Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1882-11-30
Now, TO illustrate, In 1850 and IN 1881 woo-wath.
would purchase for this weeks waRes as follows:

D"sssssss"
. Rent, 4.room tenemeHt, days.......,. sli2 ~
: Boerd for meh, days;.:....... lS.sO ~
/ Table illustrating what weeks wages Of labort
: would purchase In 1860 and In 1881 respectively
! the following articles: Roasting beef, corned bet
/ -four, rent for 4-room tenement aud mems boar
Laborers wages in 1850 were IS week and In lSol
3 What IS would Whist ss.s
). purchase IN could pui
r.- chase In
Articles. lSe0. % 1851
Y Beef roasting, lb....,............... 4ay0 Ss.6
Comed beef, ID. I6W ot.d
D Flour, family, D....... ............l3SSo 1914
Rent, 4-room tenement, days. 3S.15 Az
Mems board days...-..'.....-. l2.ho W
; Without pauslng to give details It may be show
likewise from the census Of $780, that in the produc
ton of iron the increase of employees of product
of capital have each and all kept far in adyanc
Of any increase Of wages as TO leave the burden
the competition wholly upon the wage-workers; tn
increase of capital in this line being since 1870 246
per cent. in employees, 10S1 per cent. In products
lO6 per cent, but IN wages only 39.4o per cent.
the iron and steel industries the relative growths ar
about the same, while in the coal mines there ha
been large decrease in both the relative and actua
amount paid as wages since;S7O, and yet these in
dustres are among the very pets or chosen favorte
! A distinguished writer Mr.. Henri Baudrillart, hal
recently given some important facts on the life OF
the French peasant laborer. He assures us thai
wages in France from 25 to 80 cents day. except
ting in harvest when 81 per Gay in some sections
may be earned by laborer.
He shows us that 1t is thing Of common occur.
renee for French agricultural laborers whose yearly
wages amount to'but $40 to out Of this S40per
year This is over 35per cent. Of his wages.
How does he do it, He pays but $25 to $50 for a
years rent of q 4-roomed house and garden. He
pays less for years clothing than the American,
who pays the cost Of a tariff subsidy to the manu-
facturer pays for q single suit. He pays less for
furnishing his house than the American pays to
furnish bedroom and in like proportion for every
necessity.
The result is the French laborer on one-third the
wages of an American, lives better and saves more
money than our countrymen. 1t is 80 rare for an
American day agriculture laborer to save $40 per
year that doubt II any of you who hear tonight
can cite present instance. Centertainly you can
not cite me the Of who 80 per cent. of
his wages or say, s142 per year. The tariff makes
every American pay about 49 per cent. than he
should for all he consumes. How then can he save
anything?
The thing to be accomplished and what we want,
itseems to meis to procure for the American aborer
not only higher wages than his European fellow
workman, but also higher purchasing power for
the wages he receives.
This we can only accomplish by reducing the bur-
den Of his taxation, both Internal revenue, and Gus
tom ouse taxes, and the cry that reduction Of
these taxes Is to produce harmful effect upon the
aboring man is of those false ideas which would
never have obtained foot-hold had 10 not been for
the great efforts of the comparatively few interested
| individuals who have put them in circulation.
| The immense surplus In the Federal Treasury, en-
gendering extravaganza and corruption, is proof in
itself that present system Of taxation is ut fault
aside from the fact that 1t imposes unequal burdens
upon the people,
enough to recently svow their willingness to advocate
tariff for protection, with revenue a mere incl
dent The bodness of this declaration from Messrs.
Kelly, of Pennsylvania, and Mckinley, of Ohio, in
dicates plan of so complete a perversion Of the
public function OF tariff legislation from its.ony
| legitimate purpose of providing revenue to the
Government, into scheme of taxing the people for
the benefit of certain class of manufacturers that
90 fnla ,Io,s.
could be cited by the anti-monopolists.
The Democratic party, ,basing its position upon the
public welfare and the constitutional modes and OBJ
jects of admnisteringthe Government, insist upon
tariff for revenue whenever 1t speaks as a party
Unless the now generally accepted laws and rules
of political economy are potent faacies the United
States cannotlong continue to protably buy foreign
merchandise unless the United States sell an equal
value of their own products to foreigners.
