The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1885-12-03
Ghs .gnteligenGtt.
wHEELIxG, ". VA, DECEMBER 8, 1888.


The OungtLONH LyISeVl SAo 1LA'S'kS
mated Association Of Iron and Steel Work
era has Just forwarded it, reply 10 the
Tariff circular OF the Secretary Of the
Treasury. These wage-esrners desire
several changes in the tariff as it relates
to their industries, aud they put their
views plainly as follows:
First-A specific duty OF T. cents per
pound should be placed on WhA! IL com
merCially known IA cotton ties.
second-A duty Of SO ton should be
placed on pig iron and spieglelsen.
Third-A duty Of $40 per ton on old rails
and gccap Of all kinds oil iron and ateeI..
Fourth-On bar and merchant iron the
rates should lilo, 2.l0, . 10.
Fifth-A SPECIFIC duty Of 2! cents pei
pound be placed on tin and terne pIates
and tagEers iron.
0The TACT 10, that the iron and steel IN
dustries Of the Caited States are iaDguIsh'
ing TO day, owing 10 the sharp and success
fut coBpetition Il foreign manufacturers
made possible by the loE rate OF wages o.
Inc working people Of Europe. There
fore. in order 10 protec: the dignity anc
manhood OF American citizens against The
composition OF low wages and degreda
ton in Europe, We do earnestly ask you
TO recommend to Congress the measure!
set forth in this petition.
When the Secretary OF the Treasury
compares these suggestions with tint
present tariff on the articles named he
will see that the iron aus steel workers
are very far from being tariff reformers
They would "ref1rm" the tariff up, moi
down; in the interest OF American labor
not foreign labor. They ask a specific
duty OF u cent? pound on cotton ttet
now admitted under an nd r1lorem dntj
yielding less than cent a'pound
They ask that the pig iron duty be raised
from Sc 72 a ton 10 $40, and the same or
all kinds otiron and ateel scrap. Bar iron
they would advadce from 40 cent ton
10 ITO as q minimum.
The al raIqrIm duty on tsggers iron ID
equivalent to a specific duty Of less than
one cent per pound this they would sd'
vance TO q cents in the form Of duty
that counts for something. The ouggss'
ton with regard to tin and terne plates
has similar bearing. The Youngstown
men know that the duty Of one cent 4
pound on tin plates is SO low that We are
unable to produce any tin plate in this
country, buying from England our supply
at yearly cost Of Sl7,GOO.OOO. For the
manufacture Of tin plates iron plate cost
ed with tin, or tin and lead) we have equal
facilities with England except in the mat,
ter OF cheap labor.
Let US make fl7,OOO,0O0 Of tin plate q
year anywhere in this couuty-let US say
in some remote part oil IVES! VirginiS-
and the labor necessary to produce it will
attrac. population Of hal; million oil
people, and il there is no railroad the in
dustry will bring one. The low tariff on
this article is bounty to English manu-
facturers. In Six years England takes
from US for tin plate round hundred
millions that ought TO BIZ KEEP. at home.
American labor profits in no way by the
purchase OF English tin plates except in
the mere unskilled handling Of them from
the ships hold to the consumer, and 1t
would do as well to handle them from the
American mill to the Consumer.
In 1884 we imported iron ore and iron
and steel and manufactures thereof to the
value OF $4S, 100000. at an average I'D valOrtm
duty OF 34.4S percent. The average duty
collected on all dutiabie goods in the same
year was 4l.6l percent. This was in a
year OF low prices, and lower prices give
higher I'D raIorem equivalent to specific
duties-an economic fact which free
traders are in the habit Of juggling to their
advantage. II We profess to practice the
protective policy at all we ought to do it
fairly, that is to say fully, that the evils Of
. tariff for revenue may not be charged
up against q tariff for protection.