The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1888-07-18
THE DANGERS OF FREE TRADE.


Mr.. Il K. Thurber, the well.known
New York grocer, has printed at his own
expense aud sent out letter giving his
views of the great leading question OF
Protection and Free Trade. Following
is an extract from Mr.. Thurber's letter,
which ia addressed to 1.-THE Wage-Earn-
ers of the United States =
believe that what European manufae.
turers want us TO do is not for our inter-
est to do. When every European paper
hailed President Cleveland s message with
! delight as tending toward Free Trade, it
convinced me that II was not the best in
terest of this country that he should be
reelected.
When the London Times thinks the
best use they can make of Irishmen is to
help them to emigrate to this country
and join the Democratic party and thus
help break down our Protective Tariff,
that makes me think that our tariff is a
great benefit to this country; and, of
course, range myself on the side of a
Protective Tariff. The mills Tariff
bill'' that is endorsed by tie st. Louis
Democratic Convention ED President
Cleveland, keeps about eighty per cent
duty on sugar (about $50, 600, 900 to COL
cent. on rice, the very articles that you
pay large percentage of, and reduces the
duty on articles where your wages enter
largely into the cost of production. /
cannot think that the Mills bill is for the
best interest of our wage-earners, and
consequently oppose 1t, although voted
for him in 1884.
The United States is the largest CON
tstas ion MI fkf a
globe, and the reason OF 1t is that our
wage-earBers are better paid than any
other, aud It is clear to my mind that the
operation of a protective tariff is the rea-
son of it. If we should reduce the tariff
on articles into which labor enters largely
in the cost, the forces Of steam aud cleo
tricity which have so reduced the time
and cost of importing goods into this
country, would, without any doubt, bring
the cheap labor of Europe in direct and
immediate competition with our own la.
Dor. Europe has the carrying trade on
the ocean Ia her own hands; | do not
want to have them convey our raw pro
ducts to Europe In their vessels at the ex-
pense OF our producers, and there convert
them into manufactured product with
her cheap labor, and return them TO us,
when 1t win surely have the effect of re-
ducing the price of labor that produces
the same articles in the United States.
All these are potent reasons to my mind
why we should oppose the re- election of
President Cleveland in 1888. / append
letter written by Democratic merchant
of this city that is very suggestive on
this subject.
Following are extracts from the letter
above referred to:
/ have voted the Democratic ticket
since 1872, marched in the Cleveland mer-
camille procession In 1884, and would
have been hurrahipg for Cleveland to. day
had my views on the tariff question not
entirely changed. Within two years |
have visited Europe twice, and spent con-
siderable time 10 London. While there
the meetings Of unemployed laborers
were held every Sunday afternoon in
Trafalgar Square and Hyde Park, and
attended number Of them. saw thou
sands of the hard working British opera
tives asking for work to save their fami-
lies from starvation. l was amazed to
see 10 rich and powerful England the state
of affairs that existed there,
Through her "free trade" policy, Eng.
hand has closed every sugar refinery in
England, and 30, 900 men are thrown out
OF employment.
The once fiourishing lace industry of
Nottingham is killed, and thousands of
operatives are on the verge of starvation
E because the English free traders permit
the cheap fabrics of Saxony to come into
England free of duty. The good Britisher
boasts that the workingman in his coun-
try has cheap sugar, beef, clothing, etc.
but tell me, what benefit has the work.
ingman when he cannot earn money
enough 10 buy these cheap necessaries of
life The very fact of such cheap foreign
articles in England kills her home indus
tries and cripples her farming interests.
Foreign labor supplies England with al.
most every article you can imagine, aud
her home industries are the sufferers.
10 order to avoid such state of affairs
Ia this country, / am determined to vote
against the principles that Mr.. Cleveland
ID trying to inaugurate in this country.
think 1t means free trade four years hence,
and free trade means
First--Competing against the free labor
OF Europe.
Second Reduction of wages in every
branch of trade.
Third-Reduction of the earning pow
or" of every dollar Of capital now invested
In America, either in manufacturing,
farming or any other pursuit.