The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1882-07-13

| poods ,,,, VI tue tafln on kni
soous sost was so reduced as to peril The in
or other errors have occurred for wb;cl
,ney are not responsible and which the
T NV seSE 10 correct; but think that
.has .h. olil Is the only method by whicl
.na' committee propose to reduce toxa
:loh, ana thereby relieve tho people
10 perhaps wise that Congress has dale
gaIed the power Of revising the tariff :,
au irresponsible commission who nave
'ntend that the people shall have relic,
Assured that no alienation OF bnrde,
WIZ :ollow this bill, should it becom,
law, ask why is it that the committn,
OF ways and means do not propose 10 re- re-
ouce the tariff upon some of those lend
ing articles which are such necessitie. +,
the people, and from which SO little rev v
en9e 10 derived by reason of the existing
.L anu aimost prohibitory tariff? Sir fol
taree !i,, weeks we had the tariff commission
OIL discussed, and without refutation !,
was proven that no more unjust exac
Iions could be levied upon a people than
are imposed upon our citizens by The
uuty imposed upon steel rails, manufac
tureo iron and woolen goods. But little
was SAID upon the question of the tariff
on cotton goods, and yet I consider it 3
most unjust tax, one that could be light
enc3 or removed entirely without serio,l,
uetrlment to the country. Reduce thc
tariff ON machinery for manufacturinp
cotton goods and upon the goo1s them.
serves, and our manufacturers can com.
pete with the world, and the consumers
will wear cheaper cotton clothing.
Not long since, Mr.. Chairman. I read
10 an English paper that Wamsutta and
other American longcloths were selling
IN successful competition with English
goods In the retail stores Of London.
wherefore then protect the cotton man.
ufacturers of America? From whom do
they need protection?
Mr. Chairman, bale of cotton weigh
Ing four hundred pounds, worth $40. is.
when converted into thread, worth $40.
This thread when woven into cloth is
worth from scventy.fye to one hundred
dollars, according to Gneness of thread
out of which the cloth is woven, for the
liner the yarn the moro the goods bring
in market, while the cost of production
does not increase proportionally, the in
creased price of labor employed in man
ufacturing fine goods, being nearly bal.
anced by the decreased amount of raw
material used.
Now, sir, in 1880 we exported nearly
four million five hundred thousand bales
Of cotton, averaging four hundred pounds
each. These, when converted into the
goods exported from England and otner
European countries, were worth over
$400,000,000. How much of this vast
amount was imported into the United
States? Our tariff averages abost 60
per cent. upon such goods, and we re-
ccived during that year less than $l5,-
00O,Oco of duty from the importation of
all classes of cotton goods. Hence
take il we imported less than twenty i've
million dollars worth of cotton goods,
or about one-tenth in value of the raw
material that we exported. Is this not
prohibition Reduce this tariff on cot
ton goods, for as we have seen our man.
ufacturers can compete with the world,
and you will bring substantial relief to
the people, regardless OF whether they
own bank stock, drink whiskey, or chew
tobacco. Laughter.
feel assured, however, Mr.. Chairman,
that if this cotton tariff were reduced or
removed the people would not realize an
immediate benefit, for at once the mill
owners would cry out and lament their
inability to pay the prices now paid fer
labor, and which they contend is the
best paid labor in tho world, which is
not proven, however, by the STRIKES"
and murmurings of discomfort now felt
and heard throughout our manufacturing
sections. No doubt the operative would
be made to feel, and perhaps believe,
that reduction of the tariff was to his
injury, but he would only have to en-
large the extent of his vision and look
toward the section whence for many
years there has come the wall Of poverty.
and he would learn that living wages
could be paid there, handsome incomes
could be realized from investments in
cotton manufactures there, and success.
full competition given any country in the
world in the manufacture OF cotton
goods.
Sir, gentlemen may commisserate the
South as the gentleman from Michigan
(bfr. Horr) did few days ago, and wish
they might hear the "buzz.saw" hum
ming and the spindle twirling there, as
if no such thing could be seen or heard
in the South. say to those gentlemen
that in proportion to her white popula-
ton the South is to-day recuperating
more rapidly, and increasing in her in
vestments in manufactures more steadily
than the more wealthy North. During
those years of depression, from 1873 to
1879. many Northern mills wore closed.
Scarcely a Southern mill failed to de-
clare net dividend during the same
time. And since that time Northern
mills have been content with dividends
of from 5 to per cent. on the invest
ment as we have been assured by gen.
tlemen upon this floor. That may not
be charged, Mr.. Chairman, with making
extravagant assertions concerning the
net incomes from similar mills in the
South, beg leave to sumbit a few ex..
tracts from the reports of residents of
some of the cotton mills in my own
State, made to the stockholders during
the past spring.
But, Mr.. Chairman, why need in
stance more cases of this sort? These
few are only examples of what is being
done Oy SCOIc Vi iniiiS III Sou'" S".U
lima. But may be asked. if your mills
arc doing SO well under the present tar
if, why do you desire to reduce the duty
on foreign goods? | reply, l wish re-
duction on imported goods simply be-
cause the present tariff is 4 protection to
the few mill owners, for whom it is
amassing princely fortunes at the ex,,
pense of other members Of our national
community. In every Southern Stale, l
believe, manufacturers have been ex'
empted from taxation by State legislation
for period of from five TO ten years,
which of itself is a dividend upon the
investment, and it is unjust to other
avocations to have an almost prohioitory
protection afforded manufacturers OF any
description. Protected manufactures
may build up a country; they certainty
~, tatop1 fnr those who