New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-04-17
POPULAR OBSERVATIONS,
CEMENT AND TIE TARIFF.


CEMENT. AND TIE TARIFF.
Il ~~-~---------
agowrn Am coxprr,ox Of AN INDUSTRY WHICH
InE MILLS bill woctp BUM.
70 fke sd ftrr3 or rae ryi,uas
Sir: 4 observe that the Ways and Means Committee
has decided 10 strko cut cemcnis from tho free ilst
and restore them 10 tho dutiabe list ii onehaf the
present rate Of duty would lhe 10 lay before your
readers sumo facts which think will show that the
duty cemnn,s should ROT bc reduced at all but In
stead restored to 90 per cent all valorc. TO DO CON-
putcd vaioe OF the cement. package ana freight
1t The port of entry IA the United States. -.
Last year npop tho inporfa,icns of foreign Portland
cement which name ~ used as general term to I'M
cludc ell mportaons Of foreign cement, there was col
loctcd a-rcvenuc OF about S22000c which Alongside OF
. surplus of Sl00, 100000 Is apparently IN Insignia
cant thing but very seriously viii an important Amor
loan industry be affected II the duty 10 In the least ro
duced Since 1856 there have been manufactured In
Roscndale, Ulster County. n. Y. alone over
90 100000 barrels OF building cemcnt. which At the
very low average az 81 per barrel would be
oa6,bo0000. In manufacturing comcnt thoro Ii but
one item other than labor that into Its cost viz
the wooden barrel Estimating the value of tho
eooperago ct an average Of twenty i've cents barrel
making total Of about s0. 100000 we can safely say
that balance amounting to over S23.oo0oo0 has
been paid for labor In that locality Alone being an
average OF nearly 100000 per year for tho thirty
years but this business. which In 1856 amounted 10
be. 100000 barrels. In 1887 amounted 20 over
$500 900 barrels, employing over $500 hands. and
saying out for wages nearly $1.ooo.ooo Nearly all
iris cooperage that used by the Rosendalc cement
industry comes Maine and its value is annually
ever 100000. Thus 1t 10 readily soon that the
cement business 10 IN every particular native In
dpstry.
tits hardly possible to conceive Of business that
r. conducted closer margin than this Is ut present.
The manufacturers actually give away thcir STONE
tcniv m m
emotion: and thcp. taking this into consdcraon
they DO mako legal interest upon their invest
rent The instances numerous where = manu-
fcturer has failed 10 this business By not being able to
cope with the strong competition. and Is safe to say.
therefore, that no having capital to invest would
now think Of going into tho business II he for one
moment realized tho excessive competition and di-
eultes he would have to encounter
The duty on Portland comens. which formerly was
Is or so cents Dor barrel amounts TO but ID or
20 conts under various Treasury rulings the duty
Cd the package and freight has boon removed and now
the duty Is only computed on the bulk value Of the
coment at the place Of manufacture Ffelghts from
London TO Now York arc now about shnnxs l&2l per
ton, or 40 cents Der barrel and very good foitsna
d io to e Is Tor 400 pounds and this aau.
very low one. DcductlnC one-fth Of this amount to
weighs sa5 pounds as against 400 pounds for tho
Portland. would give 81 90 to 81 p per per. bar al.
several years ago cement could be Transported rom
London TO NewYork for one shilling Uwenty-nv
cents per ton or Eve cents por barrel which Is less
rom Rondoat to New.York, and II tbs state Of aas
should exist again. would make the equvsent price
to that Of Roscndas Then another thing, the price
Of Portland cement has boon steadily decreasing ever
since was introduced Into ihs sa n Un{ 0rl
4 now IT is. forty x Rsr cent &c
IN inc site Of ali these facts, when an industry IN this
country, even under the most careful management 70
Il snreiy by reducing tho duty which il absolutely
necessary to the continuance OF manufacture 81 IN
5000 900 Of capital Is invested and $500 sTe
whose daily WAGES oo no 70 nssy
but the Knights Of Labor Do net seem to b. satisfied
crease How prsrostsrsus Instead Of an increase,
there WIN certainly haze e = very large Sssres':
not 4 al proSaSis that s BUSINESS 10 this country
E have 70 Ss susysnasd altogether 4 tbs proposes,
e a'sa s a. :;'s 6: tan 3
;. go % Sss @ & s 9s
Is the Ho.eadsls astret omitsans :. msntiep q ths
: ssa Ho ses a::s 3: s al sP:!
IL NIX Ksnfuc, Which lstsr locality Ssns produces
S %sSS e e. effects
on reduction Of the tariff on cement and the 1000
thrown out OF employment have their wages largely
reduced.
Too many blows have already been aimed at the
cement interest by the various reduction In tho duty
from time to time 1t Is now not only time 10 can
3 psremptory halt IN any further reductions, but in
order that the business may live and pay oven the
Stored TO at least Its original figure o. twonty per
cent on tho cost value at the Port OF entry In the
protection IL is surely one which has made dssolate
valley TEEN with life and energy causing the barren
ness of the silent hills yield the plentiful means
of subsistence twelve thousand inhabitants Yours
very respectfully, ERNEST X ACkIRMAN,
: Gonl Sales Agent Lawrence Cement go.
New-York, March o6, 1888.