The Republican Straddle

The McKinley act is the practica' expression of the theoretical views of the Republicans in relation to protection. It is based upon the idea that wealth is created by taxation, and that the more you take from a man the more remains for his enjoyment. Before drawing the bill Mr. McKinley wrote the Republican platform of 1888, in which the party avowed its purpose to use thetaxing power for the purpose of "checking imports," that is, of destroying, as far as possible, our international commerce, confining our people, buyers and sellers, to the home market. Republican success in 1888 placed Mr. McKinley at the head of the Ways and Means Committee. Striving to embody in legislation the promises of the platform, he gave us an act that abolished revenue duties, but vastly increased the taxes imposed for the benefitof the American manufacturen Mr. James G. Blaine was too astute a politician not to see that this meant the destruction of American commerce and the overthrow ol the Republican party. He declared to the committee, and publicly, that this bill did not open a market to another barrel of flour or to another pound of pork. He forced the Republicans, who in one section haci erected a barrier against all international commerce, to adopt what he called a reciprocity section, the purpose of which was to make the people believe that this same party was encouraging international commerce. On that issue the Republicans went to the country and were overwhelmingly beaten. Nevertheless they put it in their platform at Minneapolis, and before the nomination all the prominent leaders were claiming credit for this so-called modification of the McKinley act. But no sooner had Mr. Blaine left the office of Secretary of State and Mr. Harrison secured the nomination, than the President "kicked the fat into the fire." The test of reciprocity is not in treaties with South AmerieanRepublics, where our farmers can have no markets for their producís, but with Canada, Great Britain, France and Germany, where we dispose of our surplus wheat and cotton, and where the prices of our farm producís are fixed. Mr. Harrison sends a message to the Senate concerning the failure of his negotiations with Canada, and insisting on retaliation. The ground of Mr. Harrison's complaint is that the Canadians are not willing to tax themselves as the American people are doing, for the benefit of the American manufacturen Mr. Harrison has two ends in view. He desires to convince the people that he is carrying on a vigorous foreign policy with Canada, and at the same time that he is striving to extend the reciprocity schenie, and to enforce the McKinley act in Canada by means of retaliation. This bill is a declaration of commercial war, and can not be made to work with Mr. Blaine's idea of reciprocity. One or the other has ultimately to be abandoned. There is a limit to the straddling power of any political party. The people will turn from these Republican jugglers to the Democratie leaders for satisfaction concerning tariff taxation. There is no longer any doubt as to the purposes and principies of the Democratie party. It denies the right of Congress to tax one man for the benefit of another. It insists that the duty on imports shall be for revenue only. Here is the issue in the whole political campaign. If the American people are content with the McKinley plan of spoliation they will vote for Mr. Harrison. On the contrary, if they hold with the Democrats that all taxation should be solely for revenue, they will vote for