The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-04-08

A bill had been reported to the House or the
general subject of tariff, as well the rates
wool and woolen goods He would ask the
House, on Tuesday week, to take up that bill
and consider the wool question among others
He yielded the remainder of his time to MIR
Hurd this was claimed to be sort of Ohio
question.
SPEECH OF MR. HURD.
Mr.. Hurd said he opposed this motion because
it proposed to restore the duty on wool, and
thereby increase its price 1t did so directly, by
increasing the price of foreign wool required in
domestic manufactures. The question thus
plainly presented was, ought the price of wool
to be increased by legislation? There were three
classes interested in the answer to that question:
First, those who consumed articles made
of WOOL second, those who manufactured
woolen goods and, third. those who
produced raw wool itself. The manifest effect
on the first class would be to increase the price
of its woolen goods; for the price of the material
from which an article was made could not be in
creased without increasing the price of the arti
Gle itself. Ought the price of wooden goods to
be increased To that question there ought to
be but one answer. At all times, and in all cir
cumstances, in northern climate. wool was
an indispensable article of daily consumption.
1t was shelter to the houseless, covering to the
shvering, and fuel when fire was eXtinguished.
10 worKlngInen, artisans and mechanics, labor
without the protection of woolen clothing would
be insuferabe, and their condition miserable
indeed. If these remarks were true ordinarily,
how painfully true now This had been a winter
of uneXampled severity. More than half mill
ion of men out OF employment and strong
men everywhere were seeing their families starry
ing because they could not get the work they
were anxious to do. Had the House of Rep
resentatlveS nothing more to say than this-that
necessities of life should be increased in price?
The very proposition was a mockery of their
misfortunes To pass this bill would be to do
unforgivable wrong to millions. 1t was not an
T,afa a1nNl1
poor. If bountes needed for any industry,
in Gods name take them out of the Overlooking
treasury, not out of the suffering poor. What
effect would it have on the manufactur-
ing interest? That interest was every
where in a state of depression. Many
had reduced the hours of labor
many had shut up for time, few were run
ming all the time and to the full extent of their
capacity. In the midst of this depression did
the House propose to add to their burdens by
increasing the price of raw materials One of
the chief causes of the present depression was
the high price of foreign wool. To-day, even as
the law stood, the price of foreign wool to Amer
lean manufacturers was nearly GO per cent
higher than it was at the port of shipment. In
American mills, 300, ,000 900 pounds were used
in 1880 OF this rs, 900, 900 pounds we're import
ed There was enough power in the mills to
produce nearly twice as much as they did
American mills could manufacture 600 100000
pounds annually, The high duty prevented
the manufacturer from getting the wool he was
ficiency of home production, and by this very
tariff he was kept out from the markets of the
world England sold abroad $120, 000 600 worth
of woolen goods annually America sold abroad
scarcely $400- 900 worth Pass this bill and in
crease the price of foreign WOOL and the House
would add to the embarrassment of every wool
manufacturer compel a reduction of wages, and
lock still more tightly against him the markets
on the ground that the American farfAer would
geJ better prices for his wool. This he denied.
What was the market for the farmerl No man
bought wool and brought it to his own home, and
made his own clothes. 1t was the American
manufacturer who created the market, and Just
as he prospered or was depressed, was tine price
of wool high or lowl 1t was natural that men
in prosperity should pay better prices than men
whom adversely had overtaken. He Mr.. Hurdl
charged that the low price of American wool
was largely attributable to the higher price for
foreign wool, There were three grades of wool
in the market-superfne intermediary and
carpet OF these, America did not produce a
superfne or carpet wools and therefore no
duty on them could be of benefit to any farmer.
AS to the intermediary grade, this was the
situation: The woods of foreign countries
have texture and fibre which American wool
did not possess and the American manufacturer
needed them in order to mix with American
wool. No could make good suit of clothes
out of cloth made of American wool only. Let
foreign wool in free, reduce the duty, and
more foreign wool would be imported, and that
would make a greater demand for American
wool Every pound of intermediary wool i'm
ported would make more available every pound
raised here Foreign wool did not come into
competitor with American wool, but was supple
mental to its essential values. From 1847 to
1860 farmers got cents per pound more
than they did during the period of higher
protective tariff In England, when a PROPOSE
ton was made to take the duty off wool, it was
antagonized by the wool growers but the result
had been that the price of wool mad steadily ad-
vanced. He believed if wool were put on the
i1zf% Tod 1lI
in the duty woolen goods, the result would be
a large increase in manufacture large increase
in the number of operatives employed, at least
18 per cent. increase in the price paid the farm
er and reduction of % per cent to the people
who had to buy wooden goods. He had been re-
quested by the Legislature of Ohio to vote to re-
store the duty on wool He had respect for the
Legislature as body, and for its individual
members but he would not vote
to make wooden clothing dearer to the laboring
population of the country if every Democrat in
Ohio asked him to do so. In conclusion, he said
"Woe to the party who proposed to obtain power
by making the expense of living heavier and the
struggle still harder to those who can scarcely
carry it on now The path to victory for such
a party is through the misfortunes and suffering
OF its fellow-men If lifted into power it will
be on the arm of taxation and monopoly. The
leaves of the laurel will be entwined with the
| poison vine, which will cause them to wither
For one, do not care that the party to which
belong shall come into power unless it shall
be to give freer trade to the people, better in
vestment to capital, larger wages to the laborer
and greater glory to the American name"
ARGUMENT BY MR.. CONVERSE.
Mr.. Converse said the pending question was
not one as to whether the laboring people should
be compelled to buy higherpriced clothing. He
would have liked if his colleague had shown by
facts and figures that the price of clothing was
cheaper now than it had been prior to the pas
sage of the tariff bill. Statistics did not sus-
tain the gentleman's rhetoric. The question
was whether this great industry should be
kept in the hands of American citizens or
whether its profits should be divided among for
eign nations The wool industry is the largest
single industry in the United States.