, 1870-04-09
PROTECTION,


! "ffoxS to Improve the Cond1tton
the Poor.',
From III e4.Ttudr
We have been solicited within > few DAYS
subscribe to the funds Of the 4sNew York 4
9oeiatlon for Improving tho Condition Of Il
placed in our hands. Glancing 1t ii CASUAL
We were impressed fo.ribly By many OF
ffaeneHta IN regard to the GAUGES which O
era1e 70 produce poverty. One general cau
Q. mnnSss maSenfs, says tho report, e the lack
cember Of last year, It WAS estimated m ra1i
pie aatn fhat mere than SO,N'0 men. and
!eaet a. many females, Win depended upc
thel5 daals to!! for stsbsisteEca, were witEn,
emrloy1aens." High ~ Ii. wages 1t l,1.
81 vas not commensurate to tie increased COZ
o! living. It has been growing conyictio
or the institution, based OF facts wb,c
have come under its review. that. m,
wn,tifsand'ng vt tho high wages Of lal'o1
failed to put tho lahosing classes 10 ~ faynrs
pie posltion a. they occupied bciore tho at]
vance Of wages III 1sG0." One hu,,drt.i thnr
eand people without work, and lcss food an
worse shelter for those who are SO fortunst
.1 as 20 hnd employers, Why is this : Hers ar
ths answers 10 the question. The New Yor]
sh'E-buildcrs. in the address presented In i.ou
| grrss On March Is, eav:
PREVIOUS to 1875. the port OF New Yorl
sustained NOT tras than twenty prominent sbin.
sasaH. ernrioNnG, with the collateral tribes,
not s less than 2o,6oo skilled mechanics. auti
i,no younE men ~ apprentices learning lin
various trades. To-day ,1cst, yards have e;tter
csascd to exist or are lying dormant. not LON
SKILLED mechanics finding employment, or 100
srl1'"''seS al" having encouragement to 'eaEn'ho
1ha Architectural Iron Works OF tli. ,.;tv
SlrtharEs'i e51' men On the 1lth instant The
Marine Engine Works have all. or nearly ali,
been cored. This cnAdtian OF things l. nnt
peculiar to Now York The Albany au,, Tror
Stove Works have also been closed: and i,
Chicago, the centre of the Wcater1, era1u-crow-
ing REGION 10, ol0 men arc unemployed Sllrs
cannot be f'nilt because they co.t fnl1y half as
the CLYDE, anil ret ships have tl,., benefit OF an
asst lute prohibition Of all fozuign cotnpeti-
ton. As il is impossible to construct htllis. Of
course there is no demand for engines 10 nut
in them. Copper il no longer needed for
hhcathine the bottoms Of vesscls, and the
to 2llli cents within year; and vet copper
wae protected. only last winter, By 3 lutv
OF Isper cent. Sails not being required.
many Of the luck-works have
been closed, or are running On short time, vet
dnfA ls alFo protected. Twenty-one thousand
able-tnstied men in ono trade aIonc,-and who
k7owt low many women and children arc
ut1tr7Es through Il "protsrtion to American
iu.ustrr' whichhas annihi1ate.l their in,lustrv'
and yet alr. Greeley calls himself tho friend
Of tue .sorkiugmat,." Iron is to industry what
food is to the human body Every tool il made
OF iron, every house il in part composed Of
IRON every steam engine ls built Of iron. every
railzoad is an iron highway: and vet the United
States forres ita people to pay 4 bounty Of s1l
ION to pennsylvania iron 1nasters, or upwards
q SO oCo, ooo year, uus increasing tie cost
o. every article made of iron IS per cent,
What Wonder that the Architectural Iron
Morkt are lischarging their hands, OF tina, the
Troy store Works are closed, and thousand. Of
women and children suffer with tho cplls IL
+ sutPrlslIg that the farmer realizes
freight over the railways Las been sleducted3 :
Every bnshel Of wheat that reaches ti,le-water
has l'sid tax to the Hon D. J. Morrell. n. |
e. Of the Cambria Iron Works, Jolnstowu.
"a, or othe! " friend Of the farmer" No |
wonder M1. aGosrcl1 III friend Of Greeley,
and sulscriles to !c6 copies Of tho TriIn,t.'
deserted, mills closed, cot,pay- |
n.'tets IN Distress, farmers losing money and |
disclaTging lahoreEs-theee are the reasons I
" WY there are hn1ltlretis Of thousands Of peo
Ias "Maont "ork. i'ut the '' Association for
improving the Poor also sayH that those who
aag< work receive decreasing pittance Wbv
IL this: Because every laI'orer thrown out OF
Eosk at once becomes a competitor for por-
ion q tue employment cnjoyel by others,
md this competition tends to lower wages,
[he Iercrt also states that wages viii buv
ess than formerly. The explanation OF
his is thai, by reason OF heavy taxes imposed
IL commodities necessary to the very exist.
nee asse 81 :; the rooT. the purchasing power Of
erort. ''beine primary Necessity. its cost
'ccoues an Hnceasing and unavoidable tax on
Ae earnings OF the working man The tluty
n "oollrnR Averages 81 per cent. and in some
asen reaches leo per cent. The timer kinds
~ 1uouens ,, arc taxed least. While the coarse,
eafly doubled IN price by the tariff Again
20 quote from the report "Fuel, in this
Innate. is another. Indispensable necessity,
'hash i a1 presses se1y heartily upon the .poore.
