The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1889-09-26
NUMBER SO.
A NAREOw-GAUGE DOCUMENT.

One of the most ingeniously selfish
and superbly narrow-gauge documents
which it has bt en- our lot to read for
some time comes in the shape of petit
tion from certain hardware manufac-
turers of New England for free coal, free
iron ore and coke. Protesting in this
remarkable document to believe THAT
In the adjustment of the tariff a careful
regard should be had to the rights and
interests of all sections and of all the
people," these New England patriots
straightway propose that the vast coke
interests, the bituminous coal producers
and miners of iron ore throughout the
country representing an annual product
certainly Of not less than 5000, 900, 900,
shall be stricken down and despoiled.
And for what? That Hon. Peleg Nc
Farlin, treasurer of the Ellis Foundery
Company of South Carver, Mass, may
be able to purchase Scotch pig iron for
use in his South Carver foundery little
cheaper. That Hon. A. N. Parlin,
treasurer of the Magee Furnace Com
pany, who operates foundery and not
a furnace, may likewise buy in cheap
er market and continue to sell his finish
ed products in this home market of ours,
This brace of dsinterested worthless,
with Free-Trade agent named Samuel
| w. Mendum, seems to make up the In
teresting trio who have started this Pc
tition.
OF course the free-trade organs have
alike exaggerated its importance and
contents, The fact that the figures
given by Mr.. McFarlin, and attributed
to James M. Swank of the Iron and
Steel Association, are all wrong and are
denied by that gentlemen, cuts no fig
ures whatever. No free-trade paper has
taken the trouble to publish the correct
figures in relation to the production Of
rolled iron and steel in New England
The trumped up figures given by Hon.
Mr.. McFarlin show decline In the prod
uct between 1880 and 1887; the official
| figures given by the Iron and Steel Asso-
citation show fairly healthy increase
from 100, 100 tons in 1880 to 179, ,627 tons
in 1888. Absolute and intentional men,
dacity is not too strong a term by which
to characterize this feature of the petit
tion and the letter supporting it.
The old and disreputable percentage
trick, " exploded so often by the press
in the last campaign, islikewise resorted
to by Hon. Peleg McFarlin. This, in
the particular instance referred to, con-
sists in ascertaining that the State of
Vermont once had primitive blast fur.
mace or rolling mill, now in disuse. One
hundred per cent. of the blast furnaces
and rolling mills of Vermont have died
out under protection, proudly exclaims
McFarlin, and Hon. Samuel w. Mendum
adds with unctIon, "Oh, how nice 2?
And the free-tIade organs throughout
the country spread the joyful news.
Then it is discovered that IN Name there
once existed two badly-located rolling
mills, one of which has been closed. No
less than 90 per cent. decrease in Maine,
shout these disingenuous gentlemen, ut
terly oblivious of the fact that under g
protective tariff the product of the roll
ling mills of the country at large has
doubled and trebled and quadrupled
And these men are STOPPING to such dis
reputable devices to deceive the people
and at the same time claiming a regard
for the "rights and interests of all sec
lions and of all the people," when they
know very well that their sole game il
to cheaper, if possible, the so-called raw
material which enters into the commodi.
ties they manufacture, and to thereby
increase their own profits,
That such course would depres'
wages, close our banks, and throw thou
sands OF honest miners out of work al
over these United States apparently
never occurs to these hardware manu-
facturerS, or if it does they are indiffer
ent to the consequences, Many of thei
own products are protected by patents
and they care not for the poor coal dig
ger or iron ore miner or coke maker
who is not thus protected. And yet
these men talk about "the rights of al
sections and of all the people," What
farce Have the quarter of a million
or more engaged IN these industries nj
rights that handful of selfish hardware
and notion makers in New England
must respect Yes, they have one righ
which even the McFarins, the Parlins
the Sargeants and the Mendums of New
England must respect-namely, tht
right to lvote. If New England want
free-trade in coal, in coke, IN iron ORE
: and in pig iron let her representative
vote for it, but in doing so they will
please remember that it will not be one
side free-trade. Put these articles OIL
the free list and what will become o.
: your woolen and your cotton mills, you
shops for the manufacture of machin.
cry? No, gentlemen, this mighty pro
: tective fabric of ours must not be useC
to enrich one section at the cost of an
other. 1t is national, and when thu
greed of any one class of producerI
makes it otherwise it will disintergrate
and the industrial fight will be trans
ferred from the healthful competition a
home to the severe competition of oul
: foreign rivals, with thirty million un
derpaid, underfed and desperate toieri
living under entirely different environ
. ments to draw from their labor.
The step must be taken in one direc
tion or the other. The solid business
: sentiment of New England is not likely
to heed such petitions as the one hereir
. | refprrpd tn the circulation of which mis-