Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1888-07-05
The Tariff and Trusts.

The free-whisky and trust-tarIH pro-
gram of the republican party is not
to all republicans. 1t is, in
fact, exceedingly disagreeable To many
of them, and not more so to the ''mere
theorists" and "closet studentsn than
to practical business men who have
experience of the actual workings of
the existing Al per cent. tariff.
Il don't like that free whisky plank"
said q gentleman in conversation with
the writer of this yesterday morning.
The speaker was republican. He is
practical builder, and has an extern
sive establishment in Chicago for the
manufacture of finishing materials of
wood. Let tobacco and beer and
whisky be taxed SO long as we have
war debt and pensions to pay. The
man who smokes cigar doesn't feel
the tax much, and the man who drinks
can stand it, guess. / don't hear the
cnewers and smokers and drinkers
complaining a great deal, and / don't
know as I would care much if did.
"f'm a protectionist. l believe in
taking care of our home industries. !
believe in keeping our own marker for
our own people. But don't believe
in too much tariff. don't believe in
a tariff to protect men in combining to
put prices way up and gouge their
neighbors. Live and let live, I say.
Now wanted to buy some structural
iron yesterday, and I found that the
price was dollar a Enthusiastically
dollars q ton-more than it ought to be.
'Why is this?' 1 wanted to know
Can't this iron be afforded for dollar
less, as it has been? Oh, yes was the
answer, 1T can be afforded for a dollar
less, but there's combine, you know,
and you can't get it for less.'
81 don't want that kind of O tariff
don't believe in a tariff that protects
these men in combining to make peo-
pie pay a dollar hundred more for
iron than it is worth-a dollar hun
dred more than they can afford for it
and make a good profit. Let them
have all the tariff they need to protect
their market and give them fair pro-
fit but no more"
The foregoing is a correct report,
though it is not verbatim, perhaps, of
the remarks of this thoroughly prac-
teal man. Similar remarks will be
heard from great many practical men
who have been in the habit of voting
the straight republican ticket before the
time comes to vote ag ain next Novem-
Der. The men who make such remarks
Thurman, but there is no reason why
they shouldn't. A vote for Harrison il
a vote for still higher tariff and still
more protection to combinations form
ed for the purpose of extorting excess
sive prices from the people. 1t is a
vote for more trusts and greater ex-
tOrtion. A vote for Cleveland is a vote
for protection enough to give every
manufacture a fair profit and as much
of the home market as he can supply,
but not for protection enough to enable
the iron men to exact $50 a ton for
structural iron over and above fair
profit. Those republicans who believe
in enough protection, but not two or
three times as much as enough, should
know after more than three years of
Cleveland that the country would be
in no danger of going to the"demnition
bow-wows" if he should be reelected.
In the Times of yesterday morning
morning was a dispatch from Cleve-
land. Ohio, stating that a meeting of
bar-iron manufacturers was held In
that city on Wednesday. "It was a
secret session." says dispatch, land
most of the mem bers denied that any
thing was done to interest the public.
1t was learned that there was nothing
short of "trust" being formed, and a
very strong one at that. Each mem
Der present was given printed circular,
or agreement, which he was required
to sign. Strictly confidential in
heavy black type, was printed at the
top of the paper. By signing thepaper
the manufacturer agreed to regulate
his output in such manner as ordered
by the association. All orders are to
GO directly to the association, and ID
will decide who is to fill the order and
at what price. Another paragraph
gives the association the ri yht to order
any or all of the manufactures to shut
down."
This dispatch is a fit accompaniment
to the remarks of the Chicago builder
above quoted. 1t is submitted to him
and to other republicans who find the
Auditorium tariff plank too tough for
their digestion, and who think we have
a little too much of what they consider
a good thing. 1t may be added for
their information that the tariff tax on
structural iron is II cents per pound, or
S25 per ton. 1t would seem that $50 of
this is simply trust-proteeting tax,
and that S. Is in fact ali that is neces-
sary to give our manufacturers fair
profit. And yet the Mills bill proposes
no such sweeping reduction as four
fitths of the tax on structural iron.
One-f1fth is nearer the mark. 1t is far
from being as large a reduction as
could be borne without hurt to the iron
industry and with great benefit to con-
sumers.- Chicago Times, June 20.
fcf1 M II fn.,n