Democratic Sentinel, Volume 13, Number 34, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 13 September 1889 — FOR TARIFF REFORM. [ARTICLE]

FOR TARIFF REFORM.

A MONSTER MEETING AT RIDGEVILLE. A special from Ridgeville, Sept. 11, to the Indianapolis Sentinel, says: The cansn of tariff reform was urged onward in a grand way here to-day. Early in the merniug the roads leading into town were filled with wagons, buggies and all kinds of conveyances bringing the 'farmers and their families from miles around. The occasion was a picnic given by the tariff reform league of Randolph county. T e picnic was held m the grove ad~ joining the town. The exercises

of the day began at o’clock, when Mr. Joseph Edgar, the chairman, stepped to the front of the speaker’s stand and in a few well chosep words explained the object of the meeting and then introduced the ora + or of the Jay, I T . S- Senator David Turpie,who immediately began his speech by an explanation of the woids ‘‘levy” and ‘Collect duties’ as defined by the constitution of the United States. He claimed that no man ihould be taxed for private benefit. Taxes should only be levied for a public purpose. He denounced th present protective system because it imposes prohibitory duties upon many articles; duties which yield no revenue to the government. It is very clear that when rates are made so high upon certain commodities as to prevent the co-lec-tion of any revenue from them, the rates upon other ai tides must be levied in such manner as to yield a greater amount of revenue; or, in other words, a larger sum of taxes than otherwise they would be subjected to. The friends of this high tariff policy say they do levy a prohibitive and exclusive rate upon certain commodities and a very high Tate necessarily upon others, but they say their object is to build up and protect home manufactures, to employ home labor, to encourage the use of homes made articles and to prevent the admissi- n, use and purchase of foreign goods by our people. Now, this high tariff policy has been in force long enough to be judged by its fruits. The report to the secretary of the treasury on foreign commerce for June, 1883, the close of the last fiscal year, shows that the value of our imports of foreign merchandise for the last year was $745,127,476. For the year immediately preceding they were $723,857,114, being an increase of $21,170 362.

The Morrill tariff, substantially the present law, except as it was affected by the revision of 1883, which neither reduced rates nor revenue in any material way, took, effect in 1861. The amount of foreign importation for that vear was 8289,250,642. For 1866, when the high tariff luw had been in force five years, the value of imported goods was $445,512,158, and in 1876, when this high tarifl policy had been in force during ten years of uninterrupted peace and had its full effect upon the commerce and the business of the country, the amount of foreign goods imported was $460,741,190. In 1886, when the san e policy had fceon in force twenty years, and when, if the effects claimed by its friends were real and actual, and when there ought to have been, if that claim were true, a very great diminution in the quantity of foreign commodities imported, the figures show the amount ot foreign importation to have been $635,416,136. In 1888-89, as has just been shown, twenty-three year* after the adoption of this high tariff system and six years after the revision,correction and amendment of ti e tariff law by its own friends, the amount of imports was very nearly $100,000,000 larger than it was in 1886. If this polic / had done what it was claimed that it would do twenty years ago, our importations would be comparatively very small.

They would consist only of tea and coffee, drugs and chemicals and some other articles which are not produced or grown in this country. These facts show that whatever may have been the effect of a high prohibitory tariff, it has not diminished the use of foreign goods nor excluded or prevented their use and sale by our people. The truth is as to certain lines of com" modities exclusion has been almost total, while to cert tin other lines not eomiug within the purview or scope ot the corporations vhich derive advantage from this prohibitory legislation these have wholly been neglected. The monopolist,

secure in his profits by the prohibitory rate whiehfprotectshim from v©mpetition as to his own goods, cares nothing ab ut where the peoule get their other supplieswhether they come from abroad or not. He is not com erned in any way about home labor, home material or home products, any further than they relate to his own line of Manufactures. These h> insists shall be exclusively home made and furnished at his own price. Tee seimtor spoke on ibis line for an hour and a half, and was listened to with the greatest atten tion during the deliivery of liis speech. The audience wai composed of almost an equal number of democrats and republicans. They were nearly ail farmers who had come out to listen to a fair and comprehensive review of this question. Mr. Turpie was highly complimented by all.

An amateur ventriloquist boarded a Pennsylvania street car and proceeded to have som , fun at the expense of the conductor. “Why didn’t you let me off at Bt. Clair street?” aaked a voice apparently under the car. “I didn’t know—you didn’t tell me—’’answered the surprised conductor. “You ought to have an ear trumpet. Le me off at Seventh street, then.” At seventh street the carjstopped but no one alighted. The passengers on the car looked at each other. They had heard the vo ce, too. The car started and once again the mvster.ous voice.

“You are a fine guy for a conductor; you ought to be husking corn on a farm. I shall report youtotke Superintendent.” The startled conductor expostulated. The passengers were amused and when the voice requested that the conductor surprise his friends by getting shaved md arraying himself in a clean shirt, a hearty laugh went up. The passengers began to see the joke, but the ponductor did not, and was unmercifully “guyed” by the voice He was sure that one of the passengers was talking, but he didn’t know which one. He is still uneasy and expects to be disciplined any moment. But he can rest easy, for he was onlv made the victim of a practical joker.

The reduction of 20 per cent, in wages at Carnegie’s works scared the New York Tribune into saying editorially: “The American workman is also a ruler of his country. No governmental policy will stand long which does not commend itself to him as just and beneficent. * * * if manufacturers wish to break down the protective system they have only to make the working people feel that it is not for their benefit.” Last November the coal miners of Braidwood, 111, gave the usual majority of 200 for Harrison and protection. For the past three months they have been on a f trike against a large reduction in wages ordered May 1. The Republican policy of reducing wages, already low, not having commended itself'to the miners as just and beneficent, they went ta the polls July 25 and elected a Democratic mayor by 178 majority. i Smoke the Mascot, . . j