West Virginia Democrat. [volume] (Charles Town, W. Va.) 1885-1890, 1888-07-20
Carnegie clears a million ::on a less
investment every year. He and 9th
orc like him not farmers, have the

erS like lllD, uOt la ihSio, Ha'S VIZ
country's prosperity in their breech-
es' pockets. When one talks of the
great American boom, he means
Carnegie, Vanderbilt, Jay Gould,
and boomers of that sort. They
hold all our prosperity.
This condition of things put me
TO looking round, to see if | could
find the cause of the condition. l
made discovery one day. Ifound
that this protective tariff that the
Hon. Leatherlungs was a-whooplng
up was the vampire that was suck
inc the life blood out of us. Under
pretencc of laying tax to support
the government, these cunning dev
lis had laid tax TO support them
selves. | was curious to know how
much of this levy for private pock-
cts / was paying. To this end got
the tariff, and went to studying. IL
is no easy matter, but it can be done
by any farmer
Now, to begin with, my house,
frame one, may be valued at eight
hundred dollars. This, if were
building, would be the price; but
when / had deducted the protective
tax on lumber, glass, shingles, hard.
ware, and paint, l found the real
cost of my house was only five hun
dred dollars. Here is dead loss to
me of three hundred dollars.
/ had paid three hundred dollars
to the Carnegie set to keep up their
palaces and tally-hos ut home and
in Scotland.
NV stable, also Il frame one, cost
me four hundred dollars. Calcu-
lating as before. / found the same
proportion held good, and l am
skinned to keep up the protection
lists to the tune Of one hundred and
fifty dollars-another loss to me of
that amount.
| have pair of old work horses.
The harness on these cost me forty
dollars; the unnecessary tax is four
teen dollars-surely a loss.
My three ploughs cost me thirty
dollars. The tax on these is. in
steel, iron, and lumber, the neat lit
tie sum of, as near as | can calcu-
late, twelve dollars.
Four years since l boughta q bind
er. l paid, in instalments, $225.
An agent, who had quarrelled with
hrs manufacturing company, told
me that the binder cost fifty dollars.
Twenty five dollars went to adver-
tising, and when the agent sold one
he was allowed twenty-five dollars.
Of the remaining hundred and TWEEN
ty-fve, seventy-hve went in as profit
to the company, and fifty to the pro-
tectionlsts.
This is only beginning. There
is nothing farmer purchases that
does not pay toll to these protection
lists. I take my two horses to the
blacksmith's to be shod, for example.
The blacksmith charges me, for all
round shoeing, one dollar and TWEEN
ty cents. OF this, forty cents is re-
tained for protection. To have
new roof on q shed leaves two dollars
in the hands of Mr.. r.Caregie and such,
to keep up palaces in Scotland aud
at home. Mr.. Blaine says protection
is a republican principle, and must
be sustained. He was rolling along
over English pixies, behind four
bl6oded horses, and sitting by Mr.
Carnegie. Probably, if l were fixed
that way, ! would see beauties in
the system. But, you see, ! am on
the side that sees only the swim
die
When my daughter died, l took
home her three children. After that,
when my daughter-in law died. /
adopted her two. So l have fami-
". Icould not afford it, but there
was nothing else to do. Now, the
cost Of clothing, shoeing. and far
nishing hats for these little folks, so
that they may not only be comfort
able, but decent enough to attend
TIE common. schools, makes up no
small item. | calculate that the five
cost me, in money expended at the
stores in Middleburg, some two hun
dred dollars. Ofthis a hundred and
seventy-five 90 on the backs of my
poor children, and twenty-five into
the pockets of the protectionists.
All the purchases made by rs
farmers are at the village, where a
wears credit is given. When our
crops come in we deliver our grain
at the railroad depot, and getting
checks for same, co round and settle
that is, so far as the money from
our products enables us to do SO.
Every year the.sum that remains I'M
paid grows larger. We have then
to hustle round, sell wool, sell hogs,
sell anything to make up this diier-
ence. The worst OF all are the town
ship. county, ANA State taxes. These
have to be paid, and two-thirds, yes,
three fourths OF the mortgages on
f,.,,,, c,;,,;.ota N fhnSn
Now. If | could have the two hun
dretl ami odd dollars extOrted from
my poor little farm of Ole hundred
and sixty acres, | could about make
both ends meet. And what an in
al.