Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1888-08-30

/ ING men than oil the tariff IasUs that euer acers
! passed IN this scorsd. Loud applause.J There
is another reason why American laborers
receive moro wages, and that is the inn
mense area of uncultivated territory in the
United States, the effect OF which is to
free the Iaborers of that dependence which
| may exist in other countries where land
ia very dear, that dependence upon the
manufacturing or capitalistic class Tor
| work in this country. A man can get land
| to labor upon to support himself and his
| family by simply asking it OF the general
/! Government and settling upon it and re-
| naming upon it q given length OF time.
The consequence is that with these adj
vantages no man need DO dependent upon
| the good will Of any monopolist in the
| world, and that gives our laboring men an
| independence which is not seen elsewhere
| on the globe, and enables them therefore
| to demand and receive somewhat higher
wages than laborers receive elsewhere.
Then there is the fact Of our free institu-.
tions and there is the fact Of the pride that
every man in this country, be he laboring
man or not, feels in the consciousness that
he is an American citizen; that he helps to
govern this country, and makes people
govern it as far as possible for his benefit.
But there is another thing that is conclus-
/ i've on this point and shows that high
UTOG6CGIV6 UdTkH uOGS HUI luCIcdSo Ouc
wages of the laboring men. 1t is conclus-
lively shown by the fact that laborers in
unprotected industries are as well paid as
those in the so-called protected industries.
How many labOrers are there in what are
called protected industries, that is engaged
in manufacturing articles, which when they
are brought from abroad are charged with
a tariff tax, and how many laborers are
there in the United States whose interests
,H,H
and can not in the nature OF things be pro-
tected by any such meansl It has been
estimated that there are 500, 600 or goo, 900
laborers, including women and children, in
the protected industries, but we will put
the figure at 1000 900. There are eight
times as many other laborers whose inter-
ests and occupations are in nowise pro-
tected by the tariff. Therefore, if the pro-
lection is for the benefit of the laboring
men, the wages of this million engaged in
the protected industries ought to be higher
than those of the men employed in non
protected industries. In round numbers
the laborers in the unprotected industries
receive as high wages as those in the pro-
tected industries. / don't know what the
wages of farm hands are in Michigan. In
my State they receive about one dollar
day, and you see in the State of Massa-
chusetts, according to the returns of her
own board of industry, the average wages
is 81. 4 day in manufacturing industries.
So there is no difference worth talking
about between the wages the one receives
and the wages the other receives. They
are both substantially the same. Looking
at the improved condition and comforts,
the constant elevation of the agricultural
hand in the State of Ohio, it will be seen
that he receives quite as good wages as
the laborer in any protected industry In
the country.
EFFECT UPON THE FARMER.
My friends, nothing is more common
for those men appeal to everybody-than
to hear protectionist orator say that pro-
lection has benefited the farmer. How
can it be of benefit to farmer! I have
never been able to find out. Let us test it
by little experience this country has had
We had low tariff from 1916 up to the
breaking out of the war in 1861. 1t was
called the Walker tariff I remember it
very well, for was in the House OF Repre-
sentatives at that time and voted for it.
From 1850 to 1850, while that tariff was in
force, the farm lands of the United States,
according to the census reports. increased
in value 103 per cent Then came the high
tariff of 1851 or 1852, whichever it was, and
from 1860 to 1870, another period of ten
years, the increase in the value of the
farms of the United States was only 40 per
cent. Under the low tariff the increase in
value had been 1903 per cent in ten years.
Unoer the high tariff it was only 40 per
cent. But it may be said that that includes
the war period and does not make fair
comparison I have here statement Of
how it was in this goodly State Of Michigan.
From 1850 to 1860, under the low-tarif pc
riod, the value of the farms in Michigan
increased Gil per cent. From 1860 to 1870,
snI, foriff thew Increased 1SS
cent; but that includes the time OF war.
From 1870 to 1880, in q time of profound
peace and under the highest tariff this
country has ever known, the value OF the
farms in Michigan increased only 25H
per cent. They increased under Walkers
tariff, which has been denounced so much
since as free-trade tariff, they increased
from 1850 to 1850 211 per cent, and some OF
you will remember that under the Walker
tariff we had a great war-the war with
Mexico. Had values continued to increase
from 1860 to 1880 as they did under the low
tariff period-1S5O to 1S60-the farm values
in Michigan would have been s, 047, 0O0, 900
in 1850, instead of being, as they were by
the census of 1880, only $499, 100000. Or
take farm implements. From 1850 to 1860
the value of farm implements had in
creased at the rate of 1917 per cent. In
1880 the increase was only Al per cent. 1t
they had increased in the same ratio under
the high tariff as they did under the low
they would have been 500, SOC, 600 instead of
$40 SOC, 600. You will see by these figures that
it is quite impossible that this high tariff
can be of advantage to the agricultural
community. But, my friends, must draw
my remarks to a close. My voice is weak
to-day. ! don't know why it is SO, but it
is. Besides, it is time that I was giving
way to gentlemen who are to follow me, to
give them fair opportunity to present
their opinions ! want to call your atten-
tion though, to one thing. have spoken
of the surplus revenue that lies useless in
the vaults of the Treasury, and now want
to read to you what Senator John Sherman,
who was Secretary of the Treasury for
four years under Hayes. said about this
matter as late as the 5th day of last month,
in speech before the Chamber Of Com
MERGE in Cincinnati am sure no
one win charge John Sherman with
being a Democrat No ono viii
charge him with wanting to destroy
American industries. He said: 81 would
like to talk to you, men of business, to-day
on the matter Of the great surplus OF
money in the United States Treasury.
That affects you materially. We would
prefer to have it than deficiency The
Government of the United States has this
surplus now, and it seems as though some
people were trying to get rid OF 1t. 1 do
not allude to politics. Every man OF sense
knows that the Government should not
collect more money than is actually needed
to carry on its business with close econ
omy Congress ought this year to devise
some mode to dispose Of this surplus"
agree with that entirely. say that every
man Of sense does know that the Govern