Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-05-24
MahlOn Chances Views of the Ef-
feet of the Mckinley Bill on
Government Revenues.
He Has NO FEARS OF A SHORTAGE.
A.Philadelphian Talks Of Shady Business
Methods That Have So Damaged
His City Of Late.
THE EXCITEMENT TARPON FISHING.
Chats With Pittsburgers and Visitors on Interesting
Subjects.

Nfahlon Chance, the representative of the
American Tariff League, is at the Mononga-
hela House. He is getting ready for the
battle In 1892, and came to see what effect
the Mckinley bill is having on the local in
dustries. Mr. Chance says the League is
non-partisan and some Democrats belong to
it, but so far it has been allied with the Re-
publican party, as it favors protection to
American manufactures and workmen.
Concerning politics, Mr.. Chance said he
thought the Presidents trip had helped the
party more than himself. At present he
thinks Harrison is the strongest man, but
there is no telling what will happen before
the convention meets. The question of a
deficit in the Treasury in July as a result of
the Mckinley tariff is beginning to worry
some people. 1t is claimed that so many
articles have been put on the free list, and
on others the duty has been advanced, that
there is danger of the erevenues falling below
the needs of the Government. When asked
for his opinion on this subject, Mr.. Chance
said:
Has No Fears of a Shortage.
ssWhen the Mills bill was before the coun-
try President Cleveland sent message to
Congress warning the country of the big
surplus in the Treasury, and he recon-
mended tariff that would cut it down. He
claimed that with low treasury the ten
dencv to extravagant expenditure would be
reduced and the Government would be more
economically administered. Mr.. Mckinley
has carried out this idea, and now the Dem
ocrats are bowling about deficit. Verify,
some people are hard to please
/ don't think there is the least danger about
the country running short, and at the end
of two years. when the tariff shall have been
adjusted, there will be plenty of money in
the Treasury. The tariff has not cut off i'm
portations and won't The foreign manu-
facturers always have a surplus. They have
their home market, and their aim is to get
rid of the overproduction in America. 1t
is better for them to ship these goods
none at all, than to keep them
at home and thus depress the local
.Iarket. The Custom House reports at New
York show no decrease in imports. At
present goods from abroad are piling up in
the country, and the effect of the Mckinley
bill has been to lower prices in general
rather than advance them as predicted. The
country is being flooded with tin plate, but
this will fall off when the American manu-
.facturers get to work, and after the duty
goes into effect in July.
The Necessities of Life Cheapened.
TN New York am told that the prices
of kid gloves and articles of that kind have |
gone up, but there are people who will |
wear nothing else but imported goods, be- |
cause fashion has set the style 1t only |
shows that the tariff has advanced the lux
uries which the rich will have anyhow. |
The real necessities of life, if anything, are |
cheaper, and are going down. Carpets, cot |
ton and woolen goods, iron and steel are as
cheap to-day as before the tariff. The duty |
has, however, benefited the farmer, the man |
who has been complaining the most.
f'Few people realize how the tariff has re-
duced prices from time to time. Boiling |
cloth is something that is not made in |
America. The price of this article has re- |
manned the same, but take any class of |
trade where American competition has been |
built up through the tariff, and the prices |
have gone downward steadily. Free trade |
would knock everything helter-skelter until |
the foreign manufacturers had driven the |
home producers into bankruptcy, and then
rates would 60 up with jump. At one |.
time we were at the mercy of these people, |
and they never failed to exact |
the highest prices, and We had
10 paw them or go without the goods This |
was true of the tin plate business when the
duty was knocked below a competing point, |
and it will apply TO other industries in the |
memory of people who will stop moment |
TO think. / think We will be able to make
as good tin plate in America as they do in
Europe. IT will take some time before we |
can turn out as fine tin for cans, ETC., but |
the tin plate required for roofing purposes,
pals and articles of this kind can be made |
here as cheap as abroad, and it will give ad-
ditional work to our idle men.
One Feature Hitherto Overlooked.
''Here is a feature that has not been
noticed In 1881 a tariff was put on cut |
nails. Before that time we paid high
price for them abroad Under the pro-
tective duty Americans went into business
all over the country. The market was soon
glutted, and the price dropped to a nominal
sum. 1t was soon apparent we had too
many nail mills for the demand, and some
OF them shut down. Now it is found these
mills can be utilized in making pig bar for
tin plate, and as soon as the business is
started they will be able to resume work.
This point demonstrates that tariff
cheapenS prices, and develops new industries
in the country.
Gas for the revenue question under re-
ciproclty the Government has the privi-
lege of putting on the duty on sugar i'm
ported from country with whom q treaty
has not been made. This law NAV be ap-
piled to sugar from Cuba, if it is necessary.
The dinner of the League in BROOKLYN
short time ago only proves what Americans
can do. Outside of the coffee, which came
in under reciprocity, everything was made
and grown in America. The best people in
New York were present and they told me
they never sat down to a more elegant ban
que;. remember one gentleman tried to
buy bottle of imported champagne, but the
cateref told him he couldn't have it for
81, 600. The tariff was made big bugaboo
last fall, but its wisdom will be demon
strated after awhile E"