Daily Kennebec journal., 1884-04-08
AUGUSTA, MAINE, TUESDAY MORNING. APRIL g. 1884

up the bill and consider the wool question
He Welded the remainder of the time to Mr.
Hurd, As this was claimed to be sort of O.
question. Laughter.
Mr.. Hurd said he opposed the motion be-
cause it proposed to restore the duty on wool
and thereby increase lis price 1t did so
directly BY increasing the price of foreign
wool required in domestic manufactures al
all times and in all circumstances. In the
northern climate wool was an indispensable
article of daily consumption. To pass the
bill would be to do an unforgivable wrong to
millions. 1t was not an suspicious time TO
make clothing dearer to the poor. If boun-
ties were needed for any industry, in God
name take it out of the overlooking treasury,
not out of the suffering people. Applause.
What effect would 1t have on the manufactur-
ing interest? That interest everywhere was
in state of depression. Many mill owners
had gone into insolvency, many had reduced
the hours of labor and some were running all
the time and to the full extent of the capsc-
ity. One of the chief causes of the present
depression was the high price of foreign wool.
Today, even as the law stood, the price of
foreign wool to American manufacturers was
nearly 60 per cent higher than it was at the
port of shipment. In the American mile,
800, ,000, 900 pounds of wool were used in
1880. OF this 75, 900. 900 pounds were i'm
ported. There was enough power to produce
nearly twice as much. The American mills
could manufacture 00.000,o00 pounds an
nually. The high duty prevented the manu-
facturer from getting the wool he required in
order TO make up for the deficiency of home
production, and by this tariff he was
kept from the markets of the world. England
sold Sl20, ,000. 900 worth of wooden goods an
IL II
To pass the bill and increase the price OF
foreign wool, the House would add to the
embarrassment of every wool manufacturer,
and lock still more tightly against him the
markets of the world.
Mr.. Converse said the pending question
was not one as to whether the laborer should
be compelled to buy higher priced clothing
but whether this industry should be kept in
the hands of Americans, or its profits should
be divided among foreign nations. Ap-
plause. Did not the gentleman know. did
not every one know that American free trade
meant British protection? Applause on the
republican side Did not everybody know
that when the tariff on wool was put down,
so much more money was put in the pockets
of the Britisher in Australia. His colleague
was entirely mistaken when he talked about
the fibre of wool. There was a finer fibre
III husttdlia, tiastlc uUTe
could be produced within the States of Penn
sylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, Michigan and
Vermont. The wool farmers had represent
ed to Congress that if the tariff was not re-
stored the industry must necessarily go into a
decline, for the reason that in Australia,
where they had perennial pastures, a hun
dred square miles could be rented for hun
dred dollars year. The question was not
whether there would be cheap wool and
cheap clothing, but whether the industry
should be preserved for our own people.
The motion was lost-yeas ll9. nays 1876.
Mr.. Thompson Of Kentucky moved to sus-
pend the rules and adopt resolution declar-
ing it unwise and expedient for the present
Congress to abolish or reduce the tax on
spirits distilled from grain.
After debate the motion was agreed to and
the resolution adopted.
Adjourned.