The state rights democrat. [volume] (Albany, Linn County, Oregon) 1865-1900, 1889-02-08
The 9elitprrat.
CARPET wooLs.

The Manchester Union, In speaking OF
this subject, says
The Boston C0mmsyciai Bulletin makes
some post-election observations on carpet
woods and the duty thereon which would
have been mighty interesting reading
few weeks before election, It figures out
that II the carpet mills of this country ran
fall time they would require i7I,ooo,ooo
pounds Of raw material yearly, All of this
wool, or all but four or five million pounds,
representing the refuse of the American
clip which can be used as filling and only
as filling, must be imported, as woods of the
carpet grade are not raised In the United
States. OF course the mills have not run
on full time, and very considerable por
tion of the wool used Is washed before i'm.
portation. sun with such capacity Ii
must be evident that of the 100000
pounds of carpet wool imported In the last
fiscal year, but very small proportion
could be used for any other purpose than
for carpets.
The Bais.ia, after indulging In brief
praise of the high protective tariff principle
In general, proceeds to present the case OF
the carpet menia the following concise
and Ineligible manner "The tariff revi.
sion of 1883 made some sharp cuts on car
pets. The specific duty,which is supposed
to affect the duty on the imported raw ma
terial,wa cut from Eve to twenty-five cents
ayard. Itmust be remembered that In this
case, the commodity being wholly import
ed, the price of the manufacturers raw ma
teriat Is enhanced to the full extent of the
duty. BY the same revision the ad valorem
rate, the actual protection, ,)was reduced to
20 per cent. 1t has been IS per cent.
"The present Senate bill as amended add
passed restores the five per cent but in
creases the rate on the raw material sixty
per cent. Whether II be because the car
pet trade has enjoyed a smaller ad valorem
rate of duty than the other wooden indus
tries or because manufacturers have been
hampered by the duties on their raw ma
terial, or especially because there are too
many carpet looms in the country,or from
a combination of these causes. the fact re-
mains that there has been more trouble
. and loss of money and employment than
In almost any branch of manufacturing.
Yet this industry is selected for attack by
Senator Allison, who has secured the sdop-
ton of amendments raising the duty on
carpet woods from-two and one-half to four
cents and from FIVE to eight cents ponnd,
an increase of duty of sixty per cent on
what we do not raise.
"The most attractive clause In the Mills
bill to the carpet manufacturer, indeed to
the cloth manufacturer,wast the clause Civ
ing them q sufficient protection on their
product and free raw material. The Mills
bill took from the carpet manufacturer the
specific duty, which barely covers the en-
the really protective duty, the ad valorem
duty, to 20 per cent. Thus with free raw
materials the carpet manufacturer under
the Mills bill was protected ten per cent
better than to-day. AS far as the selfish
interests of the carpet trade were concern
ed the Mills bill was the most favorable
Legislation that could have been asked"
Some of the carpet men, like a. T. Ly-
man of the Lowell carpet company, were
frank enough to declare for free wool, but
n majority opposed it, and now the BHlLstis
laments that ''they now find themselves
stabbed in the house of their friends" 1t
even counts 1t fortunate for the carpet in
dustry that the Senate bill is likely to fail
in the House" All which, although COM
ing from trade journal OF acknowledged
standing. sounds wonderfully like the SEN
timents Of the Stree trade, "pauper labor"
"pro- British" newspapers which it heartily
opposed throughout the late campaign,