Democratic Sentinel, Volume 12, Number 2, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 3 February 1888 — NO “ CONGRESS ” FOR HIM. [ARTICLE]

NO “ CONGRESS ” FOR HIM.

An Illinois Fanner’s Views on Tariff Reform and the War Taxes. .Tanners Have Made This Country, and Manufacturers Have Profited by Following Them. [Joliet (Ill.) cor. Chicago Tribune.! Major J. M. Thompson is the man who received and declined an invitation from Whitelaw Reid, of the New York Tribune, to attend a “Farmers’ Congress” in New York. Mr. Thompson is a citizen of this county, where he has resided since the war. He served with distinction in the army, and the end of the war found him with the rank of Major. He is now a prosperous farmer, living three miles east of this city. “First,” said the Major, “here is the invitation I received; you can copy it.” [Here follows a copy of Whitelaw Reid’s oily and ingenious letter of invitation.] “This is the reply I sent,” said the Major: State Grange of Illinois, 1 Patrons of Husbandry, Master’s Office, JJoliet, Hl., Jan. 4 1888. j ' To Whitelaw Reid, New York: Dear Sir—Your favor of the 30th ult. received. Accept my thanks for the honor conferred by tendering me a position on the committee to be organized at the Fifth Avenue Hotel, New York, the 11th inst. It appears to me that the object of this movement is to educate and frame the opinions of the agricultural classes of the whole country on the very important question of the tariff, and -on the protection side. My interest and education as a farmer teach me to believe that I belong to the other side and that our views will •not be harmonious on this subject, and I must therefore decline to meet with you on that occasion. Yours respectfully, J. M. Thompson. “Now you have the documents in the case; what do you want next?” asked the Major. “A plain statement from your own lips, Major Thompson, of just why you declined the invitation; also who was the ‘noted rolling-mill man’ you had an interview with, and what are the facts as to that insterview.” “Well, I guess I will answer the last part -of your question first. The rolling-mill man was Superintendent H. S. Smith, of the Joliet Steel Works.” “Now, as to your refusal to go to the New York meeting?” “Well, I knew that Whitelaw Reid was a protective tariff man, and that they were going to pack the convention. I was further convinced of this fact by receiving an invitation to be present at a meeting to be held in this city by the editor of the Re-publican-Sun and Mr. Smith of the steel mills. This was my first impression, and it was afterwards verified by our meeting here. I was informed that my expenses would be paid to New York to attend that meeting, but did not feel like going there as the guest of an editor opposed to me upon such questions of public policy, and provoke a quarrel on his protective ideas. I therefore refused to accept the invitation as one of the committee to report on the - cereals from this State, and my place was supplied by ex-Congressman Wilson, of lowa.

“At the meeting I had with the editor of -the Republican-Sun and Superintendent Smith of the steel mills at this place about Jan. 3, and eight days before the meeting .at New York, in connection with my refusal to attend a meeting antagonistic to my principles on the tariff question, Mr. Smith first stated that the object of the meeting was to bring the producer and consumer into closer relationship, his idea being that if this was accomplished it would enhance the value of farming land and necessarily increase the value of farm products. He said: ‘How much more has the value of farming land been increased by the location of the steel works at this place?’ My answer was, ‘ Not one cent.’ I was offered $175 per acre for my farm before the s eel works were located in Joliet, and I could not get that price for it to-day. As regards -the products sold from my farm, Liverpool, the home of pauper labor, fixes the price for (New York City, which establishes the price lor Chicago, and Chicago for the great Northwest. These quotations gov•erned the city of Joliet, when it only had a population of 5,001), and I sell farm pro--ducts to-day upon the basis of Chicago quotations, less transportation, and you buy by the same. I deny that the manufacturer furnishes the consumer for our products. The farmer has done more to settle, develop, and perpetuate the institutions of the country than any other industry. They, -by their settlement and industry, have created necessities for cheaper and better /transportation to get their products to the seaboard. To supply this necessity canals and railroads were constructed. The rapid settlement of our country demanded quicker and bettor transportation. In the meantime Illinois was being settled rapidly. Far-sighted capitalists from the East were -on the lookout for profitable Western investments, and they heard of Chicago —then a small village. Its advantages were discussed, and they said; ‘Here’s to be the great city of America, the gateway for all the farm produce and commerce of -the whole Northwest.’ They accordingly located there, and their prophecy proved -true. We find railroads running in all directions of the compass, all of which proves the truth of the great law of necessity, created by the farmer. The farmer •created this law and the capitalists are taking advantage of it. Some capitalists who wanted to start a rail-mill here said to themselves: ‘There is a great demand for steel rails in Illinois, and Joliet would be a good point to set up a plant.’ There is a tariff of 85 per cent, on steel rails, which adds nearly that amount to the manufacturer’s profit. Therefore, Mr. Smith, in my opinion it was the farmer and not the manufacturer that brought all of these people together. The farmer was the primary cause, and created the necessity for your existence. “As regards the consumption of farm products by your rolling-mill men, it is a ■ small affair. Statistics prove that the market for the great bulk of all our surplus farm products is in Great Britain and the Southern States. The section of the Union which gets the lion’s share of the wartariff protection lies east of Indiana, and it produces enough food to supply its own wants, while we have to pay it nearly two prices for its manufactures and search for •a market elsewhere for our surplus food ■stuffs. Is that fair trade, Mr. Smith? Further, we pay 60 per cent, of the general taxes, and by the official muster-rolls ,'rom the War Department we have, since the War of the lievolution, furnished 72 per cent, of those accepted for military •duty. In conclusion, I said to Mr. Smith

that I was reared a protectionist, my father being the proprietor of a woolen-mill; but since I had become a producer my ideas had been radically changed." Major Thompson has for several years been Master of the State Grange of Illinois, and is a gentleman whose wellknown integrity, honesty, and sound views on all questions of public policy are of value.