The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1884-03-18
A CARPENTERS LETTER.
Why He Doubts Whether Free Trade Would
be of Advantage 10 Him.

be of Advantage 20 Him.
To the Editor Of the Nelo York. Herald:
I am by trade and occupation one Of the
many carpenters you have been referring
10 in your editorial columns OF late, and as
nj The next election we carpenters may
want to vote on the question OF free trade,
tariff for revenue only. or whatever you
call il, we want to vote whichever way Is for
our best interests. We want information,
and like other people, THAT l., merchants
and all others who get their living without
manual abor,) we must look TO results, as
our labor is all we have and must make
the most OF il. Some OF us carpenters
have been talking this matter over,
and on comparing notes have salts
fed ourselves on some points, and
would like some OF your correspondents
or yourself to set us right wherein we are
wrong. First, we are satisfied that i'm Eng
land thew about approximate to free trade,
and that wages there are only one half
what they are in this country. That is to
say. the average wages, from the common
laborer TO the highest skilled mechanic, is
100 per cent higher here than there. Now,
then, the question is, Suppose we have free
trade or n tariff for revenue only (Which is
about the same thing), will the first thing
capitalists and manufacturers do be TO cut
down our wages TO the level OF European
workmen? And in that event can we buy
a barrel Of flour for "a which now costs us
IS; a saw that now costs us 81 for so
cents, and meat which now costs us 0 cents
and 90 cents for and 10 cents; q SUIT OF
clothes, S15 and $50, for $3.50 and $40;
trip to COney Island and back, including
clam chowder, 80 cents, for % cents; New
York Herald, 2 cents, for | cent; fare on
the horse-cars and 81" half price; rent,
half price; in fact, all the luXuries we
Door people need for our families in full
and fair proportion? We do not want to
be any worse off than we are, for now we
can make respectable appearance with
our families, and we don't intend to vote
away this tariff unless we are pretty well
assured we will not be made worse
off or will be at least as well off
as we are now. We have no faith in
politicians, but must for ourselves look as
near as we can at the practical results OF
radical change. Won't European goods
fairly flood this country and cause bal
ance OF trade against us which will soon
take all our gold! And when that is all
gone, the rest TO be made up in CONNER
cial failures, which will make everything
so dull in this country that we cannot get
work at any price. What is the value of
minerals in the earth and trees in the for
ests without labor? Is not labor the basis
OF everything, and should it rot be pro-
tected? Is it by saving few cents on a
saw we buy in two or three years or a few
cents on what nails and screws we use
What do we carpenters care for that il we
get good results for our laborLS3 to $500
per day, instead OF Sl.25 and S1.50. l ask,
Who has a right to be protected but the
workingmen and women? We are told
the theory of free trade is correct. II may
be for the rich, who care nothing for work.
ing people. only to pocket the results OF
their hard labor while the workman and
his family remain in rags. This know is
the case in free-trade England. l was
born under the English flag, and know OF
same here, we don't want ii.
The population OF this country is say
55,000,000; 17,500,000 Of this number are
pursuing gainful yocationS. Now, is this
theory correct: Do not the II, 800, 600 labor
to support all the rest aud If this theory
is correct, who ought TO be protectedl We
NOIhluB ptoplc lhlih we OtSuJ 10 nc pro-
tected, for the reason that we cannot pro-
tect ourselves, and we care not in what
form it is in. Is this theory correct? In
the event Of free trade wages would
have to be OH par with Europe, while
everything we need would be higher,
from the fact that prices in Europe
would advance, and the profit the manu-
facturers make here would only be turned
over to importers and traders. You say
farmers are not protected, but would be
better of with free trade. Please tell us
how they can get better prices for farm
products and the working people get them
so much cheaper than they do now. We
working people cannot harmonic these
theories, and hope you will not advocate
anything tending to degraded labor sys-
TEN In this country. We working people
want something practical, that we can I'M
derstand. would like to go further, but
fear you would not put 1t in your paper.
Please put this in for me and let some one
analyze it and put us on the right track.
A CARPENTER.