"The Treasury Surplus."

The second Finance Club lecture was given last evening in Sever Hall by Mr. Horace White, of New York. In taking Senator Sherman's speech before the Home Market Club as a text, Mr. White said that he did not wish to throw difficulties in the way of a presidential candidate, but only to contradict pernicious teachings. Senator Sherman says that a surplus is more easily taken care of than a deficit. Our history proves that this is untrue, as whenever deficits have occurred they have been remedied simply by increasing the taxes. The surplus of 1837, on the other hand, after causing great trouble, was finally deposited with the States, and bankruptcy and repudiation were the result. He also blames President Cleveland's administration for not spending our surplus in the purchase of the national debt, but the blame of this lies with Senator Sherman himself, who funded this debt so that it is irredeemable except at a high premium. In answer to the charge that English merchants have spent money to get a foothold in our market, Mr. White said that in twenty-five years of close connection with tariff legislation he never knew of a shilling that was thus expended. Mr. Sherman also says that whoever favors lower duties opposes protection and favors foreigners, yet the strongly-protectionist First Congress thought average duties of eight per cent. sufficient in place of 47 per cent., and they certainly could not be accused of favoring foreigners. He himself said in a former speech that the duties were too high, and if not reduced would cause general dissatisfaction. Our present revenue from customs is a tax on consumption, and all such taxes fall principally on the poor, being but little removed from a poll tax. Just taxes should be paid by property, and not by those least able to bear them. A genuine tariff reform should begin by correcting this wrong. If this were done there would be no protection left and no trouble-some surplus. The proposed revision of the tariff would not reduce the revenue in the least. All articles which do not compete with our manufactures are already on the free list, and no reduction could possibly come from this source. The true nature of protection is shown by the threat made by every protected industry to smash the whole system if the duties on its products are reduced. Here is no thought of patriotism, or of the condition of the laborer; all is self-interest, which does not hesitate to destroy the prosperity of the whole country. Protection has changed greatly since the days when it professed merely to protect young industries. After a century of protection the duties are higher than ever before, and every attempt to lessen them is defeated by powerful combinations, whose opposition President Cleveland courageously faced in his message. The only remedy for the surplus is the reduction of the tariff, and, in the words of one of Senator Sherman's earlier speeches, "every advance toward free exchange is a benefit to the country." Mr. White received hearty applause at the close of his lecture.