Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1890-08-16
srlLL PULLING WOOL

senator-How the Sen tie committee
Yielded to the "Demand" OF ths WOO
Growera-Ths Shoddy Men Clamor For
MoKInIey's High Wool Duties.
Mr.. Louis Windmueller, a large wool
importer of New York, wrote recently
to Senator Plumb protesting against a
duty on Russian cancels hair and against
increased rates on coarse and mixed
wool such as are used in carpet making,
1t was shown by Mr.. Windmueller that,
as we have no camels, 1t would be fool
ish to place protective duties on camers
hair to build up a new industry, and
that the same is true of coarse carpet
wool. S nee mex. to none is produced In
America. The only effect Of these
duties, therefore, would be to increase
the price of carpets to our own people.
In reply to this letter Mr.. Windmueller
received the following letter from the
Kansas Senator:
UNITED STATES SENATE,
WASHINGTON, ID. T., July II. 1890
Louis windmueller, Esq, New York:
Dear Sir: lhave read nat You saw about
the duty on Russian cancels hair, Will give
this matter full consideration. and except
for some hing which | do not now for,see
will gu port the position which you take. l
do not object to the rectlfic Ition OF the In
equal ties OF the tar # but l have not been
able to c, nvince myself. nor have | be IN
convinced by the reasoning of others, that
there should be any general increase OF the
duties now imp ,sed, especially upon art iclrs
which go into general con sumption among
our people. You,s tru Y,
PRESTON B. PLUME.
1t was Senator Plumb who introduced
the resolution in the Senate to require
the Finance Committee to give reasons
for changes in the tariff. But this reso-
luton called out such a rlgmarole of
glitterlng general ties about creating
new industries, " protecting American
interests" meeting increased COMPETE
tion abroad" and so on, that ii would
have been as well il Senator Plumb had
never introduced the resolution at all.
With regard to the wool duties, for ex-
ample, the committee said: THE de-
mand from the representative wool
growers of the country that the rates
upon wool should be largely increased,
has led the committee to recommend
the adoption of the classification herein
suggested, which it is hoped will result
in q uniform and honest classification OF
wool"
That is funny. The wool-growers 'de-
manded" largely increased rates upon
wool, and the committee gave them "a
new Classification" But this was by no
means giving a stone instead of bread,
for the new classification" results in a
large increase OF duties, though the
committee neglected to assign any
reason for that increase beyond the
demand from the representative wool
growers of the country"
This affords another example of how
the protected interest Of the country are
allowed to write heir''demands"in into our
tariff laws. The theory of protection is
that the lawmakers exam ne the con-
dition of the country and then decide
that protection is needed, and this is
accordingly gwen. In point of fact, the
thing is never done in this way; but the
hungry interests come flocking to Con-
gress to impose their demands" upon a
committee that usually knows very
little about trade and industry and is only
too willing to have its action guided
by men who know what they want This
is the way tariff bills to defend "Ameri.
can interests" are concocted. 1t is the
men who want to fill their own pockets
who rush before committees Of Congress
and prate about protecting American
labor IRON disastrous foreign compe.
tition."
As the Senate committee had no rea.
son to give Senator Plumb further than
1.-THE demand of the representative wool
growers of the country" MI. Wind.
mueller undertook to show the Senator
that there was no good reason to in
crease the duties on camel's hair and
coarse wool; and he undertook to show
up also the iniquity Of the uniform
and honest class fcation" which the
committee said it had g ven at the de
mand OF the representative wool-grow
ers of the country"
The present rates and the increase:
are as follows on coarse woods: On WOO
valued at II cents a pound or less the
duty is "a cents a pound, which ii
equivalent to "a go per cent. ad valorem
and this is changed by the committee t,
so per cent. for woods valued at 10 cent?
a pound or less; on coarse wool worth
more than IL cents a pound the duty i
8 cents, which i, equivalent to 80. As pc
cent, this being raised in the presen
bill to so per cent on wool above i
cents a pound.
So much for the duties; but here |
where the uniform and honest class
cation" comes in and effects a doubling
up OF duties in a way to delight the po
litical shepherds of Ohio who made tn,
demand" The bill provides that /
any bale of wool OF one class contain
any portion Of wool Of o higher class tn
whole bale must pay the duty of tina
higher class; and further, that II an,
sorting of the wool has taken place tn
duty shall be doubled.
Tn s is what the political shepherd
demanded" and what they got. Nj
Windmueller shows that, inasmuch a
all carpet woods are sorted before In
portation, the rates put down in the bill
will have to be doubled; that is to say
on woods worth 10 cents or less the dut
will be "a per cent on the higher grade
100 per cent Our political shepherd
know how to make demands" for the
own interests. The plea that the poll
ical shepherds make is, not they hav
any carpet woods to sell, but that thes
imported carpet woods are sonnet me
used to make cloth for the people
clothing-which, from the shepherd
standpoint, is a thing to be stamped OF
by the iron heel OF a Mckinley Tari
bill. Carpet woods must be mad
SO expensive that the wicked man,
facturers shall not be able to p,
them nto u clothing, in order that tn
political shepherds may get hight
prices for their wool. This will mea
dearer carpets for the people; but whs
do the shepherds care for that? The
are looking out for number one!
Meanwhile ii is highly instructive /,
note that shoddy men are clamoring Il
the Mckinley wool duties. They wal
to feather their nests too. They &c
that high pr ces on wool will cause