Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1912-05-09
SENATOR BACON ON THE TARIFF

take a crack at it whenever the op-
poTunity offers, and lose no oppor-
tunity 10 expose the injustice of the
system that has built up tremendous
fortunes at the expense of the vast
mass OF the population, and become
the corner stone of the trusts and
combines that now have such a stran-
gle hold upon business.
Senator Bacon has made some good
contributions to the tariff discussion
at times. One of these is of quite re-
cent occurrence his reply to Lodge,
of Massachusetts, on May s.
In his remarks Lodge had intimated
that the South had been built up by
Northern funds and that it had been
an indirect beneficiary Of the tariff in
many respects, and direct beneficiary
in others. Senator Bacon was not
slow to meet his claims and in a
speech bristling with pointed remarks
he completely disclosed the fallacy of
the arguments Lodge had advanced.
Said the Georgia senator in part:
There are one or two things which
occurred to me while the Senator was
addressing the Senate to which | will
make allusion. The Senator did not
reply to the part of the argument
which pointed out the injustice neces-
sarily found in every high protective
tariff, in the fact of its inequality, and
the impossibility that whatever bur-
dens there might be should be equally
distributed, and whatever benefits
there might result should be equally
enjoyed. | have pointed out on the
debate on yesterday that the large in
dustry of the particular section from
which | come is the growing of cot
ton, with an annual product of 49,
100000 bales, valued, with its import
ant side products, at some $800,O00,-
200 a year; that in that gigantic in
1ustry large majority of the people
in my section are engaged and most
intimately interested.
Il had shown that, by reason of the
fact that from two-thirds to three
fourths of that product is exported
and is sold in the free markets of the
world, this vast population, engaged
in this most important industry, send
ing forth the largest of all single ex-
ports which are sent from the United
States, whether agricultural, mineral,
or manufactured-this large industry,
with this vast multitude of people
connected with it, bore all the bur
dens and shared not one dollar of the
BENEFITS of the protective tariff, and
could not share it in the nature of
things. To that the Senator was care
full to make no response. He was care
full to make no response to the fact
that, when the immense spoil of
which ! have spoken, to be gathered
under the protective-tariff law, was
divided among the protected favortes
a very large part of it was eyacted as
tribute from this vast multitude OF
people engaged in the production of
cotton, and that industries which
claimed that they could not live I'M
less they had artificial assistance
were allowed to exact this tribute
from this large section of our country
in the payment to them of that which
nobody owed them, and to receive
that for which they gave no equival-
ant. That rart of the argument the
Senator avoided
Mr.. President, l can not give the
precise figures, but l believe that tho
recognized valuation of property in
the Southern States, not including
Missouri, is $20O0O.O0O,000, and every
dollar of it, speaking generally, except
the value of the land, is the creatio
of the energy and the industry and
the indomitable courage of a people
who stood neck deep in the ashes OF
heir overthrow ard addressed them
elves manfully and coulageously tC
he restoration of their fortunes.
Sir, to achieve this studendous sue
Hess we did not have a high protective
'ariff in our interest, or a body like
the Senate of the United States to
which we could come and appeal and
saw We can not succeed in our indus
tries unless give us help; we can
not build up our waste places unless
YOU tax the balance of the United
Stotes and pour a golden food upon
u.s.
Mr.. Lodge. What tariff have You
rad since the war?
Mr.. Bacon. We have had the same
ariff there. But that tariff has not
built UP the wealth of the South. On
The contrary. that protective tariff has
turing almost the whole of that time
imposed a most grievous burden on
the South, for which it has had no
benefit in return. The wealth of the
South is the product of the agricul-
tural industry of the South. OF course
there are exceptions, but, speaking
"e"eralIy. the factories which have
been built and the enterprises of all
kinds which have been gone into and