Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1874-03-21

The Chicago Tribune has taken the
trouble to make comparison showing
how capital and labor divide the profits
of the iron business under our protec-
tive tariff, which is not only interesting
but instructive to consumers, especial
" in Tennessee, where the cost OF pro-
ducing iron is not SO great as in Penn
sylvania, as shown by these tables.
The Tribune says: ''This table shows
that the advance in the cost of pro-
dueing a ton of pig-iron since 1850,
when it was Sl425, TO 1871, when it
was S29.65, has been in cost Of ore,
1922; of coal, $3.50; of limestone, sos;
contingencies, interest, etc, Sl.l2; and
of labor, 81 80. In 1850 thelabor receiv-
ed15per centof the cost of theproduct;
In 1871, it received II per cent, The
enormous increase In the cost of ore
and Of coal indicate that Pennsylvania
is fast losing her supremacy as pro-
Queer of iron. If her ores are getting
SO lean and her coal so costly, then the
manufacturer of iron should be left
free to 90 to other districts where these
disadvantages do not exist. But Penn
sylvania insists that Congress shall lay
tax upon the consumers OF iron that
will enable her to manufacture the ar
ticle at a profit, notwithstanding her
ores are failing, and her coal becoming
so costly as to render it Improbable in
the manufactured iron. Thereafter Will
not fail to notice the immense increase
in the cost of hmestoneinP Pennsylvania!
Ought not Congress to protect that ar
ticle? The bearing of the tariff on the
cost Of producing iron, and its effect
upon wages, is wen shown by these
tables. From 1916 to 1858, the duty
on imported pig-iron was 80 per cent;
In 1853, IL was reduced to q per cent,
when it was raised to SO per ton, and
in 1864 it was raised to 50 pertOn. The
average wages paid per ton of pig-iron
from 1850 to 1861 was S2.15, from 1862
to 1864. inclusive, under the duty of Sc
per ton, the wages averaged s2.l6 per
ton; from 1866 to 1871, inclusive, under
the duty oe 50 per ton, the wages av-
eraged S3.6S per ton. From another
table given, showing the cost OF pro-
ducing bar-iron, we learn the prices
paid by the manufacturers for the pig
iron. Thus in 1858 the cost Of pro-
dueing pig was SASS per ton, and the
cost Of the pig to the manufacturer
was SIS. %. In 1864, the cost Of pro-
ducing pig was S2O.97, and the cost of
the pig 20 the manufacturer was S4l4O;
this was advanced 70 S6S.60 IN 1865;
and since 1865 to 1872 has averaged
$40. From 1864 to 1872, inclusive, the
average cost of producing pig iron was
S28.l2 per ton, leaving profit OF slo
per ton, or an increase per ton over the
period before the high duties of about
50 per ton. OF. this increase, capital took
So and.labor 81. In 1872, the tariff
was reduced TO 81 per ton, and In that
year and in 1873 the production of iron
was unprecedentedly large. Neverthe-
less, the n-producers now claim that
they are fat on their backs. They say
that large number of furnaces are out
of blast, AID that more are going out
unless something is done for them. a
more piteous howl has not been heard
for a long time. If the result of twelve
years Of stiff protection is a general
collapse Of the iron industry, would 1t
not be well for Congress to repeal the
duties altogether, send these beggars
to the poorhouse, and let people buy
iron where they can get it cheapest"
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