Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1912-06-01
Free Raw Material Fallacy.'

rec raw material is undoubtedly
1e greatest political fake that has
peen perpetrated on the nation since
the Tree silver raze. Viewed from a
sclentlilc standpoint one is Just as
rational as the other and bot1 equally
uishonest and absurd. 1t is just such
absurd political dogmas that have
kept the democratic party out or
power most of the time since the
civil a The basic or fundamental
principles of the democratic partv0s
laid down by Jefferson and the fa-
tners OF the constitution. are as con-
slant as human nature. but the an
piication OF those principles change
as the conditions of society or civil
lzatlon change.
The word democracy means equal
ity. AS applied to a nation or COM
~monwealth it means equal Justice
equal taxation. In the main the dem
ocratlc party lived up to its name.
"hen It has been the policy of the
whole people it has been upheld. On
~ when it has represented a section
or a faction has it failed. The constl-
tuition asserts hat taxation, shall
De equal and without discrimination.
and the platform of the party has
always affirmed this doctrine. but
IL mas not always lived up to this
law, and when it has departed from
( This Hn6Qnnnfa nri,,;1~ "
Den r~epudiated by the people.
Inc Wilson bill was so inquitous and
ABSURD that Mr.. Cleveland refused to
10 sign it and the people repudiated
poth h party and the law. The
tarlf is a tax which though indi-
rect is In effect as sure as if paid
into the hand of the tax collector in
gold. Now If this is a tax. and no
sane person disputes it, why il is
that a distinction is made between
the products of the country? Are
not the products of the ranch and
the Held equally the products of la
Dor as well as those products of the
mine and the factory? The cost of
living has so enormously increased
ghat the aiod housewives Of the
whole nation have been stirred up
and getting in behind the husbands
and sons, and they in turn getting
In behind the politicians, they, the
politicians, have been sitting I'D
nights trying to select some poor
mans Udauu,, 20 I;oIr I. - -
do to reduce the duty on blankets
and wooden goods, shoes, harness, re-
fined sugar, iron ore and manufac-
lures of steel and the hundreds of
other manufactured products. No. il
would not do to take the tax or any
part off of these products because
they had too many friends, too much
influence.
The producers of cane and beet
sugar, the ranchmen, both of cattle
and sheep, We're so scattered over tie
South and West that they were in
such a minority everywhere that they
represented the poor mans "dawg."
Why should barley and hops and to-
bacco and rice and fruits and vege.
tables be protected and not wool and
sugar and hides? Now the :ariff
question will not stay settled till it
is settled justly so there shall not be
a discrimination in favor of one
section or one product as against
another. The removal of the duty
on hides is said to have reduced the
value of every head Of cattle on the
farm and the ranch 81, and yet the
price of shoes and of harness was
Immediately advanced.
Does any sane person imagine
that the removal of the duty on raw
sugar would reduce the price if the
refined sugar? The Wilson bill was
so unjust that Mr.. Cleveland refused
to sign it and it and the party were
promptly repudiated by the nation.
The sugar industry of the South was
just recovering from the devastations
of the civil war and was entering an
era OF great prosperity, Millions of
money had been expended in the
\ LSAooS VI NEW ndCuIHtIy uluCn VI
which was bought on credit. The in
dustry WAS paralyzed, for while the
Wilson law gave, a bonus to domestic
sugar, yet the application of the law
was so ineffective Mat it gave little
protection to the homie product and it
retarded the production of sboth
cane and beet sugar Yen years. The
sheep industry was absolutely ruined
and thousands of sheepmen went in
to bankruptcy, but the WOolen manu-
%facturers were amply protected and
the people continued to pay the high
price for WOODEN goods. VProtection
has built up the manufacturers of the
East and the South and West have
paid the price, but when thdg needed
some protection on their pr5ducts it
was refused. Can any sand person
say that w have had a Square deal?
Hancock said that the tariff was a
local question, and it is true. The
rank and file of the democratic poll
ticians as a rule repudiate tnt term,
protection. and yet some mtther's