The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1888-09-15
How the Tariff Pinches.

"Ours is another of the industries where
protection does not protect" said one OF
the firm of Mayer. Strouse & Co., one OF
the largest corset manufacturing concerns
In the world. "lnstead of protecting us, "
he continued, 1.-The tariff IL \ direct tax OF
at leas, 10 per cent on the American corset
manufacturer and his workmen."
Mayer, Strouse y Co. employ AT New
Haven about $500 men, women and girls,
and they turn out daily 500 dozens of cor
sets and 800 gross of corset clasps.
Corset manufacturing Is popularity sup>
posed TO be one of the protected industries
an industry In which high tariff on the
finished article Is supposed to enable the
manufacturer to pay high wages for his
labor.
These gentlemen say that the tariff does
not protect the American manufacturer OF
fine goods or enable him TO pay high
wages. On the contrary, they say that the
tariff as at present constituted limits their
market, restricts their production and re-
duces their demand for labor, and with a
reduced demand for labor there must al
ways come lower wages. Messrs. Mayer,
Strouse L. Co. are not theoretical revenue
retormers. They are hard working, close.
figuring, hard headed business men, and
years Of experience and careful observation
have convinced them that undue Govern
ment interference In business always re.
suits disastrously.
please explain how II Is that the press
ent tariff Is tax upon you Instead of being
a benefit9" requested the reporter.
I'VE can do that very easily. We are
forced to pay a tremendous duty on every.
thing we use In the manufacture of fine or
good corsets, which come into competition
with the imported article, except horn
strips, which come In free, but which are
only per cent of the cost for raw mate
terials. On the coutil, which is used for
the body of the corset, we pay 40 per cent
duty; Of this material none but the coars-
est qualities are made In America, though
when competing with the imported goods
ed. On linen bands We pay 35 per cent
satins we pay 80 per cent; on laces and
trimmings 40 per cent, and on the steel, OF
which we make clasps. we pay a duty OF
AZ per cent ad valOrem, and weight duty
Of quarter of cent pound-this
amounts to an ad valorem duty of "a per
per cent on our STEEL
1--WE have recently made careful calcu>
lation of all the elements Of cost OF our
goods, and We find that the duties We are
forced to pay on the materials We use
amount to an average tax of As per cent Of
the value of our finished product, while
foreign corsets are taxed only 80 per cen:
ON the European value; 80 you see that
this bOasted protection really results In
taxing US (American manufacturers ard
American working people, at least 10 per
cent In favor of European labor and Euro
pean capital.
"Here is one of the thousand inequali
ties Of our tariff that interfere with the
legitimate development of trade and manu-.
facture. These inequalities are a natural
outcome of an excessively high tariff The
only solution is In gradual reduction Of
our import duties on the materials used in
the manufacture of corsets. The funda
mental laws of commerce demand that
there should be no artificial restrictions on
trade. The needs of government demand
revenue of which commerce pays its
share, but this tax should be 80 adjusted as
to interfere as little as possible with the
international exchange of commodities
Our tariff seems constructed with view of
placing all possible obstacles in the wsy Of
commerce"
"How is II that you are enabled to COM
pete at all with the foreign manufacturer,
handicapped as you are by she TARIFF"
ut Is because our labor. combined with
our machinery, Ia 90 much more product
i've. Our wOrkpeople are 80 skillful and
intelligent, and our machinery Is so per-
fectly adjusted to our work, that we pro-
duce as much with our 1850 people as the
European manufacturer produces with
5000 people. Last year the largest manu-.
facturer of corsets In England went to New
Haven to visit our works. We gave him
every facility and he investigated our ma
chlnery and methods thoroughly. When
he got through he said: Il am amazed at
the superior effectiveness of your workpeo-
pie, your machinery and your system.
Equipped as you are, you can turn out
three times as many cOrsets as we do with
the same number of hands,
All We ask Is for Government to cease
interfering with our business. Give us our
materials free and with our more produc'
tive labor We would soon not only drive
foreign corsets out of our market com.
pletely, but we would become large expOf-
ters. We are already, hampered as we are,
getting some export trade, but give US our
materials as cheaply as the European man.
ufacturer gets his materials, and with our
more productive labor and machinery we
will soon control the corset trade of Canada,
Mexico, Central and South America, the
West Indies and get our share of other
markets. This would mean the employ
ment of many thousands more American
workers, higher wages and millions more
of American capital.
In our close study of our own business
and of the conditions that effect 1t, we have
had to look into the elementary principles
of many other lines of business, and, to our
surprise, we have found that on all, or al.
most ell, the tariff bears heavily, because
II taxes so greatly and unnecessarily the
raw materials they consume.
Americans believe and Europeans adj
nit that Americans are the most ingenius,
most intelligent, most skillful and the
hardest working people In the world. We
are never tired of Boosting of our superior
smartness and of our marvellous natural
resources and advantages We boast truth,
fully of these things. Why do we not
make use of them and 60 forth In the path
of manifest destiny and conquer the mar
kets of the world l will venture to proph.
esy that the very men who today would
l1rngt ho Arpartcop aod