Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1884-01-18
Question Of the Hour.
Do the People Want a Reform
of the Revenue!
A Pennsylvania Who Has
Been Taught by Dear
Experience.
Manufacturers Injured and Opera
tiyes Made Poorer by
Protection.
Foreign Markets Closed Against Us.

Il ana Pennsylvanian, said Mr..
Smith. 'and all my interests are in
this state. 1t is the prosperity of
Pennsylvania that | have at heart in
talking to you, and what | say is the
result of long years of acquaintance
with her industrial and commercial
conditions. l bring no preconceivsd
theories of political economy into the
matter, but am discussing it from a
strictly business uoint of view"
Then l suppose" said the reporter,
that you are as sound a protectionist
as the people generally are around
here?"
ION the contrary, have fer some
time been convinced that the blind
clamoring for protection, which has
characterized us Pennsylvanians, has
been great mistake, and, what is
more, if many of our manufacturers
dared say what is i'll their hearts they
would tell you the same thing. But
this whole protective system has
made us towards. We feel that we
are all dependent in common upon
protection, and that we must stick to-
gether if we are not to be completely
destroyed. Now, the manufacturer
of carpets would be glad to see the
duties off wool, but he does not say
so out loud for fear that the Ohio
wool man will take the alarm and
vote against his protection on the fin
ished goods. So the manufacturer of
tools would be in favor of free trade
in the raw material going into his
manufacture, but here again he is
met by his neighber who owns an
iron furnace and threatens him with
foreign competition in tools if the
tariff on pig iron is touched. We
here have been sucked on protection +;
it has become part of our political
religion, and to cast a doubt upon its
efficacy in any respect is such an evi-
dence of disloyalty that few dare to
risk it."
THE PRESENT DEPRESSION.
"But is not the present depression
among the protected industries apt to
shake this faith?"
1.-The present distress in all branch
es of manufacture, notably in this
state, has opened the eyes of a great
many to the fact that protection is not
an unmlxed blessing even in Penn
sylvania Our leading business men
are beginning to feel that the tariff,
while it helps them to a monopoly of
the home market in good times, makes
it impossible for them to extend their
markets beyond the limit of the
United States in times when the do
mestic market is overstocked. Just
at present we are glutted with more
goods of domestic manufacture than
we can dispose of. While Europe
finds ready market for her surplus
in ali parts of the world we here can
do nothing but discharge our men, let
the work lie idle, sacrifice at auction
what stock we have on hand and wait
until the country is ready for US to be-
gin manufacturing again"
''What is the reason we cannot ex-
port to other countries?
''Why, because we pay so much for
the cost of the raw material that when
the goods are finished they are at q
figure that no foreigner will touch.
There is not civilized country in the
world, with the possible exception Of
Spain, that does not see the wisdom
of allowing free trade in raw materi
ais But our congress piles on duties
as though it were a good thing to shut
everything out of the country at any
price.
HINDRANCES To MANUFACTURES.
Here, for instance, are a few Of
| the hindrances to our manufactures
The man who makes oil-cloth has tC
pay tax of $40 ton on the iute he
uses. We imported $12, 900, 600 worth
last year Well, that $40 a ton is jus
enough to stop us from being able tc
export it to other countries. Is tina
an encouragement to American man
ufactures? Wool is taxed from thirty
five per cent to sixty-five per cent
The carpet and cloth manufacture
pays just as much extra for the mate
rial that goes into his finished pro
duct. The foreigner who gets hr
wool free can, to the extent o
that duty, make his finished arti
Gle cheaper, and consequently under
sell us. Every man, woman ant
child in the United States has to pay
double prices for clothes and blankets
here, and why2 To protect few
sheep ranchers somewhere out west
Now, can any Pennsylvania business
man say that the duty on raw wool il
of benefit to any manufacturer O
course not, And yet for the sake o
the vote of that western Pennsylva
MIA and Ohio wool grower we proposl
to cut off all our woollen manufac
| turers from being able to export. In
stead of taking our raw wool from
Mexico and sending back the manu-
factured article In return. we cut of
our trade with Mexico and the rest o
the world, because we are too grea
towards to touch the question of pro
lection anywhere.
"Dye stuffs and chemicals we ta1
from twenty to fifty per cent az
valorem. To this extent we heighter
the cost of nearly every manufaetur
ed article in the country-for Thu
kind of raw material is of almos
universal use. Of course our dru,
and medicine trade is directly affect
ed, and, above all, the great mass 0
the people, to whom medicines ma,
be necessity.
siAll forms of glass, stones or clay
are taxed from 20 to 60 per cent, hin
dering to that extent our manufactur
ers of glass and crockery ware. Why
even coal is taxed at the rate of q
per cent. per ton Now, as
Pennsylvania, interested In the wei
fare of a great manufacturing com
munity, how can but look upon sucl
q tariff as a hindranse to our pro
gressi'
EFFECTS OF REDUCING TIE TAPIrE
-sWould reduction of duties al
around help us In the presenl condi
ton of thingsr
sYes, for the reason that we an
most of all in need of an outlet for on
manufactures We have got TO ;
point where depression all around j
inevitable unless something Is done t6
revive trade. Our manufacturing
capacity is far IN excess of the requir
ments Of the country, and If we ds
not get our goods out Of the country
a. n