Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1891-08-26

l contains IS per cent. or its total weight
| The backing composes the balance OF the
% per cent. and is made OF somewhat
finer stock than the e. 25 grade"
The Judgment of the Economist is that
the goods of this latter company
sPossess intrinsic merit which will give
| satisfaction 70 everybody handling them,
1 and that the manufacturer, distributor,
and clothier have each and all the gratify-
ing knowledge of giving to the wearer
suit of clothes that will wear well, and
look we'll until the value paid for them mas
been fully earned"
Extending the sphere of its investiga-
tions, the Economist next subjected to
comparative analysis the products OF
another woollen manufacturing COM
pany in or near Philadelphia, and all OF
whose officers are reported as members
OF the Manufacturers Club and In favor
OF high duties on wool, with the pro-
ducts OF the Peace Dale Woollen Manu-
featuring Company of Rhode Island.
whose managers are advocates OF I'M
taxed wool. OF the operations and
policy of the former company, the
| Economist submits this somewhat start
ling report:
ave speak of g concern believing in the
/ high duties on wool, and we naturally
would expect that this commodity would
be the chief component Of the goods pro
| duced. AN analysis of these goods brings
ma 10 the conclusion that wool is only used
| in a limited quantity. 1t is safe asser-
! tion to make that the production OF heavy
weight wooden goods of this mill contains
at least 20 per cent. of cotton and snoody.
| The chinchilla overcoatings contain SO
much shoddy and cotton that one is re-
/ minded of the story OF the manufacturer
! who was in a hurry 10 get home, as he was
! carving in his vest pocket all the WOOL re-
| ouired TO mix with his shoddy to make
/ blend. The mill also produces IN fair guam
titles a line Of fancy worsteds. In this
seasons heavy weights the principal fabric
/ Is marketed at from 81 621S to 81 of19, &C,
/ cordiL.- to the proportion OF worsted ana
/ silk which the pattern requires. Ine SILK
/ is only used for effect in limited quantities.
The basis OF the cloth is cotton, the lower,
priced fabric containing Il per cent. ana
| the higher-priced 90 per cent, the calance
of % and 81 per cent. being worsted."
Ia striking contrast with the above
are the following conclusions to which
the Economist has been led from its an
alysis of the fabrics produced by the
Rhode Island Company.
The heavier weights Of the company in
fancy woolens cover range in price from
So 25 TO S3.1216. They are all as well and
as honestly made as goods can be. The
goods at &. 25 are cassimeres, and are com
posed OF fine wool yarn. Some have silk
lines on the face, for which 10 cents more
per ward is obtained. The goods selling
at &. 62% are a wool-and-worsted fabric,
containing 46 per cent. of worsted made
from delaine and Australian wool,
while the remaining 81 per cent is
carded wool yarn, some Of it having per-
centage of shoddy. The goods sold for 50
are solid worsteds, made from delaine and
Australian wool Such is the production
of the Peace Dale mills. We have not
come across a fabric in which a particle OF
cotton is to be found.
In view of these revelations, it Is a
mere coincidence, as the Economist per-
tinently asks, that the men engaged in
the business of making bogus woolens
and employing skilled designers, as
they undoubtedly do, not so much for
producing attractive fabrics as for in
geniously hiding from the public their
inferior nature, should be stanch adyo-
Gates Of a high tariff on wool; while
the manufacturers of aliwool goods
are In favor of free wool? Is not the
explanation to be found In the fact that
high-taxed wool means to its advocates
a larger market for productions COM
posed mainly of shOddy, cotton, cow
hair and a little wool; while the advo-
cate of free wool feels that If he had
all the wool markets of the world to
draw from on the same basis as his for
eign competitors he could meet the
large domestic demand for heavy wool
ems with goods made of all or nearly all
wool. 1t is interesting also to note
that while a large class of Amer
lean wool manufacturers-such men
as E. B. Bigelow, j. Wiley Edmunds,
Theodore Pomeroy. and their special
representative, John L. Hayes-were
unanimous in 1866 in characterizing
Shoddy as "a worthless material" and
earnest in their petition to Congress to
save the American people from the
calamity of it's use, the representatives
and successors of these same men are
now equally agreed that shoddy properly
prepared sis an inncuoouS and most
serviceable MATERIAL" and that 1t is
only through its extensive use that the
American people can have cheap cloth
ing and appear we'll dressed. OF course
| this latter proposition has foundation
so long as a fiscal policy (Which these
same friends OF shoddy advocate) is
maintained, that prevents the American
people from having proper and natural
supply of wool, and if abrogated would
not only render the use of shoddy as
condition for producing cheap clothing
to a great extent unnecessary, but
would make feasible the production of
clothing that was equally cheap, and at
! the same time warm, healthy and dura-
bic. In short was there ever better
| illustration of the wise maxim, that the
great art in all cases of fraud ppon the
public is to get up Q,LGntltm Sltficit of
| the wrong and then set the abomina-
tion to defend itself.
WHERE THE DEATH COMES IN.
Nor, wherein is the pertinency of
these facts to thescriptural text adopted
as the title of this article There is
Death in the Pot?" Just here: The
tariff taxes imposed on that proportion
Of the wool consumption of the country
about 800, 600, 900 pounds-which the
country does not produce, and which it
is needful to import, augment the price
Of all ,cooL clothing to the American
masses TO a degree that they cannot af-
ford, or are unwilling to pay. Let any
one who desires to test this matter for
himself inquire at any respectable furn-
ishing store the relative prices of un-
| doubted all-wool fabrics, and of the fab
relations that ordinarily pass under the
name of woollens, and he will be abund-
antly satisfied. The result is that the
masses buy at some popular price some
| thinr for THAR rlnthino which is nallad