Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1888-08-16

Sunday Times, July Is. 1888.
The American Farmers not Easily Hum
| plugged.
Many Of the Cleyelandites and Golden
| Club advocates seem To think that the
| farmers do not understand their own in
| terests and are lacking In practical com
4 mon sense. They would do we'll 10 change
their opinions In this respect, and be
Taught by the elder English Lord Derby,
who reached the conclusion after due In
vestigation, that no other country 10 the
world had 40 intelligent a body of agri-
! cuIturalists "a the farmers of the United
I states. Incredible ~ IL may seem to re-
| deetiBg men, the Democratic National
| Committee has been scattering broadcast
among the farmers Of this country the
following absurd Free Trade msrepresen-
\ tations:
| "t'nder this tariff the farmer rises in the
morning. puts on his common flannel shirt
| taxed IS per cent his coat taxed 81 per cent;
/ shoes 80 per cent, and hat taxed 90 per cent.
takes the water from bucket taxed IS per
! cent. and washes his face and hands in a tin
bowl taxed IS per cent, dries them on a cheap
cotton towel taxed u per cent.
! He sits down to his humble meal and eats
from plate taxed so per cent, with knife
and fork taxed SO per cent drinks his coffee
with sugar taxed IS per cent seasons his food
with salt taxed 60 per cent; pepper taxed 81
per cent
/ lie looks around ON his wife and children,
all taxed in the same way takes chew of
tobacco taxed 100 per cent, or lights a cigar
fixed IA per cent. And. sir, even the sun
| light from heaven that pours into his humble
dwelling must come through window glass
taxed - per cent. anil yet he thinks he lives
in the freest government under heaven.
Then he starts to work puts a bride taxed
80 per cent on his horse. takes his horse that
has been shod-the nails used in shoeing be-
ing taxed SO per cent, driven by a hammer
taxed 2o per cent--and bitches him to pillow
taxed Is per cent. with chains taxed So per
cent. and after the days labor is closed and
his family are all gathered around. he reads
chapter from his Bible taxed 25 per cent,
aud kneels To God on an humble carpet taxed
81 per cent; and then he rests his weary
limbs on = sheet taxed Is per cent, and COW
ers himself with blanket that has paid l04
per cent,
Even the broom with which his good wife
sweeps the floor is taxed IS per cent, and the
cooking vessels used in preparing the hus-
bands frugal meals are taxed ~ per cent and
the soda used TO tighten his bread taxed 80
per cent. She sits down to her sewing ma
chine with needle taxed % per cent, and a
spool of thread taxed "a per cent to make
calico dress taxed SO per cent; or if she
wishes to knit warm pair OF socks to protect
hot kuS nd oh fI,ak al
she uses yarn taxed 1870 per cent"
Robert Porter, the able and careful
statistician of the New York Press, has
eollated the facts which show how utter
! ~ without foundation are the statements
of the Democratic National Committee,
to whose circulation Democratic newspa-
pers are lending their assistance. Here
is the uuanswerahle testimony of truth
disproving the reckless assertions of the
| Clevelandites:
/ "A common flannel shirt costs in England
IS. sd, or 81 cents. The cost here would
therefore be nearly double, or si.6s. The
actual price ia 81.
A common suit of clothes costs in England
30s, or $3.50. The cost here, therefore.
would be $3.50 The actual cost is 81. so,
same as in England. An all wool $40 suit
such as that exhibited by Major Mckinley
costs just f2. or $40, in London.
4! In England common boots cost Sc (sl5o)
and fair ones los. (s2.50 Instead of costing
one third more here the price is sl.25 for
we'll made brogans and $3.50 for fair boots.
A SIS. Sd. (s4 cen,sl hat in England can be
got here for 81, and it does not cost nearly
( 81, as asserted.
| tin bowl costing lod., or 20 cents, in
England, can be got here for about the same
I price, or at most 25 cents. On the other
hand kitchen utensils as a whole are cheaper
in this country than in England our ingenuity
in making such articles being greater than it
is in England,
( cheap cotton towel in this tax ridden
land, quality for quality, costs less here than
| in England.
Here is wha. the Grafton Linen Mills, who
have places on both sides of the Atlantic. saw
on this subject I'VE sell a large proportion
of the product of our mills at Grafton, Mass.
at prices that are as low absolutely as prices
obtained in Britain for similar qualities made
at our mills in tombstone, Scotland" Wares
here are 100 per cent higher.
AL knit goods are cheaper here than in
England, especially jerseys such as women
wear. So are the commoner grades Of stock
fngs and socks.
Ameri an farming implements of all kinds
are exported and sold in competition With
English. They are better. more ingeniously
made. more aarahle and cheaper than the
farming implements of any country in the
world.
American cutlery is imported and sold in
England. Pottery and window glass cost
one-shird whas they did when we depended
on England to manufacture these ARTICLES for
Us. The difference in the price to-day is not
the duty
Sugar Is Democratic industry. aud rice
s.axed- Ios per cent is carefully ignored |
The Republicans repealed half the internal
tax ON tobacco in lsss, and would have re-
pealsd the balance last session only Speaker |
Carlisle refused TO recognize Judge Kelley
for this purpose. In Free Trade England |
the workman pays / 200 per cent 90 his to- |
hAcco-
Blankets vary in cost here from al to es /
pair. The retail price In England Is psac-
sicaiiy the same, and the BLANKETS compare
favorahly; that Is, pair Of Is hiaakess here !