Sacramento daily record-union., 1888-09-18
Ng. MILLS CRITICISED.
High Protectionist Has eornetbipo IN 50,
About Tin PIatos


About Tin Plates.
Congressman Mills, father of the M;il.
bill, spoke in New Haven Saturday niobt
His speech was full of the misleadino ssn-
resentatlons common to all free-traders
He said
"Then there is the placing of tin on the
iree list. Taking the duty off tin can't
interfere with the labor of the country. for
there isn't pound in the country. Take
1t Oh, and won't it make tin cheaper?
Doqotless many Of You belong to the tin
pau brigade. Then you're friend of
mine. Taking the tax off tin would be
putting back into the pockets of the poor
man. Is that an injury to labor ?o
want to say word about tin. because
II Is one OF the champion illustrations of
Ine opponents of the protective system.
Fairly considered, the present condition Of
Inc TN industry IS one of the best ilIustra-
lions OF the benefit of protective tariff
when @I rightly applied that can be found.
Inc present duty on tin plates is l cent
per pound. On galvanized sheet iron Il ia
y cents per pound. On sheet iron from,
which TIN plates are made it is II cents
per pound. On common black iron It is
1@ cents per pound. As tin plates and
galvanized sheet iron are similar in mann
facture, the duty on tin should be ad-
vanced to the galvanized sheet iron price
% cents per pound
DO this and Mr.. Mills could no louper
cry, Not pound of tin is made in this
country" Not pound of steel or iron
could be made here under the same con-
dltlons of low duty that have crushed the
TIN plate industry. In 1875, American tin
plates were made a. Demmler Ieechburg
and Welltsyllle. They were as good as
could be produced anywhere in the world.
laklng advantage of the low duty Eng
land Hooded this country with tin plates
at prices low enough to close up the three
American mills. That done she advanced
her prices again. No tin plate mill has
been operated since in this country. None
can be while the present low tariff is
maintained. With an adequate duty we
should have been making the millions of
dollars worth of tin plate annually CON
sumed In this country all these years, in
stead of paying all the money to foreign
manufacturers and workmen.
Our sheet mills produce about $50 900
tons yearly; $4,000 tons for sheet iron
roofing and siding, and 10000 for gaIyan-
izing purposes. If the duty on galvanized
sheet was too low as in the case of tin. this
| 10000 tons would all be made abroad and
we should lose the $4,000, 900 annually paid
IN IN wages in these combined industries.
Free TIN plate, as proposed by the Mills
Dill would destroy the sheet mills, the
sheet iron roofing and siding industry, the
galvanized sheet iron industry, etc, as the
I9O0O0 tons of sheet iron and steel they
now use would be displaced by free tin
plates.
The canning trade pays but $2O5, 900 in
duties IN all branches. Free tin plate
would therefore save consumers this S205-
600 but there would be yearly loss of
S6,OOO000 in wages Pretty dear prices To
pay for free tin, isn't it? Better reject
free tin and the Mills bill and have the
metal tariff SO adi-ssted that the tin can be
| made In this country. The would take
S25,O0O,0O0 a year in wages out of English
pockets and put it where it belongs. in
Yankee workmen's pocket-books and sav-
lngs banks. This $25000,000 in ware.; IS
from the pig iron to the finished product
and does not estimate the enormous in
crease in workmen and wages from the coal
| and ore in the mines. Properly protected
tin plates would add 2S0,000 tons of sheet
IRON and steel to the annual productions OF
this country.
\ ct the free traders ask American work
ing people to not only vote to lose the
SZo,oVO,Oo0 year in wages we might have
from properly protected tin plates, hut 90
further and coolly invite them to vote for
1Tee TN, thereby turning over to England
the SooOO0OO a year now paid in wages in
the sheet metal industries in this country.
-H'gh Protection IN Bridgeport Neps.