The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1888-09-27
TIMELY TARIFF TALK.
AS the system Applies TO Us.
No 1855.

the public press in giving circulation
to the views of lnen on the important
questions of the age. have long been
an obsel yer of expressions of thought
ON the tariff question. A short time
since heard one of the high tariff men
urging the point that if it WIS not for
protection the prices of goods would
be SO low that all of our factories would
have t. close that it Was impessib e
for our factories to compete with fac
tories run with the cheap labor of the
old world. and that 10 stimulate am
bition, and 10 induce capi al to be in
Vested i'm manufacturing, the markets
should he stiffened by pratectiye taliif
This is an old, old & gument, and is
undoubtedly the CORE ct position for
all high tariff advocates, that is stiffen
the markets by making the cOmmOdi-
ties scarce, aud then prices will be high
You have oiten heard them go farther
in this argument and say that our iu
FAINT industries should be protected. If
protec i've tiff law is constitutional
and allowable (which deny) it is for
these reGeon and upon these grounds,
j. e., put on SO great q tax, or import
duty, on the goods as will satisfy our
men of wes tn that there must be large
profits in manufacturing the article
taxed, so they viii have, first, the or
dinary profits that manufacturing such
article gives. and in addition will have
tine average of AZ cents on every dol
lars worth they sell. This is the boun-
~ that our protective tariff gives
them, and this AZ cents is so inter-
woven with the other dol ar of the cost
of the goods that neither the seller or
purchaser know anything about it.
The manufacturer got his Al cents on
the dollar when he sold to the jobber,
and the same has followed right along
In the p.ice OF the goods un, il You
bought them, then you paid it. The
foregoing is the tue and real object of
protective tariff, and also the true eft.
feet thereof. And these effects anu
conditions are being so largely and
rapidly verified and demonstrated un
der the present tariff law, by making
millionaires by the hundred of such
manufacturers that the common peO
pie are beginning to see it, and they
begin to feel and know th-t much of
their hard earnings have, through the
workings of said tariff on the articles
they have purchased, gone to help
make each of these men millionaires.
edge and information is bad and dan
Eerous to the millionaire monopolist
and his heutenants, The high tariff ad
vocstes. Why? Because the purchasers
whom vote, and if They once get to
understand the workings of the tariff
their votes would mighty soon ex
punge this robbery law lrom the stat.
ntes.
Now, Mr.. farmer, let US suppose q
tariff law could be enacted to secure to
You the price of 81 on every bushel of
wheat you could raIse Qt cannot be
export instead of import, hence We
have at home more than a supply, but
suppose we had not, and some of our
wheat came nom abroad, the same as
some of our goods you purchase do)
and then add AZ cents to every dollars
worth that came from abroad. You
zee you would be getting $l.47 Tor ev.
cry dol ais wO.Lh of wheat you sold,
and you see that every peison who eat
of youf wheat would have 10 pay that
price, for your benefit. You would be
foolish and unnatural if you did not
like such law, but you cannot have
it, your calling dO.s not justify it. You
are only one of sixty n-illions. But
the monopoiist manufacturer has just
such q law for his benefit, i'll this high
tariff, and you afe the CONSUMER and
have to pay him, and for twenty five
years have been paying him Ito help
make up his millions of dollars) Just
the same as the man who eat of your
wheat would have to pay you, suppos-
ing you could have protective Tariff
for your benefit.
You see that it is not good for these
high tariff beneficiarles that you
should know the workings and effects
of said law, hence with great glamour
and bluster they attempt to divert your
attention from this study. Why, in
many ways, one of which is to pomp-
Ously say that the high tariff is great
blessing to you because it makes the
goo0s you have to buy much cheaper.
L know they say this, L have heard it
said ON the streets here in less than a
week, and l listened and pitied the
source whence it came, and wondered
whether he Was fool or fraud, or
about 'alf and 'alf. How on earth is it
possible that protection can benefit the
manufacturer by shutting out compe-
titiOn, by levy of AZ per cent. On the
competing gooGs, SO that there shall be
few of them in the markets except
what our manufacturers make, thereby
making scarcity of such goods, SO as
to increase the price for the benefit of
the manufacturer and low price on the
same goods for the benefit of the con-
sumner? most emphatically deny the
possibility of any such condition. 1t
is sort of jumping jack that the high
tariff advocate is tilting before your
eyes. to divert you from free, inteili.
gent thought, The high tariff clac.