The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1892-04-13
AN ASSAULT PLANNED AGAINST AN INDI-
ANA INDUSTRY,

AN ASSAULT PLANNED AGAINST AN INDI-
ANA INDUSTRY.
An effort is being made to have Ger
man plate glass put upon the free list
on the ground that it will cheaper the
cost of lOw-priced sets of furniture.
This is matter in which Indiana, as
one of the leading producers OF plate
glass, is interested, and which, there
fore, interests more people in this State
than those directly employed in glass
making. The Cabinet maker, of this
city, a trade periodical, contains a num-
Der of the replies of cabinet-makers,
both in favor of and against the propo-
sition, which are interesting as showing
the grounds upon which they favor or
object to free German plate. The most
of those who favor free German plate
declare that there is no competition In
Its production in this country. and that
to remove the duty will cheaper furni-
ture. On the other hand. those who OPP
pose give reasons showing that they
know what they are talking about. One
is that the German plate is controlled by
German trust. Here is, in part, what
the president of a Pennsylvania furni-
ture manufacturing company writes:
We believe that it would be very unfair
for US as American citizens to ask that the
duty be removed on German looking glass
plates. and thereby ruin the business of
several concerns in this country that have
for the purpose of making plate glass, and
that have. since the passage of the Mckln-
ley law, begun business, and are now turn
ing out nearly all the French plate glass
used in the country at less price than the
German glass cost at the time when the
law went into effect.
A Louisville, Ky. firm writes its re-
fusal to sign the petition, giving the fol-
lowing very conclusive reasons:
We desire to say that We are not DESTROYS
of having the duty removed, as we are buy
ing French plates nearly as cheap as the
German. and, taking the breakage into
consideration, the French are cheaper.
II. Hermann, who represents num-
Der of cabinet factories about New
York, and who is well known to the
trade in this part of the country. gives
the following reasons for being opposed
to free German plate:
Since the German Looking glass-plate
Company came into existence furniture
manufacturers have been using American
beveled plates. commercially known as
French" in their common furniture. The
companies in this city which bear my paine
have used thousands of these thick plates
instead of the German glass. This has
difference in the cost of the two qualities.
For instance. we use three sizes of mirror
plates. These plates cost as follows: 16x2O,
German $1.33, French STAG; 1Sx24. German
h q. OfxyOA oh
S3.42- So you see there is but a small per-
centage of difference between the thin Ger
man plate and heavy. substantial plate.
The use of this thick glass has given thou
manufacturing industry. We are now
giving the American consumer a better
article In glass. more substantial. worth
three times as much as the German, wear
considered. at almost the same price.
A manufacturing firm in Michigan. in
refusing to sign the petition for free
German plate, says:
We would sign the petition if we were
sure ii would permanently lower the price
of mirror. plates Although the German
mirror plates are controlled by trust. they
have been obliged to very much reduce the
price. on account of the low price of French
plates. and to-day We can buy plain French
at the same price as German. There Is a
number of large French plate plants now
building. anu we believe their competition
will reduce the price so that the tariff will
not be q tax on glass. There are very few
things In our business We cannot buy
cheaper than at any time since we have
been in business. We say let the tariff
alone.
These letters are samples of others,
all showing that the slight difference in
price between the German and Ameri-
can FRENCH plates is more than made
up by the better quality. Every Demo-
crat in Congress from Indiana, to carry
out the free-trade policy, would vote to
put German plate, controlled by for
eign trust, on the free list, at the re-
quest of speculative importers, and
thereby strike down the growing glass
industry of Indiana, running investors
and robbing hundreds and even thou
sands of workmen of employment.