New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-01-06
THE TARIFF on IRON.

Congress is about to discuss the tariff pos
! sibly to act upon it. Before acting, members
| would DO well to consider dispassionatcly and
carefully the condition of the great industries
| of the country As tO one of them, few facts
may now be presented which no legislator who
wishes the welfare OF his country viii ignore.
! Men of different opinions may give different
| explanations of the facts to be presented. This
is natural. But q man can hardly be said 10
| have an opinion that is worth anything, TO him
! or 10 ANYBODY else, whose prejudice is such
that he refuses 10 seek honestly for the meaning
of these facts and the lesson that they teach.
I'm 1~~l there were made in this country
300 600 gross, or 100000 net tons of pig
iron. The production has nearly doubled in
three years in ISIS it was ,, J77,3G1 net tons,
and five years ago it was 2,093,23G net tons.
In 1851. also the production of steel rails was
200 coo gross, or l,34I,OOO net tons, against
550.33s in ISIS, and ll2, 1G1 i'm 1876. In
addition. 500. 900 gross or 100000 net tons of
iron rails were made, against 322,e9o in 1878,
and 4G7.lGS i'm 1875. The production of all
rails was ,9OI 1000 tons against So, 6s5 tons
i'm ISIS and e7g,G29 in 1916. Statistics OF
the production of other forms of manufactured
iron have not yet been published. But by de-
Quoting the pig iron used in rails from the
quantity of pig ron produced, we find that the
increase in production of all other forms OF
manufactured iron must have been - per cent
in three years Iron is a product Of labor. In
1870 over $4,000 hands were employed in
making and working p 100000 ton, Of pig
iron therefore, probably more than 100000
hands are now employed in the various branches
of that great industry. Including their families,
probably more than 100000 Of people derive
their sustcnancc directly from this industry,
thrive when it thrycs, and suffer when it
suffers.
A candid member OF Congress, who leans to
free trade opinions, will recognize and rejoice
nj the marvellous growth of this industry, but
will ask: Is itw0rth while to tax 5O,0O0,O0O
Of peoplc. in order that ., zoe, 600 may thrive 2
The question is proper and pertinent. But we
have been looking for The effect Of that tax. and
must say that We have not found 1t. In 1850,
the last year Of a Democratic tariff, when iron
was not protected ut ALL the price Of iron, in
forms for use. was higher than it has been in
ISL. This was true not only of steel rails,
not then produced by the process now i'm use,
but of bar iron, iron rails, nails and such other
forms Of iron as can be compared IN price. Pig
iron averaged So - in 1860, and so II in
ISL; the difference, - y per ton, is very
much less than the difference in duty Bar iron
averaged SOS Is in lsGO, and only SOS 0G
in ISL, in spite Of the duty, and IN spite
also Of the higher cost of the raw material.
The same j., true Of iron rails, which averaged
$ls in 1850. and only $l7 - in ISL Cut
NALL cost &3 80 per cwt in MAY. 1850 and are
now selling mt So 30. Yet 1860 va, year Of
exceptionally low prices for iron-thc lowest
that had been known, except one, during six
teen years Of Democratic tariff.
u is true that prices were advanced in this
country during the war. But the fact j. gencr-
ably overlooked that much Of the apparent adj
vance $50, due To- the depreciation oil Che cur
l.ucr. Ihr following shows tine average prices
OF various kinds of iron in gold in Is go, the
last year of u Democratic tariff; in 1864, the |