New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1883-08-20

business without any capital, in TWO years was
worth $250000."
"What put a stop to thisi"
"Tbe American Tariff and British competition.
Germany practically became Free Trade ana Eng
land forced her cheap wares upon the inarAe'
crowding out home goods, and In the meantime 'ne
more protective policy of our own country prousus
into healthy existence woollen manufactures ano
rave employment to American artisans, instead
of enormous fortunes to German manufacturers
and their agents and consgnees in New-York"
"Ubat has been the effect on the German wool
len Industry" q,
"The English competition has been overcome and
the equilibrium restored by return to Protection
In regard to the American Tariff, some of the lead
ING manufacturers here have informed me that be-
fore the adoption of it they often found themselves
crumbling at q profit Of 80 per cent; while now
they smile cheerfully ut gain of 10 per cent"
"During this time of great gain to foreign manu-
facturers and American importers did the oenent eh
tend TO the operatvesf In short, what was their
condition."
"Their condition, re yret to say, was not greatly
improved except that they were able, owing 10 inc
remarkable demand for goods, to work overtime
and thus add triAe to their wages"
Accompanied by Mr. Du Bots visited NUMBER
of the mills of the district. They seemed small
places compared with the enormous mills OF Leeds
or Bradford, and with some of our mills at nome
The machinery did not strike me as nearly 80 mod
ern as the English and American. Then, too the
workman does not work so fast nor does the ma
cbinerv run so rapidly as it does IN England The
German sits comfortably and even leisurey at the
loom. often with long pipe in his mouth. This
would not be tolerated in England or America, yet
the German manufacturer says that the hands
would leave in body if he attempted to stop
smoking. This is not altogether true, for hr.
Blakely. the English gentleman from Dewsbury who
has started a large factory here, informed me that
he had stopped the custom from the very start. In
many OF these factories old hand-looms still exlst
and are in use While in some sDecialtes Germany
may be equal to England, she must greatly improve
her factory system and its organization before she
can compete with Yorkshire.
large number of the operatives live IN the
country, some of them so many miles from AK that
they walk in Monday morning and do not return
home till Saturday afternoon. On the main ROAD
leading out of the town Saturday afternoon L met
hundreds of these operatives plodding home In the
rain and mud They are a sturdy looking race,
especially the women. Some Of them lived eight
and ten miles from town but were content to walk
that distance and back and labor twelve hours
day for a week and receive about SO. In the city
tall stiff-looking white houses. Consul Du Bols
sho we'd me houses in which, during the hard times
in Germany forty persons crowded together. In
the workingmen's quarter of the town an average
Of 20 persons reside IN one house, in the quarter
where the manufacturer dwclls only per-
sons | asked Mr. Du Bots il the new Tariff had
benefited the operators in this industry and he re-
Piled:
From recent inquiry that have made should
say unquestionably, yes. For instance, before
the Tariff came into force Germany had TO COM
pete with both England and Belgium, and the result
was that many had to close their mills and all had
to reduce their wages. Since the Protective Tariff
has come into force these establishments have
opened their doors, increased their time of labor.
given employment to persons who were idle. and
paid better wages In piece-work the operative can
earn much more now than them"
Though there has undoubtedly been q great I'M
proyement and the wages Of Germany now
equal to those paid in England the wages Of both
these European countries are nearly 100 per cent
lower than in the United States, the following
table shows