,oEton for about SC 4 ton. wl1i1o pcnnsylyaria
Nfhraelte coal costa the New England onera-
ves fs,lly *9. Two dollars ton Is the tribute
aid ns the POOR 'ahorels to rich ,aonopols,s.
7med II n 1srtt!sng or iomicile, which. as re-
pects the poor Of this city, means shelter in
nc OF the Is ,5s2 teilements, where the popu-
'tlon " packed at the rate OF nearly three /.
untirsd Thousand to the square mills, 4
onleie e being = for.egone necessity, the rent /
le most ezaeting and oppressive burdens tue +
oor arc compelled to bear. 1t any sacrifice, | {
mt must he paid, or the tenant thrust house
I'll and homeless into tho street. Give the | E
oos clothing and fuel, and they mar beg a :
ust to abatc the Iuawinge Of hunger. but /
icy cannot llye without shelter" =
Lumber IL taxed 20 per cent. iron IS per '
eht:: eyrty tool Used III the construction or |
'selhng ~ nearly doubled III price br the
~, and the duty On Hindow-glass is upward I
q PER cent High prices Of material cause | e
eh rents. and the poor are consequently a
'ven into inferior habisations, wl,i.h axe Lest e
:: cHhes1 in the language Of tte rrron !: y
:" Their miserable hosela, Of every concciya- Il
G sAaEe and dimension. nrc most f1,tIcly con e.
ruc'ed 81 rough boards over g,,nrl,er
f.It4f r. it,
provided with one window and one door. n
I'd il nnadorncd with atoop o. portico. The o
7odcn ruf liz covered with scraps at tin and
III, the Jagged edges Of whiel, overLang the |.
ses, e.. and " = E'lst!y stovsp!pe .rzotnlslins
ntr7sat'cc bearing any Resemblance to Chin 3,
:. Contiguous to tile =1altx. a few poles i,
lven into sle ground support lines over 4'
l'eh miserable specimens Of clothing may be
en dangling in tho wind. Within tic hoyel
me cFo~kc1y, lin. and carthenwsre, which ~ ~
mrrise sfon' all the modern household con- r.
nientee their poverty affords. Nowhere r,
y the Eoard Of Health, is there to ~
fontd such staEnant ant reeking filth III H.
lsts IL the sAanty villages near t4e Cen Il,
il Park. The ,leath-1ate IN these feul quar- NJ
+ is fearf,'lv high II ie painful to refe. ~
the 2o 200 Persons living in low, damp. and m
hy ccl}ars, and II the 1882 teueulents =,
irls contain ouc-lnlf the population Of the al
; HiA fN il 6SA1 per cE1l OK IuOlL&41 | nv
This high deasf-rate il tnrasioned ,y local ;ss
lses in and about their dwellings, together II II
III the 1niEnsc cf these dwellings, bv over ri
'wting. The Hottensoss and Eequimaux ~
; s'etter housed in their mud and rnor huts ~
u are n1ltitudes Of the Iror IN tl:- cisy ~
i it il nj once an alarming and truthful NJ
tentnt that tho criminal Statistics kec}, il,
e with rhsEical degradation. Whence come r.
) bnrglafies, rosbeaes. murders, End crimes II,
eyesy degree: Chiefly. as the Official ar, an
7t,1S t,ex Frr : fno.
Is OF vice: and go frequent have become ~ ~
sc acts OF Violence against peruus and ~
'rerts Al 10 e1eite little attention. ;.s
! iB absolutely necessary that the toi1ing '~
lions should contribute their Just portion to
payment Of that mortgage on the industry r.
the coultrx-tle national debt. It i OF IL ~
I = fearful burden But to tax the poor fur
Lenett OF Ech monopolists Of iron, coal.
I, lumber. weol]cn and cotton goods, i. g
nstrous wrong. and oae that should arouso tic
sonal sacrifice f,r tici. relief. OF the ma II
e Of tue tencvolcccc the rtI.ert thns ~
axis: HI
Often lae there been occasion to show a.
( true 1enesolencc does not cotiki-t. al 49,. 49,
ny ignoEsntly suppose, in giving to es9r5 " u,
ron VII" happens to ts poor, m the mis- I e.
en- idea Eat sueA giviuG l. charity. For ~. ~.
b AID may not only iujuse tie recipients. ~ ~
:, through item, iniu7s Others also. illar- ns
ch Il it lney encourage ialoi-nee, lntem- ~; ~
t11,t1- ~ ercr in}iYidra} Hch or NOR tax
Ia ~ i.rn,1, :; r., te.o7no 1Aefn1 ncfn.,er I'm
Fociety; and wLatever tc,nis to prevent this Q!
siclztes the great pEine.srle Of charity" s1e 1e
los can man become u=eful member OF ne
itty. when tie lcr1slators. liz unjust law me
III great industries. aal throw wh;'!e clasaes g:
.rtiaant ont Of ~ctk: Here il the record Of tAf
tructson: 1le export trodc Of The country AT
ann;hi1ared. ship-Auilling no tai
ger ros.i.le, the woc;ieu t.ale urostgata tio
on mills r1s1ni,z: On sho,t timc. ranlcn bal
dnce fo:ting il tie felds for want Of pur-