Los Angeles daily herald., 1888-07-28
SATURDAY, JULY ss 1888.
DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL TICKET.
FOR PRECEDENT
GROVER CLEVELAND,O of New York
FOR NONRESIDENT
ALLEN G.. THURMAN, of Ohio.
To enforce frugality Il, public e1pendi
tures and abolish unnecessary taTation.
FOR CONGRESS. SIXTH DISTRICT
REEL Ii. TERRY, of Fresno.


The Way the Farmer Is Cfnched.
The triumphant tone with which the
Republican press started out to discuss
the tariff issue has very much moder-
ated, of late. They have discovered to
their dismay that both the facts and the
argument are with the Democratic party,
and that not even the terrifying appari-
ton of the Plumed Knight careering up
the harbor Of New York with a score Of
whistling steam-tugs, is going to scare
the composed and complacent Democrats.
We have exactly the issue needed for
success, and in exactly the shape in which
it will most profit us.
The attempt to vaunt the beauties of
over-protection in California particularly
partakes of Arctic frigor. Protection is
costing our people, as can be easily
demonstrated, from 20,000,0 900 to $685.
600, 900 a year. The HERALD has pointed
out the fact that the United States Sub
Treasurer in San Francisco sends to the
Eastern repositories of the government
nearly ten million dollars a year, and
this is but a fraction of the exactions of
the tariff. Tuesdays Examiner con-
tanned carefully written article on how
protection as applied to iute bags affects
the California farmer. 1t says:
"The policy Of tariff reform has some
thing to commend it to every class in the
community. Just now we wish to ad-
dress the grain growers of California.
"You know that you are not directly
protected. You have not even the 'in-
cidental protection of tariff for rev.
enue. You sell your grain under abso-
lutte free trade, in competition with the
peasants of Russia and the ryots of
India. But you are told that your benefit
from the war tariff is indirect-that the
people for whose benefit you are taxed
buy grain with part of the money drawn
from your pockets, and that thus home
market is created for your products.
"Well, there is nothing like coming
down to details. Take the case of jute
bags, and let us see where the balance Of
benefit comes in.
"You are taxed by amounts varying
from $3.50, 900 to 100000 a year in pro-
tective duties on grain sacks. Read to-
days Examiner and find out what that
money accomplishes for American in
dustry.
"There is just one private mill engaged
in making grain bags in California. Its
total payments for wages never reach
half the amount you pay in duties to pro-
tect it, and sometimes fall below one
sixth. 1t employs 400 hands, Of whom
about 140 are Cinnamon, who live herded
in filthy slave-pen, and the rest are
women and girls, some of them specially
imported from Scotland and paid less
then the Chinese.
"You have to buy your sacks at 7 or
cents apiece, of which at least 2 cents is
tax, and cell them, along with your
wheat, in foreign market, at little
over cent. You sell them for about
half the amount of the duty.
"Now what is the value of the home
market which costs you $3.50, 900 in taxes
this year to support? The Cinnamon
employed in Mr.. Drexler's jute mill eat
rice, which you do not produce. The
women and girls, at liberal estimate,
may consume 1,500 bushels of wheat
year, or the product of seventy-ive acres.
The value of this market is about 81 900,
and the price it pays is fixed by the
prices in England.
"Here, then, is your balance sheet for
the year, in the matter of jute bags:
THE CALIFORNIA FARMER IN ACCOUNT WITH
THE TARIFF.