The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1890-06-20
Evils Of the Proposed Ianf.

| uolobc Oue COmtlitJtt, Jue prOJeCIeu III
dustries of the country have never beer
at any time in our History in such g
depressed and discouraging condition
as they are now. After nearly thirty
years of continuous protection by Gov
erment taxation for their support, a
great many of them are reported to be
on the very verge of bankruptcy aud
ruin, while very few of them, accord
to the testimony, are yielding a fair
profit on the capital invested. A great
many of the parties engaged in these
industries have declared in the course
OF our investigation that the slightest
reduction in the rates of duty now i'm
posed upon competing foreign products
would compel them to close their
works and discharge their employees,
and others have even gone so far as to
assert that they will be obliged to go
out of business if rates of taxation are
not increased. AT the sans time the
laborers in those industries are CON-
planning of insufficient wages, repeated
suspensions OF work aud general con-
dition of uncertainty aud insecurity in
their relations to those who give them
employment. These laborers, fully
realizing the fact that this system has
wholly failed to increase their earnings
or improve their condition in any way,
have been compelled to organize trades
unions and resort to other methods of
combina alton and cooperation for self
protection, and these various organiza-
tlons now afford the only efficient
means at their command for the pres
ervation even of the existing rates of
wages.
But the majority, admitting that
these industries are depressed even to
the full extent stated before the COM
mittee, will contend that the only rem
ody is the imposition of more taxes
upon the people for their benefit. This
is The theory of their bill, aud it can rot
be defended upon any oSher grounu.
According to their theory there is but
one method of protecting or promoting
our domestic industries, aud that is by
lavying heavy tax upoh every article
of foreign origin which the people of
This country desire to buy, and for
which they are ready and anxious to
exchange the cotton which they cannot
spin. the corn aud wheat which they
cannot consume the oil aud coal which
they cannot burn, and many other pro-
ducts of our farms, our forests, and
our mines.
Wren our own market is fully sup.
piled with any given article, the pro.
duction of that article must cease OF
be carried ON at loss. unless a market
for it can be found somewhere else
and this is the great difficulty in tn,
way of many of our important indust
ries at the present time. They hav,
no market which will pay them for tn,
cost of production under our unwis'
system of taxation, and yield them {
reasonable profit upon their invest
ments. To attempt to remedy thi
evil by still further increasing the COS
of production is simply to begin at tn
wrong eud, and will greatly aggravat
the situation.
1t can be demonstrated that we hav
the capacity to produce most of tn
manufactured staples at less cost an
at the same time pay higher wage
than can be earned in any other cour
try in the world, but in order to do g
we must have some imports from othe
countries free of duty. If it was nc
for the excessive cost of production i
this country, caused by the unnecessar
taxation of crude and partially mani
factured materials which are essentii
in the process of our industries, "
could export and sell every year larg
quantities of the products of our shoI
; and factories, after fully supplying tt
, home demand at reasonable prices.
, The original argument In favor
{ protective duties was that they we
necessary to foster infant industries [
preventing ruinous competition fro
abroad until they could secure a no
, at the home market and thus becon
! self-sustaining, and it was again pr
8 dicted by the earlier advocates of Il
, system that few years of public su
/ port would enable them to do tn
But the present bill is based upon pI
cisely the opposite view. 1t is franz
upon the assumption that as our j
dustries grow older they grow weak
and more dependent upon the boun
+ of the Government aud the forced &C
g tributions of the people who purcha
and consume their products, and, {
l. cordinglY, we find that, as a gene
rule, the important increases in t
u rates of duty are made with view
g still further protecting the products
u our oldest industries, such as manufa
IL urers of iron and steel, wooden goo
J. cotton goods ,nufactures of fl
- hemp, etc.
Is We cannot undertake here to po
10 out in detail the numerous increases
J. the rates of duty on imported got
o which this bill proposes to make,
>, few will suffice to show the gene
a character Of the measure and the pu
~ ose of its authors and supporters. I
lowest grades of wooden yarn, wo
~ not over 80 cents per pound, are to
s. subjected to duty of ll2 per Gel
20 while the most costly yarn will pay
'e percent. One grade of course, oh,
10 blankets will be required to pay
Oh per cent, but the finest blankets '
IT, pay ~ per cent. The corsest {
81 cheapest wooden hats will be subiec
duty of Ill per cent, and
tiuest to &C per cent. Wome
ahd childrens cheapest dress go
with cotton warp are to be taxed
ne per cent, and the finest 70 per cs
in The lowest grade of wooden clot
of will pay l25 percent, and the higt
of grade 76 per cent, but the finest
" most expensive will pay 7S per ce
a Woolen shawls of the corsest and |
es est grade, used by the poorest pee
,r- will pay 1875 per cent, duty and wors
ey goods of the lowest grade, will pay
X per cent, while the highest grade
ge pay 80 per cent.
,st Camel's hair, raw material ext
ot siveiy used in this country ih the n