Daily Republican., 1883-12-04

Rbaia Talk - Fl0la Reopae.
A great many we'll meaning people
who are Democrats and are gesefally
led by others are heard talking In favor
of free trade. These same people are
mechanics anil workingmen and are
employed in our Wilmington work.
shops. They do not get very big
wages it is true, and this Is source OF
great discomfort and unhappiness.
These people are taught by their party
organs and their party leaders that .
protective tariff Ia the cause Of low
wages.
They are made to believe that II 1t
we're not for this protective tariff they
would get the necessaries Of life cheap
er. They are told that even with the
wages which they receive, II the tariff
were taken of Of manu- 'actured goods
such ~ clothing, they would be able to
make ends meet better that II it were
not for protection they could buy q
hat, . coat, , pair Of shoes, furniture,
bedding and baby coaches much cheap
or. Unfortunately these we'll intention.
cd people believe oil this and unfortu-
nstsly they do not think there are two
sides to this question. They do not
stop to think that If the tariff was re-
msved, the goods they would purchase
would not be goods made by American
workmen. They do not stop to think
that these goods are manufactured by
the miserably, poorly paid labor of
European free trade counties, where
the laboring classes are in a state Dor
dering on starvation {; whore children
are put into the workshops instead Of
being sent to school /; where delicate
women and girls work in machine
shops and iron furnaces and FORCES.
They do not stop to think that this is
Just the reason why British goods and
German toys could be bought cheaper
II there we're no tariff.
These people do not stop to think that
If these foreign goods were admitted
into our markets free, they could not
be mar u featured here unless American
workmen would agree to work as cheap
ly as the miserably paid labor Of Euro
pean countries. II they would just
stop and think . moment, they would
soon be led to ses that manufactured
articles in this country to be as cheap as
imported articles, without paying tariff
duties, would bring American labor
into close competition with the pauper
paid labor Of Europe lfGreat Britain
undersells the American market and
fills it with cheap goods, there could be
no other result than that the manu-
facture Of such goods must cease In this
country unless American manufac-
turers pay the same wages as are paid
by European manufacturers. Cannot
American workmen see this =?
Admitting that free trade would re-
duce the price of four-dollar hat to
two dollars, what good would that do
an American workman II he had moi
the two dollars to pay for it and had no
work by which he could earn it? If
these well.meaning workmen would
only look at this question in its true
light they could not fail 10 see thai they
would have no employment il the
tariff we're removed and the American
market filled with foreign made goods
Workingmen should be careful in their
demand for free trade lest they may
get what they ask tor, and when they
get it discover that they have been
made the tools OF designing politicians,
who only want an issue by which they
can defeat the Republican party only
to place themselves in the offices which
the Republicans now occupy.