New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-06-26
UOOL PRICES And DUTIES

tx Con gresham Russell. OF Ma%acnuSets'
who used "a represent a district which gave
1916 plurality for Republican at the last
Congressional election, has embodied In let
ter ~ former constituents vast deal Oi ms
information, aud most Of the false theories
which wrecked Mr.. Cleveland and his party
Indeed his treatment Of the wool question 80
closely resembles that adopted by president
Cleveland in his mesa re Oh the tariff. by which
he killed two birds with one stone-lnsllred NJ
once his nomination und defeat-that it Is hard
10 resist the impression that either the ex-Presi-
dent borrowed ideas and supposed facts from
the o.. Congressman, or the eX-Congressman has
rehashed the old message Us u suitclent reply 7"
his aueStiouers There Is the same ignorant
assumption that the cost Of clothing is enhanced
to farmers by the tariff, and the same biunder'
ing notion that when prosperity makes farm
land too valuable for Use in sheep pasture, that
is proof Of the failure Of protection.
4 year ago. when President Cleyeland's mes
sage and the Mills bill had caused fear that
| the wool duties would be abolished. the average
price Of ] VI qualities Of wool quoted in Coate'
Bros. circular was g q cents per pound. The
circular of June Is, 1889. from the same firm
gives prices for the same qualities Of wool which
average 25.2 cents per pound The defeat ol
free trade aud Democracy has been followed
within the year by an advance Of $40 cents pc,
pound on all grades of wool. That advance
averages 3.6 cents on ten grades OF Ohio
fleece, 40 cents Oh ten grades Of New ork
Michigan, Indiana and Wisconsin fleece, 81
cents on twelve grades u combing and delain'
fleece 4.3 cents ON ten grades of unwashed
Kansas Nebraska, Iowa and Dakota wool.
cents on eighteen grades Of Colorado and New
Mexico wool, and cents on twelve grades o
Texas wool.
President Clevelands raid OF the wool tariff
was not unexpected. The fall in the average
price OF wool from May. 1884 before the PreSi
Dental nominations Of that year, to May, 1880
after his Inauguration, was just cents pc
pound. After it came to be believed that hi
party would not dare to make any serious at
tempt to repeal the wool duties, the demand 70
wool increased, while the number Of sheep hat
meanwhile been diminished under the low
prices Of 1885 so greatly that the supply o
wool was inadequate. Prices jumped up again
and growers were told once more, as Nh. Rus
sell tells them now, that Democratic victor
was good thing for them Presently th
Treasury rulings admitted enormous quantitie
Of clothing wool at low duties AZ carpe: wool
and suffered the markets to be deluged wit
foreign woollen cloths imported under the nam
OF worsteds. The manufacture became NOR
depressed than ever. But the decrease in tn
number Of sheep and the production Of woo
was also so great that even then the price di
not fall below an average Of 90 cents for a
! grades, until the free-trade movement 70
repeal OF the wool duties took form in the sum
mer Of 1887, at the conference between Nlessri
, Cleveland Fairchld, Carlisle, Mills and othe
, Democratic leaders.
Now Mr.. Russell has to meet the demonstrate
fact that twice within five years the Demo
! cratic party, by its free-trade policy, has pu
down the price Of wool cents or more, an
twice the real or supposed defeat Of that polio
has raised the price that much. The actual de