Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1888-11-02
WHAT WORKING MEN HAVE TO
CONSIDER.

The plea on which the free
traders ask for votes for the Demo
cratic ticket is that the tariff makes
things dearer. They promise cheap
er food and cheaper clothing. But
they are silent as to the fact that
free trade means cheaper labor as
well. Mr.. Mills declared, in his
East ST. Louis speech, that the
Democratic party proposed to put
American working men on a level
with working men III Europe. The
fact has been lncontestably shown,
time and again, that wages in
Europe do not average over half
what they do here. To put our
working men on the European
level, includes the reduction OF
their wages.
II wages are reduced one.half,
will working men be able to buy
more goods because they are one.
fourth or one-third cheaper than
they are now
VIII the cost of living drop one
half, to correspond with the drop
in wagesi
Will your city or state taxes be
one.half less, will your coal be one
half less, will meat, and flour, and
potatoes, and house rent, be one
half less than they are nowi
With the tariff cut down, every.
body admits that there will be an
enormous increase in the amount OF
imports from abroad. Will not
this reduce the demand for Amer.
can made goods; aud this reduced
demand lead to partial stoppages,
at least, of American mills and
mines and factories. thus still
further reducing the annual wages
of the tens of thousands of men
employed therein ?
What sense is there in throwing
open the doors and allowing the
English, the Belgians, the Chinese,
to send their products, made With
labor 50 much cheaper than ours,
to stop our own establishments
and throw our own people out OF
work ? Can not such goods become
too cheap for the prosperity Of our
nation
With your wages cut One.half,
with steady work not so plenty az
it is now, and with foreign.made
goods, say one.third cheaper, will
you be better off or worse off than
You are now, workingmeni
But the free traders say that the
prices Of all agricultural products
will increase; how then, working
men, if your bread and flour, your
beet, mutton and pork, your pota-
toes and vegetables, your apples
and other fruits, all cost more than
they do now? Is not food the
great item Of expense? And if it
is higher, and wages cut one.half.
is free trade going to be a boon to
you
But, You say, the free trader tells
us that food will be cheaper. Very
true. He tells the farmer, who
produces our food, that 1t will be
higher he tells you, the consumer,
that it will be cheaper. If tree
trade Is TO cut down the small
profits Of the farmer, is he fool
enough to vote for iti fl it cuts
your wages and keeps food up, are
you, workingmen, going TO be fools
enough 10 vote for it
But you both, farmer aud work.
ingmen, repeat the free trade talk
about "the markets of the world"
Don't you know that you have
them nOwl There is not, aud un.
der our constitution cannot be, any
export duty on American products.
How will free trade help you, or
either Of you7 Will it make for
eign people eat more than they
now do ? Will it make them use
more goods Will 1t break down
the tariff erected by every import
ant country If the world excep t
England ?
Our great competitor for foreign
trade IS England. Can you com
pete with English manufacturers
any better in Africa or China, or
India, or Japan, than you can here
at home ? Is it wise to give them
our market here at home for the
purpose of cOntesting for market
in foreign lands?