Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1888-01-20
WAGES AND TAXATION.
w,c5saicAi Pre- ~-e IA tis1 EaG&t a.
fure OF h8tg-Duly GH Raw Mats.
risis Reduces Wages.
: Liberal Policy will Open Foreign esar
kets-Whs tyattsrs Earn Moro IN NV
York than in PennTyivania,
Now York Star.

New York Star.
IN this communication desire TO direct
the attention of the nearly 1900 persons
IN the ststes OF New jersey, New YORK
c -nneticut and Massachusetts, who are
engaged ia the manufacture Of tar and
six hats, e the "oenefits" which t1ey
derive in the way Of good yearly income
in cons equeuce Of the kind and thought
ful action Of the defenders" of Ameri-
csn Ia52r who framed the section Of the
tariff schedule fxi2g the duties On hats
snd h1ttcrs' fur and hatters' silk plush.
Iadeed, 80 "peculiar" are the effects Of
the present customs duties on the Ameri-
c.n hat makers, ;hat Gft5r apslyZing the
Official bEs making statistics and looking
81 the results il the glare of the light
these throw upon me SUBJECT, one is al
mo forced To Inc conclusion that the
TAX vas framed with the intention of
Gripping tn, American hat making III
dusgry.
Tbe facts, which an Analysis of the
s's istlCs SHOW Waen compared with the
tsrf schedule, are th5t in consequence
II ne present Ubiquitous tariff on hat
materials, the American hat-makers are
cOEfGed to the United States for mar
ket fer the product Of their shops, &nG
are thus most effectively shut out from
competition IN the markets Of the world;
and mark the results. The best obtain
able labor statistics show that our hat
ters do not fad steady employment, the
best Stops being compelled TO close up
Tor s period or from three TO six months
annually, ia consequence Of the Ameri-
csl msrhet being OYerst0cked with
goods; SO the only thing that can be
done is TO shut down until new ordsr5
are received, or else keep the hands
working three or four hours each day.
The result in either case is to reduce
the average wages. In New Jersey, the
gra stest fur hat mixing center in the
country, the Labor Bureau has just issued
the tenth annual report, ana 8 large
amount OF space is given hating statis-
tics. These figures show that ninety
working days is the lowest lost time re-
por led as the result Of over production.
Again, while the returns collected by the
agents OF the siste snow that when haJters
have plenty Of work the weekly w5ges
per psrs0n ranges from $I2 70 $25, YET
owing 70 the loss OF time from the causes
heretofore mentioned, the wages per per-
son for the fiscal year ending October,
1887, do not exceed 81 81. The number
q hands employed in New Jersey la&.
wear Is given Is 5000, and the total wages
S@,245 800 The number of hats turned
out finish vas 724 $50 dozen, valued 81
$40, 832, Geo TIE capital reported Was |
s., 387 800. The wages returns Of
last ylar, compared with those in the |
census OF 1880, show an apparent increase |
OF % cents per week.
Now, IL is fair 10 presume that with !
cur skilled wmkmep, ana thesuperior Is
Dor saving machinery which American in |
gcnU.ty Las produced within the las |
twenty year, we could make hats IS |
cheap 81 E2el2nd il our manufacture rs |
were given the raw materials, which are |
not prcdjCrQ in this country, 81 frs |
cost, the same IS The ha5 makers of Eu- |
rope. N)N EUClaDd has q monopoly Of |
the nat trade In S2u'h America, as 6 re- |
suit OF our tsrj6 on nat furs.
Ia order 10 eve s1 idea to your read |
ers OF The great Improvement made il |
hat making machinery during the past |
twenty five wears, ql0te from q State |
ment mlde in the New Jersey l&bor re
ports Of halter VINO saws he "lesTned the |
far nat making trade IN France thirty-tWo |
Yesrs ago" Then he states: "Ia |
order 10 give an idea Of the difference il
production l describe changes in the |
various branches. Then one mRn by hand |
could form from TO y hats in 10 hours
now two meI and one BOY turn out from
50 to % dozen hLts in the same time by |
the aid OF machinery; do. sizeing-thep
one man TO u hats in 10 hours, nov he
does with nand work u to so, and with
nlchine So - 80 dozen; shsving-then
one man so - 80 hats In 10 hours, nov
Jy hand $50 % 200 day, and by machir-
cry So % so dozen IN the same time; sit
leniHg-0ld me nod, one man 60 to so
hats, now with nj schinerY 80 10 60 dCz n;
locking-fO.merlY one man 40 to so hsts, \
1ow 30 20 50 dozen, and ike improve
nents il other branches of the trsde,r
With such improved methods Ct produs- !.
ion as those just mentioned, why shouA /
OF the American hatter be able to comS
etc with the workmen OF other lands? 81
The only preventive in the way of .sn
m&.ke5 ard with this & gresksE,
demand for h1tmskers, increased psY stsEfffe
steady employment the yesr rouaaE is the
present iniQuit0us rsIiff The dutp osssl
he foreign Manufactured far or silk hat
toes not, on al average, exceed much
Ind the consequence is shat the protection
0 the homemade hat is very slight BIZ,
his Is By no means the W9rSs f5Stu-e Ct
De tariff 20 American hatmakers. Tn
u used in cur hat shops is nearly all i'm
'0rled, and on this raw mstecisl, which
) not produced 10 any great extent here,
duty OF 20 per cent IS imposed, Just the
ams hsute 50 tlat placed upon the
manufactured foreign hat. Teen, again,
he l0swood used In dyeiBg hets Is taxed
Q per cent, and not q stick of the pant
; grown in this country. These TWO
tens make en- average duty On the first
Ost Of the TaT hat mG:eTIais OF 80 pei
ent., enough certainly TO proven .
ur hsts being sold st anything
Ike profit outside OF the
United States. The removal Of the
uty on these materials would in no WAY :
Diure any American producer, :nd il =,
fould be almost certain to benefit AmaTi-
sn hist makers. So much for the fur list
ndustry. Now let Us look into TIE silk !
st making. So far As known not single ,
srd Of the silk plush used By hstters Is !
ls6e in this country, owing, it is sisted ,
2 those ID the business, to the isct thst
ie secret of dysing so as TO retain C1e :
loss is unknown to our dyers. The duty \
4 this plush is % per cent. Inasmuch =.
5 more Ct this silk hat plush is manu-
CtureG in this county it is rather diff
ali 10 perceive no the wise men Of the
publican psrty, who devised this
resent tariff, intended TO protect By this
lty rate, unless il was 10 defend English 1
lk hat makers or else il was framed / y
en- with the idea of making the neat