Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1888-09-21

over. he has spent his whole life in contact
with the processes of production on q large
scale.
1t Is from the data thus gathered that he
exposes the fallacy Of the reasoning on the
otner side, that a comparison of the rate Of
wages IN different countries Will ascertain
the cost Of production Of any given article,
Or that low rates Of wages are necessary TO
low cost OF production, and establishes the
Tact that almost invariably high wages &C
company low cost OF production. That
labor, be says, has in fact proved 20 be
the cheapest by which the largest product
Tor each dollar expended was assured. and
that has been the highest paid labor"
Zen. Francis A. Walker whose discus
siors are perhaps more satisfactory than
those of any Of our American economists.
confirms Mr.. Atkinson by saying: ~ hat
as general rule low cost of production %
accompanied by high wages TO the working
ingnlsn."
] have here littls book by Mr.. Thomas
brasssy, Of England. on"W ork and Wages. "
Es conclusions are founded On the eE-
Psrience OF his father, the great railroad CON
tractor, who. doubtless ley ond any man that
ever lived was q hIrer Of labor IN all parts OF
the world except in America and who, even
In the unskliled WORK OF building railroads.,
found the English navy as cheap at three
shilllngs day as the East Indian ct three
pence. quote but a sentence or two:
But MAINTAIN unhesitatngly that the daily
wages are 10 criterion o. tie actual cost OF IKE
cut.ug work ON my fathers extensive
contracts carried On in almost every country OF
the civilized world and IL every quarter Of the
globe. the daily wage of the laborer u as fzsd
at widely DIFF ereut rates but IL was found 10 os
The most in able rule that the g. u laoOr
VAS tie same; that for the sane sim of money
the same amount Of work was every here ier-
formed"
sir, ths wages Of labor are the laboring
mans snare OF the joint product of labor and
capital The larger that product is the larger
his wages are. Why, Elf, ny friend from
Massachusetts Or. Allen maue a speech in
this House yesterday In which, with his
usual eioquence, he gave US beautiful
picture OF the operatives at Lowell. ven
ture TO say that nine tenths OF the operatives
at the Lowell factories are not Americans.
They are foreigners who have taken the
places Of former American operatives, be-
cause the American operative has better
wages and o better position.
But, Mr.. Chairman, II, as my friend from
Lowell and the other gentlemen from Mass
achusetts contend, the protective tariff
makes wages, what can not understand is
how law Of Congress should operate 30 I'M
equally and 50 uneyenly. have here in my
hand an address delivered before tho Home
Market Club OF New England, by Senator
Frye, OF Maine, on what he saw in Europe,
in which, after the good old-iashioned pro-
lection logic, he pictures the wretched con-
ditlon OF European labor. Now, the Homo
Market Club Is composed largely of gentle
men who derive dividends from the present
tariff, and who, naturally. DO not want 1t
disturbed.
MIR. Morse-Exclusively.
MIR. Wilson, of West Vlrginie-The proface
a IN "A
vast interests New England has in protec-
tive tariff, and 1t gives the manufacturing
statistics Of all the New England States ex-
cept Rhode Island. l do not know v by they
lett her out unless it was because she had q
Democratic Governor at that time. laugh
tsr.l
According to this statement here, the
capital invested in those i've States 10 $54S =
C52. llS, the number OF employees 6S4, 495; but
when it comes to wages l lind the average
wages OF an employs III the State Of Maine
to be S257 . year. whereas In the Stats Of
Massachusetts, he gsta s304, and In the little
q ITO Of Connecticut 1855. Now, what can
not understand u thisi II . tariff, . law Of
Congrsss, makes wages, Why does It operate
80 unevenly between the smploye in Maine
and the employe in Connecticut, and why is
the Maine man worth only two-thirus as
much - the Connecticut mani And when
We come to Vermont. The State of our veneer
find that the average smploys gets only $500
Here the hammer fell.
The Chairman-Ths time Of the gentleman
from West Virginia (AIr. WILSON, has sx-
pirsd. .1 e-,r'
that the gentleman g time bs extended.
The ChairmaR-Ths gentleman from Ten
nesses asks unanimous consent that the gen
tleman from West Virginia may be per-
mitted to conclude his remarks. IL there
objsctioni The Chair hears none.
Mr.. Wilson, Of West Virginia-Mr. chair
man, II . tariff does make wages, then the
protective tariff u the most ungrateful thing
that ever existed In the history of the world.
Why should it give to the fellow-citizen and
coMpatriot Of the last Republican candidate
for the trssidency only ez57 = year, while it
gives to the operative In tine good old State
that voted for the author Of the last Presi-
dental message $Se5 . Year, And why
should 1t give to the fellow citizen Of tho
author OF the Morrill, Tariff Bill S3US yeari
But, sir, the statistics Of the Home Market
Club are exactly in line with the figures EN-
braced in tie report OF the Commissioner Of
Labor. After careful inquiry into many
industries in this country, Colonel Wright
says that ian examination OF these reports
will show that there il no such thing az an
American rate of wages" For example, in
the manufacture OF agricultural implements
. blacksmith gets Is per cent. more in
Illinois than in Indiana, while Q foreman
gets so per cent. more in Pennsy lvania than
In New York. and painter nearly 10 per
cent. more In Pennsy ivania than In Maine.
In the boot and shoe industry q buffer gets
$3.50 In Psnnsylvania aud only tl.4O in New
York, which would clearly dispose of the
Presidential boom OF our late esteemed COL
league (Mr. Hiscockl, did We not find that Q
button hole maker in Pennsylvania, il a
woman gets u cents, while New York pays
t1.V4. When il comes to heelers, New York
gives 81. So and Massachusetts only $l.72.
But there 10 still hope for my friend from
Massachusetts, (Mr. Long for the Presiden-
tial nomination, for Massachusetts, pays her
packers 81. 95, while New York neglscts hers
with Q cold SOS.
Mr.. Farquhar-I suggest to the gentleman
that "hselers" are always high in the State
OF New York.
MIR. Wilson. Of West virginia-So when
we come to the table of cotton goods we find
that Great Britain pays mule spinners $l.57,
Massachusetts 81 25, and Vermont only
81. 70, and that the average rate Of wages
paid In the cotton industry in Great Britain
Is 81. II per day, while in Vermont 1t is only
u. Is; 50 that, when Senator Morrill, became
80 alarmed tor fear that his fellow citizens
were going to b reduced to the level OF tho
pauper wages in England, it meant simply
that they were LONG to be kicked upstairs
from GLIB 10 $l.l7, the average wages in
the cotton industry in England.
THE HON. ROGER Q. MILLS.
Wages Depend On Supply and De.
mand, aud the Productive Capacity
of tho LabOror.
The Chairman Of the Ways and Means