The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1882-12-14
REVELATIONS or THE CENSUS.

cannot lie, and unfortunately for the knave
or dreamer, knock many pretty theory in
the head. There is no realm of thought
where so many fallacics have been enter.
tanned or so many men deceived by plausi
bic but really perniclous measures and pol
icies as in the domain OF politics and in poll
tics as in that department of govern
ment handling the finances and at
tending to the revenues. The government
with us has been keeping up a system
OF duties Of very burdensome character
which has had two objects in .view-the
raising of revenue and the protection Of
certain classes OF its citizens against foreign
competition. Repeatedly have attacks
been made upon the iniquity, and laborers
have been demanding that their wages
should be raised in proportion to the pro-
lection offered their employers by the
government. They have been answered
just as often that the profits Of the business
would not permit it, and that itwould be
| doubtful If the business could ever be con-
tinued with the present rate of wages and
scale Of prices unless additional assistance
came from the federal government.
This turns out to be one OF the pretty theo-
| ries that the census figures recently COM
piled show to be totally false. The census
OF 1880, dry as it may be to some aud in
many res rects, nevertheless, contains food
for almost unlimited thought and specuia-
ton and teaches some most important and
interesting truths. An able eastern journal
has taken the pains to refer to the census
on the question of wages and the prof
Its of invested capital in manufactures and
its conclusions following directly from
official figures may be depended
upon. 1t seems, therefore, that the
average number Of hands employed is
2,73s,050 in 253,Si0 establishments ;
the amount of wages paid is $0R,9l9,G7i.
Dividing these figures, the amount paid by
the operatives to whom it is paid, we find
that the annual wages, taking the country
and all kinds of manufacturing through
and through, is but $3l6. This amount in
cludcs too skilled as well as unskilled labor,
and yet operatives in factories do not get
as much as 81 per day upon an annual ay-
crage. Upon this pittance the laborer
must pay house rent, for food, fuel and
clothing. The fact is further shown that of
these nearly 100000 operatives, 70 per
cent. of them are men. What becomes,
then, of the tremendous free gift in the
way of protective tax that
the government annually bestows
upon the manufacture of articles!
1t can be seen from these figures that the
laborer barely or scarcely gets enough to
live on. The conclusion cannot be other
wise, that the fifty or sixty per cent OF tariff
goes straight into the Golfers OF the men
who IN turn are starving their operatives.
But the most startling feature in the prem
ises is the fact that while duties have,
within the past ten years, been steadily
maintained and frequently increased, the
average of wages il lower than in 1870. In
the census of 1870 the average WAGES of
operatives was $377,Gl or $3l more than in
1850. In the meantime tremendous sur
plus of revenue has been gathered into the
government vaults, and still these very
poor who receive these pitilul wages, but
who must buy the manufactured ar
tclcs ut the mhrket prices are being made
to contribute to the cxorbtant profit OF
their masters and the needless revenue OF
the government. In other words the oper.
atives are being deirauded, lied to and
aousvely humbugged by the capitalists in
the face Of plain figures ard in the most
conscienceless way. IL is shame and dis
grace to the United States; il is the most
das,ardly and incxcusablc robbery of the
age. We cannot do better than quote Il few
sentences from the article in the journal
referred to; "a year ago the upholdcrs
of this system were so strong, in
their own estimation, that they dotied
public opinion. The beneicarieS OF a
high tariff controlled the government and
dictated what it should and should not do
as insolently rs the slave owner of quarter
of u century ago dictated to the party then
In power. In the meantime there has been
verdict at the ballotbox--a verdict of
guilty" on every count in the indictment
against these men and their friends and
supporters in authority. What is the re-
suit ? Wiser than the old.timo planter, the
tariff lords have offered u "compro.
mise" They are willing to take OIL
from 20 to so per cent, and to that extent
relieve the suffering industries of the coun.
try. This is something of concession; but
II the party in power is wise IL will do more
than deal out this small measure of Justice.
The pruning knife Of reform should cut
deep and sure. This is not the time for
halfway measures, for compromises with
Legislative rascality and jobbery. The rings
have been protected long enough. 1t is
now time to protect the whole people. Let
us have an honest revision of the tariff"
II facts such as these cannot reach the halls
OF legislation and arouse legislators eyes
they may have but they SEQ not, and ears
they may have but are as def as posts and
unworthy the name of peoples representa-.
tives.
LANCASTER.
LANCASTER, Dec. 10, lSs2,-[Correspon
| laN,a 1-Dav NJ A.a,tn a. r.