The weekly register. [volume] (Point Pleasant, Va. [W. Va.]) 1862-1909, 1888-08-22

goods But If England paid noths.,g for hsfs
labor. we have left duty enough TO nearly
double the labor cost here The present reve-
nnes from cotton goods is nearly $4,000. GOO,
T Wereduce IL S99T.eO0 Where does the fres
trade skeleton hide IN this schedules
Hemp, jite and lax goods we found at
S2Ss 10 in the existing law. and we leave them
at Ss1.14- There is a reduction OF something
over So IN the hundred, but that occurs by
put. ing a large number of items of hemp,
fax, jute, MANILA and sun and sisal grass on
the free list Stin the reduction is very
small
Now wo come to vools and woolens. We
found the duty ON that schedule under the
existing law averaging S5SS1, and we have
left it at S-5S 90: reduction of SO on every
] S100 worth This reduction seems large, but
it was caused by eliminating wool from the
/ calculation aud putting it on the free list
The reduction on dutiablc wooden goods
amounts to S12, 600, GOO But the wooden man
| ufactnrer is not injured: he is benefited. The
woolen manufacturer by the existing law
gets compensation for the taxation on wool
aid IS per cent. protection for the mansfae
1 tured product. By our bill we givo him free
wool and 10 per cent, protection on his man
ufactured goods. Instead of be ns injured
he is positively benefited 70 the amount OF IS
III the hundred moro than be is by the exist
ing law. want TO read at this point what
the woolen manufacturers said TO congress a
number. of years ago. In 1856 they addIes ed
n communication to the United States rove
/ nue commissioner to be submitted TO CON
gress, in which they said:
Tho committee do not hesitate to affirm that,
! Independently of considerations OF general pub
lie policy demanding n duty on wool, the wooden
manufacturers of this country would prefer tho
total abolition of the specific duties, provided
they could have all their raw material duty free
| and an nctual net protection of Is per cent. Zap
| plause on the Democratic side.l
This is signed by the executive committee
of the National Association of Wool Manu-
facturers aud by John L Hayes, their secre
After the internal revenue tax was placed
upon the domestic production the manufac
turcrs came and said to congress: NOW we
want compensation for this, too" They had
compensation for the tax on wool, and now
| they wanted compensation for the tax of 10
per cent. imposed by the internal revenue
/ laws Tho duty was raised to 35 per cent.
but they are fine dfplomatists, and short
time after that they came before congress
and got the internal revenue tax ON woolen
goods repealed. But the 35 per cent. still re
mains, although they had said that p per
cent protection was all they wanted
Now we give them free wool and 40 per cent.
| protection. and still they say to us, ''Your
bill is FREQ trade measure" daughter on
| the Democratic side.l
On the schedule embracing books, papers,
etc, the duty under existing law is S22. 13,
and VIC left it at s2e.o5 reduction of less
than 10 cents on a hundred dollars.
Now, Mr.. Speaker, have gone through
with the schedules of the bill and come to
the free list. We have placed upon the free
list articles amounting in round numbers to
a2o,0G0,000 The largest item is wool, Sc
500, COO. Why have we put wool on the free
fyr1I
They say to us, when you strike wool out
OF the taxable list you have shot out the mid
dlo link in the chain, and tho chain
is parted" Is that Uruel Why, sir,
somebody put cotton on tho FREQ
list few years ago They shot the
| middle link out and parted tho chain then
There were millions of cur fellow citizens
who We're affected by that missing link in
the clinin of protection, but the chain was
parted, and parted by gentlemen on the other
side of the house, who have been so loudly
crying free trade at us. 1t is our greatest
exporting product: il gives employment to
millions OK laborcTs. 1t had a duty of 8
cents pound, hut they removed it and put
cotton on the free list, and they did right
There could be no Justification for its tax, as
there can bc none foI. n tax -on wool.
In 1872 hides were put on the free list, and
by the san.c party that boasts itself the special
champion and friend of protection. Did tho
chains part then! This is a great cattle grow
ing country. 1t is q great sheep growing
country. Eo produce ell sorts of hides.
But when we propose TO touch wool, which
affords in winter the clothing of 100000
people, we strike at the combination that has
l,lade this protective tariff, and they say:
'You shall not touch it; that is free trade
Let Us see whether it is or not. Tho first
tariff law that ever was enacted by this gov
crnment after the constitution was adopted
the joint product of Alexander Hamilton,
James Madison, Thomas Jefferson and George
Washing nSton-embraced in its title the decla-
alton of tho principle that it was made to
encourage homo industries; and the method
adopted by them to carry out that policy was
% put wool on tho free list Thero it re-
naired until 1924, the fathers and, founders
IF this government never proposing to dis
Iurb it during al that time And in all that
grand array of talent there was only one,
perhaps, who could have been accused of
! leaning toward free trade; and that was he
who wrcte the great Declaration, and in one
line of it indicted the king of Great Britain
and arraigned him before the bar of mankind
for cutting off our trade with all parts of the
| world. [Applause on the Democratic side I
Weare proposing to reduce tho price of
woolen goods by taking the tax of wool 1t
is not raised by skilled labor. 1t scarcely
| employs any labor at ALL There has been a
great deal of sympathy manifested on the
other side for the sheep. They tell us by
heavily taxing the wool more wool will grow
on tho back of the sheep. 1t is the back of
the man arc caring for tkis side of tho
house, and we propose to bring down the
price of woolen clothing SO that poor people
can get enough to wear in winter. But we
are met Mt the threshold with a proposition
from the other side to increase the duties on
wool and woolen manufactures $4,000, ,0OO
This would practically prohibit the importa
tion of either wool or woolen goods.
Embraced in this schedule which they de
mand is one of the most remarkable proposi-
tions that has ever been submitted to legis-
lative body, and that is that the cheap wool
that now comes in as carpet wool shall not
be manufactured into clothing, as it is being
done today, because the better wool is kept
out of the country now by high duties. How
is this law if enacted to be carried outl Are
we to have Pinkerton detectives examining
peoples clothing, and If some garments arc
made of carpet wopl instead of clothing wool
grown on American ranches by alien flock
masters, the garments to be taken of the
backs of the people and confiscatedi Our
people are today wearing carpet wool in then,
clothing because the duty on the clothing
wool keeps it ont. Out of ia, 600. 900 pounds
of wool imported in 1887, over SOO00,O0c
pounds were carpet wool.
And now the wool manufacturers and
wool growers associations and their allies
are determined that shall not even wear