The Memphis appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1886-1890, 1888-06-17

end Of the year he has nothing left, and has
only made a scant living for himself and
family? II is no wonder that his crop for
the next year Is sold before II Is planted,
aud tho buyer fixes the price Of his cotton,
and the seller fixes the price Of all that he
consumes II seems TO me that our farmers
deserve great credit for succeeding as well rs
they do, considering the disadvantages under
which they labor. If his store account Is
sli7, $i7 OF II is tax and 800 goods About
80 per cent. of the export trade Of this coun-
try consists of farm products, and by our
tariff system we have almost destroyed our
export trade, because other nations will not
buy what they have to sell unless we Will
buy what they have TO sell. We can buy
their goods but tho government will not
permit MS 10 bring them home without the
payment OF an average tax Of AZ per cent.
upon them, consequently we cannot afford
10 buy, but are forced 10 buy the dearer
goods made In this country, upon which
there is no tax. II the taxes paid by the
people went into the national treasury 20 be
used for governmental purposes II would be
all right but when We are compelled to pay
to the home manufactures 81 or 50 In order
10 put u In the treasury, II Is all wrong.
The government collects 500 000, 900 per
annum, In round numbers upon imports.
This is the taxes paid upon foreign goods
brought into this country. There are about
five times as many home-mnnuiacturcd goods
consumed In this country as imported for
cign goods by means Of combinations and
trusts, made possible by our tariff system,
the home manufacturer can add the amount
Of the tariff to the price OF his goods and
then undcrscll the foreigner because he has
no ocean transportation 10 pay. II the tariff
did not enable our manufacturers 10 do this,
what would they want with ~ What bcne.
ilt would IL be 10 them II II did not
enable them 10 get better price for their
goods2 How could IL enable him "a pay his
lubOrcrs better wages IL he cannot sell for a
better price? So. you see, the tax paid by
the consumer on the home manufactured
goods goes down into the pockets Of the
manufactures. and not a dollar Of II ever
finds It's way into the treasury.
WHAT TnE TARIFF SYSTEM COSTS Us.
let us see what our tariff system costs us.
We pay TO the government 500, 1000 per
annum on imported foreign goods, and we
pay to the home manufacturer about five
times that much, or q, 900 100000 per an
mum. Is there another people ON the globe
who could pay such a tax and live2 IL there
another people on earth who would do iH
The power ~ the combinations and trusts
born out Of the iniquities Of .heir vicious
system. II greater than that Of any crowned
head OF EIirope1 The wonder II, not that
the farmers aud consumers do not prosper,
hut that they are able 10 stand up under the
burden ut all. Let us bring II little nearer
home; How much Of this burden do the
people Of tennessee bear? There were In
1881, about 5000, 600 Of people In the United
States, and they paid the 500, 900, 600 which
went into the treasury, or about - per head.
In Tennessee there were about 800, 900 peo-
pie. and they paid their ~ per head. making
5000 OO0 paid by the people Of Tennessee
into the treasury. This Is true, II the people
Of this State consume, annually, ns many
goods ~ d like number OF the citizens Of
other States, aud ! think they do. While
wo are paying that s8oO0,0OO into the
treasury, We pay about five times that
amount TO the home manufacturers. or
$50. 900, 600. which makes S3G,OOO,O00
paid IN all. or $2i per head for every man,
woman aud child In the state. I know that
the correctness OF these figures has been dis
putcd, but reduce them one-half and the
burden would still be enormonA Can you
tell why times are hard aud money scarccg
Can You tell why II Is that after working
hard aud ccomizing all you can, at the end
Of the year you have nothing lcft2 The Ia
boring man, no matter In what industry he
Is engaged, has to bcnr his share Of the bur
den. The fact Is, you are being taxed as no
other people on earth are taxed, for the pur-
HNN' VI " INV olf'ilul Nii~'FH NhN
will shut down their mills and turn their
employees out, without the necc~arics or
comforts Of life, IN order Ia limit the supply
and increase the demands for their products,
aud who have never shown any libcmlity
except when they come 10 subscribe 10 the
Republican campaign fund. These are the
gentlemen who have The hardihood 70 affirm
that the tariff decreases the price Of manu-
featured goods and nt the same time increases
the wages Of the employees engaged In thciI
manufacture. They would have the people
believe that they are such humanitarinns
that they would advocate n srhemc To lie
crease the price Of the articles which
they have 81 sell. Who ever heard Of Q
trust entered into by manufacturer
10 put down the price Of their wares They
are about ~ honest In their statement that
the tariff decreases the price oi goods NJ they
nrf when they allcgc that they want the
protective synlcm kept up Tor the benefit o
their employees, and not for themselves
Who ever heard Of n manufacturer measur
ing the wages Of his employees by the amount
of protection he getsg The selfish greed %
the manufacturer Is provcrbial, though
there are, no doubt honorable exceptions
but all know that while capital " sensitive
u Il also rapacious aud grasping. and that Il
contracting for labor u makes the best trad'
pos.iblc for itself. We are told that lev
years ago the factory operatives Of New Eng
land were the sons and daughters of tn
farmers, mechanics and tradcsmen OF tia
scction ~ country, but that their place
have been supplied by foreign labor, mosil!
| Canadian French, because II was cheaper
| and that now the sons and daughters Of tina
country are forced 10 find homes In the un
| loycloicd Ear west They have been driver
/ from their homes by the importation o
| cheap foreign labor. ia spite OF the tarih
IL true that wages, n n rule, arc higher no,
| In this country than many years ago, aud
l. also true that nearly all kinds
/ goods arc cheaper; but neither resul
II In any way attributable To th
operations of the tarih. labor CON
mands better price because u has been mad
morr effective through the agencies of stear
aud improved machinery, aud because tn
| facilities Tor transporting the product oil u
Dor 10 market are better than they werc be
| fore the days ~ railroads. In many indus
/ tries ono mnn can now, with improve
machinery. do the work which u require
ten men ~ do under former conditions
The mans labor Is therefore, worth NOR
10 his employer than formerly. and lac ca
afford 10 pay better wages, while the labo
| cost II the article manufactured has bee
greatly reduced, which reduces the cntir
cost ~ the article, aud the consumer gets
cheaper. BESIDES more intelligent aud NOR
effective labor l. now required, which com
mnnds better wages and the reduction q
labor cyst 81 nearly everything, which cf
tiers largely into the entire cost OF the ART
Giles has chcapcncd them 10 the consumer
THIS shows clearly why labor command
better wages and why the manufacture
| 4 -. Inf