David A. Wells, the Democracy, and Tariff Reduction, 1877-1894

Abstract

PRESIDENT Grover Cleveland in his famous 1887 annual message dramatically committed the Democratic party to drastic tariff reduction. David A. Wells was a primary protagonist in the events that led to this address.' He developed a sophisticated case for low tariffs, and he influenced leading Democrats in the 1880s and 1890s as they increasingly identified the party with tariff reduction. Within the constricted framework of a dogmatic laissez-faire philosophy, Wells joined low tariffs with the needs of an economy beset by the recurrent depressions of the late-nineteenth century. He evolved a concise and uncomplicated explanation of these depressions. The American economy produced too much for the market that it served. Tariff reduction, by lowering the cost of raw materials and imported machinery, would cut the costs of American production and make American manufactured products competitive with those of other nations, especially Great Britain. Lower import duties would supposedly aid the American farmer by facilitating a general increase of exports, including agricultural products. Cheaper agricultural implements, a lower cost of living, and a domestic economy made healthier because of increased exports of manufactured goods were other benefits which advocates of tariff reduction promised farmers. Since increased exports meant increased production, labor stood to gain from greater employ-