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Show THE LEAD OKK DUTY. The restoration of the duty on lead to li cents .1 pound has thrown the St. Louis Republic into a "conniption" fit. It charges that this result was secured through "a bunco operation," which was worked upon McKinley by a Colorado Colo-rado lobbyist nahied Sheedy. It appears ap-pears that Mr. Sheedy, according to W. C. Wynkoop's letter In his Mining Industry, In-dustry, visited tho republican members of the committee at 1 o'clock in the morning ami obtained their signatures to a request that they replace tlie duty al a cent aud a half a pound, claiming that it was a courtesy due to hiin that the item should nut have been changed in Itis absence, and that the same courtesy demanded that it should bo restored, and if striken out thereafter only by vote of the committee after he had been heard. He then went to Mr. McKinley and asked him if he would restore the duty to H cents a pound if he would obtain, a request to do so from tbo majority of the committee. Mr. McKinley replied that he would certainly do so, but that he didn't believe be-lieve the signatures could be obtained. Thereupon the petition, previously signed, was presented, and very soon thereafter the duty on lead was restored to H cents per pound. This is what the Republic denounces as a bunco operation, aud it lashes the lobby that worked it. That paper socms to forget that the Mexican outfit was . represented by a bold and unscrupulous un-scrupulous lobby, which has made all sorts of misrepresentations to get the duty on lead reduced to almost nothing. It was lobbyist against lobbyist, and then came the tug of war. The west won. It was proper that it should win, as it is the west that is interested iu this matter more than any other section of the country. , Besides the action of the committee and Mr. McKinley was in entire en-tire accord with the protective policy of the republican party. Although we do not believe in too much protection, we do believe that certain industries should be reasonably protected.especial-ly protected.especial-ly where they would be ruined by free trade. Tho east has had the benefit of protection for many years, and the manufacturers man-ufacturers have been made rich by it. The fact is that too much protection has been given to the east, while the interests inter-ests of the west have suffered from a lack of it. The duty on lead means a great deal for the mining industries of Colorado, Utah, Mexico, and elsewhere in this country. So long as protection is the policy of the republican party, we believe that the west should have its share, aud we congratulate the western lobbyists upon their victory. So long as lobbying is in vogue at Washington, tho west has a right to indulge in-dulge in it as much as the east. It is really amusing to read The Republic's Re-public's lamentation regarding "a flourishing flour-ishing trade, built up by individual enterprise en-terprise and the energy of pushing business busi-ness men" being wholly at the mercy of a Washington lobby. On the other hand, what a shout of joy that paper would have sent up had free trade or the next thing to it been permitted wit h Mexico iu lead ores, aud a death blow thus been adniiuislcred to tho lead mining industries of tho great west. What do we care for tho trade with Mexico if that trado destroys a great industry in our own country? In this samo connection the following article from tho Kansas City Globe hits the nail squarely on the bond; ' The provision of the bill tluvt is exciting so much animadversion merely prevents those smelters who use Mexican ores from selling the lead which they extract In the United States without paying duty. Any smelter cuu have all the lead ore he wishes by paying a duty of one and one-hair cents per pound. This gives hiin u protection of Vt cent per pouud for smelting it. Or If he prefers, pre-fers, he may, under section as, smelt and refine tho lead "without payment of dutios theroon" it he will liud a market for his leud outside of the United Stales, but if he sells It In the United Uni-ted States in competition with the product of American mines lie must pay the duty. So it will lie seen that all the hardship hard-ship to the smelter ts in his loss of profit on tho loud that he has heretofore imported im-ported as silver. This Is all there is to this " terrible crime of obstructing trado with Mexico "by placing duties on hev fluxing ores. The object, of course, is to give some slight protection to the lead mining industry of our own country -as ugaiust the lead producers ot foreign countries, but this Is tho very feature fea-ture of the bill that the free trader, who always al-ways looks upon matters -of this kind from i the English standpoint and not from the American, objects to.. "They do not desire the exportation of any product from this country the sale of which will Interfere Jrith the proats of the manufacturing and banking classes of England." The tariir en lead is in Une with the principles of the protection policy which the republican party professes to believe In, ! and If the members of congress and the ropnb- j Ui-ans of Kansas cannot indorse and ' sustain it thoy , hud better jimt step i light over into tho democratic party. The tariff is really the only question at issue between the two parties. It is a national and not a local question. If the majority of the people of the country believe that free trade will be more promotive of the general interests than protection, free trade it should be, but uo favoritism iuthe shape of protecting uu in-dustryhere in-dustryhere by neglecting one there rau be allowed. al-lowed. It Is simply presuiuptnon to asl; "for free raw material for the benefit of one smelter iu Kuushs while the grrat. lead in inlng Interests of Missouri. Colorado and New Mexico are ask-lug ask-lug for protection. |