank Hurd; l see signs
that his great services on the side Of
a tariff for revenue only are soon to bt
forgotten. But if-I were a man of in.
iluence in the Democratic party, anC
if the party we're In actual sincerity
and very earnestly to take up the is
sue between protection and free trade
or tariff for revenue only. and make
It the sole issue OF a Presidential cam.
paign, ] should do all in my power to
persuade the party to nominate Frank
Hurd for President"
Copyright, 1912, by f. J. Edwards
All rights reserved.)