St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-02-08
S34,so5
A FARMERS VIEW
OF Tariff Effects Given in the
Fargo Farmer and Breeder.

OF Tariff Effects Given in the
Fargo Farmer and Breeder.
Shortly after the war the internal
revenue tax law was repealed. At the
same time the tariff should have been
reduced, but the manufacturers saw
what an advantage it would be to them
if they could keep up the high tariff
after The internal revenue tax was taken
off. The manufacturers had become
the wealthy people of the country, and
their infant industries had grown
to such size that the idea of
their needing protection was becoming
ridiculous. So the claim was made that
the tariff was for the protection Of
American labor. We are never told that
the high price farmers had to pay for
manufactured articles enabled the man.
ufacturer to pay big wages to the men
he employed. that these men, receiving
good pay, would live we'll, and the de-
mand for good things would make
farming profitable. The great wealth
OF the manufacturers now shows
that this tax did make them able
to pay their men good wages. That
they did not pay the wages they were
able TO pay is proved by the poverty.
almost slavery. of the men employed in
the protected industries, and the con-
dition of agricultural business all over
the country and the depreciation in
value of farm lands gives the lie to the
claim that protection has helped the
farmer. Before our day of protection
tarm lands all over the country steadily
advanced i'll value. During the lass
twenty years the value of farms has,
with very few exceptions. steadily de-
cined and farming as business has
grown worse. High tariff now tells us
that II the government does away with
protection, the iron works and factories
i'll the East will shut down, being unable
to compete with England, but | have
absolute proof that American window
glass. American blankets and American
cutlery can be bought for less money
in China than must be paid for the
same articles made by the same manu-
facturer in Fargo or in any other city
in the United States. Yet the duty is
l25 per cent on window glass, 60 per
cent on blankets and So per cent on cut
lery. Last fall an advocate of high
tariff took testimony from several we'll
known business men in Fargo to prove
that clothing, blankets and various
other articles, can be made cheaper In
America than in England. All this
being true, what is the object of the
tariff? Why do owners of Eastern
mills spend millions of dollars to pre-
vent even small reduction being
made? Why, simply because if ft
were not for the high tariff trusts
could not bleed the farmer. A trust is
a combination of manufacturers who
agree To keep up the price of what they
make at figure just a little below the
cost of the same article bought in a
foreign country, including freight and
duty. and the duty averages AZ per cent
on all manufactured goods. If the tariff
were abolished the manufacturers in
our own country would sell to their own
cOuntrymen as cheaply as they sell to
the Chinese. These trusts prevent conf
petition at home while the high tariff
keeps out competition from abroad,
and we farmers who sell our
wheat in competition with the 10
cent per day labor of India have
to pay nearly two prices for many
of the necessaries of life. Consider how
hard and continuously we farmers
work, how much real wealth we pro-
duce in the shape of grain, stock, etc.
Then consider how little we consume
ourselves. Then take into account the
mortgage, and is 1t possible for any
sane man to fail to see that we are
robbed of the proceeds of our labor2
There are various small robbers, but
the big one that gets the lions shara
and that leaves the granger so poor and
weak that he cannot defend himself.
that robber is the protective tariff.
5. W. BRADFORD.