The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-09-03
FosTERED By PROTECTION.
a Silk Manufacturers Argument in Favor
Of a Protective Tariff

Yesterday afternoon Journal reporter met
Mr.. E. D. Woodruff, of Auburn, N. Y, who is
stopping for day or two at the Denison House.
In answer to inquiries he said II am president
of the Logan Silk Mills of Auburn. Not named
after John A. Logan. They stand on Logan
street. which runs to the hill upon which, at a
famous battle fought there, the great Indian
chief, Logan, was killed We manufacture dress
goods and at present are running largely upon
brocade silks and surahs. 1t is within ten years
that the silk manufacturing business has as
sumed any magnitude in this country. We OBJ
tanned our entire outfit from Europe. One of
our firm went over, making three trips, and
bringing in all eighty persons, employees with
their wives and families as well as machinery
and all at our own expense, as we had to pay the
expenses of the people and provide them houses
and living after they got here
"At that time the import duty on silk was 60
per cent, and in that Law the inducement for us
to put money in the manufacture. OF the EN-
ployes brought to this country at that time
seven Fights of the manageable portion of the
families of the llSweavers have married Amer
leans and are part of the population of Auburn,
owning their little homes and having an interest
in the welfare of the country. Many of the
girls who came over are wives and mothers, and
no longer silk-weavers. Their places have been
filled in our mills by American girls, who were
taught the business by these English weavers.n
How many hands have you employed in the
millsl" inquired the reporter.
in our mill we have to-day 400 employees and
of these not to exceed fifty are English. A
large number of the grlscam to this country
with wooden shoes-shoes cut out Of the solid
wood with iron bound bottoms to prevent Them
wearing out Most of the folks we brought over
came from Meckelsield, q suburb OF the neat
manufacturing city Of Manchester. By the way,
we have pair Of those wooden shoes in glass
case at the mills now, labeled protective tariff.
The girls don't wear wooden shoes now,
thenf
BLESS you, no. The girls make $150 day.
That is the average, and it is poor girl who
can't make SO week. They dress as well as
the best-and they are the best, for they are
honest working people and delightfully."- indie
pendent and, instead Of wearing wooden shoes,
wear the best CATERS that Yankee skill can put
together. Our employees as fully appreciate the
benefits of the protective tariff as we do. We
have an exceedingly intelligent class of en-
ployes and there is not a man Tor woman either,
for that matter) about the premises who does
not stand squarely for a protective tariff, The
question is well understood in our city, which is
q lnanuIactuflng DlAc6. Every mechanic unQ6F-
stands that Auburn was built up by the
protective tariff. If the tariff on silk goods,
which am more familiar with than anything
else, was taken off, it would be impossible for a
silk mill in this country to maintain itself a
single month without loss Silks are not a
necessity, but a luxury; and yet since we i'm
ported our weavers and machinery the tariff
thinkers have cut off 10 per cent. from the duty,
and the horizontaltariff bill of the excellent Mr..
Morrison proposed to cut it down 10 per cent.
more.
1.-THE silk importers in New York city are nearly
all foreigners majority of them have never
been naturalized nor become citizens They are
here as agents representing foreign manutact-
urers. It is a fact well known to New York
| jobbers that they cannot buy yard of silk at
any European mill and have a price given to
them in francs, or pounds shillings and pence.
The price is invariably made in dollars and
| cents delivered in New York, which American
silk manufacturers understand is a cover to en-
able them to rush foreign made goods into the
United States by undervaluation. They beat
the custom-house by billing to their confederates
on this side the water-their New York agents.
81 am also stakeholder in the Auburn Button
Company. Ten years ago there was not pearl
button made by steam power in Birmingham,
England, the head-center in the world for pearl
buttons. went there. hired a number of work
men, bought their crude machinery and estab-
lished the company / mentioned. In twelve
months we had a pearlbutton factory running
entirely by steam power. At that time the
duty on pearl buttons was 30 per cent. The
tariff thinkers changed this about year ago to
Is per cent. Our pearl-button factory
closed and the foreign workmen have
gone back to England, and now, as
before, most of the pearl buttons used in this
country are m ade in Birmingham. We en-
ployed $50 persons in that factory making pearl
and horn buttons These $50 employees and the
men and women employed in our silk mill are
compelled to eat bread and meat as other people
are We paid out in the button factory over
$40, 900 month. We still make patent button
of our own, but few workmen are required for
its manufacture. The discharge of those work
ing people meant large loss to a great many
different businesses in Auburn
Turning to the reporter MIR. Woodruff asked:
IF free trade is such desirable thing and pro,
tective tariff is a damage to any country would
like to ask you how it is that free-trade England
is suffering, as she is to-day, a paralysis of
nearly all her industriesp
The reporter made no attempt to answer, and
Mr.. Woodruff continued:
ENGLAND has to-day free entry to nearly
every port in the world, and she thinks in her
| present strait if she had a free entry to the
| United States and its fifty five millions of ex-
| travagant people she might be able to maintain
herself and think she might l have been to
England twelve times within the past ten years.
and know that her interest is far from being
/ our interest
/