Trade must be an exchange of articles For US to
pay foreigners in money for what We buy of them or
for foreigners to pay us in gold silver for what
they take of us, cannot long continue. If then our
products and manufacturers to go on increasing
in quantity and quality and value hope and ex
pect they to increase the United States must find
outside market for their surplus products In ex
change therefor.
But how are we to find foreign market for our sur
plus manufactures If we aim to exclude surplus for
eign articles from our own shores? And how shall
our products be carried to foreign markets? And
this brings me to the question of our shipping.
Our shipping tonnage has in twenty years declined
amillion and half tons.
We now carry In American ships but per cent of
the worlds commerce. Our own commerce for 1881
was $1,6750M,3ls The ocean freight onthis exclu-
siye of mail service, were $l675O24 431. If to this
we add the amounts paid we find our ocean COM
worth 10 freight and passage money alone over
$191, 100000 OF this but 10 per cent goes to Ameri
cans.
Of 100000 900 bushels of grain exported last wear
1t is epored that not bushel went in an American
ship. The sailors required to do our own trade |
would be over 100000 men five did own work but
pay to foreigners over $151 100000 for doing this
work that we might, but for our bad tariff and ship.
ping laws, do ourselves at great profit.
We can build BETTER fieeter and stronger ships
than foreign rivals, but our tariff laws will not al
low our ships-builders to compete with foreign |
builders in the purchase of the material for ship
building, compelling them by the tariff on the ma
terias to build one thousand ton iron spip to pay
over $2, 900 in duties. This tax is collected by the
Custom House If the materials imported but Ii |
purchased from American manufacturers they COL |
lect 1t indirectly by adding 1t to the cost of the mater
ials they SELL The duties would pay the labor bill
for building wooden ships of the same tonnage. |
Wooden ships cannot compete with iron vessels |
Hence the policy which prevents Americans from |
proftably building iron vessels is one that compels
US to abandon that field. In doing this we destroy
many profitable industries for the construction of |
ship OF $500 tons gives employment to 600 men of
over thirty trades paying average of $500 per year
to each This s nerrly Sl00 higher than the average
the United States.
These are but few of the evils that grow out of the
loss of American shipping interests have not
time to discuss them all on this OCCASION but can at
least indicate some of the remedies that Congress
should apply. There should be such change in |
our tariff laws as to enable Americans to obtain the
materials at home or abroad for building ships and
employ them with the same freedom and proft
that marked the days of American success and pres
tge on the sea. There should be remission direct
or Indirect OF our tonnage dues on American yes
sells the abolition Of the vexations and costly consul
lar fees that embarrass ships in foreign ports an
abolition ofantiquated laws requiring the payment
of three months extra wages to sailors discharged in
foreign ports, the requirements Of light money hos
pltal money not required of foreign vessels, and /
other minor annoyances and charges at home and
foreign ports that hinder American shipping. The
aw limiting ship masters who compelled to bring
Invalid American sailors to the United States to
zee OF $40 0should be changed to charge to be gov
,rned by time and distance required in such cases.
American ships should by all means be paid for ocean
nan service as much as railways receive for perform
ing the same amount of service and our present laws
against them in this regard should be
speedily corrected.
Mr.. Belmont then treated of some remarkable fea-
ures OF the rivalry between rail and water transpor
alton, and went on: The whole question to be I
properly treated should be taken up by srecial
committee in Congress and it was for this purpose
mad the honor to ask that special committee be
he committee was appointed and will meet in New
York on the 15thsof November, and although am
lote member of 1t, can assure you that shall do
VI IN my power to promote the object for which it
vas appointed.
Mr.. Belmont then spoke Of civil-service reform as
made urgent by the proportions and the conditions
office holding as 1t now exists in this country He
aid the growth in ofice-hodng is shown by the fol-
owing table to be rapid and remarkable since the
lose Of the war:
661, oflce-hoders In civil service ....... 4l,528
1885, office-hoders in civil service H,375
869, offlce-holders In civil service 542O7
878 office-hoders in civil service S6660
876 0ihce-hoders In civil service. $50
082 ofice-hOlderein In civil seryice about 'OaOi
There is no need that the sphere of duties of the
'ederAl GQYernmant nj Waahinoton ha auIarrad /