Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1892-09-22

the clouds and yozed the tremendous power Of
/ water AID steam to almost every conceivable
| device for she iessening of human labor in the
production of these necessities, ard as this has
/ beec reduced their cost has been diminished in
every market Of the wo-id.
Tariffs have nothing whatever to do with
| this. Prices have receded in countries that
/ have no tariffs just as rapidly as they have in
the most highly protected markets in tie world
| Put away this argument. for assure you il
| is fraud Some OF the men who use it know
/ this For these We may well blush Some do
not They deserve our sympathy
But friends say this protective tariff is
| made for the benefit Of the laborinS men It is
not intended for the benefit of his employer:
/ he Is simply the agent through whom the gov
| ernment- after compelling one class To pay the
| tax. distributes il TO another All that the tax
| is intended to do is TO eauanze the difference
! between the wages OF American workmen aid
| the pauper labor Of Europe
| "A benfeent theory indeed. but how does it
WORK:
The employer, usually member of a trust,
levies the tax on domestic goods when he fixes
| the price of his goods and collects It when he
sells them at the enhanced price the tariff gives
| him Who keeps this account: No one. not
/ even the man who levies OF collects it. The
| manufacturer distributes il to his workmen
| when he pays them their wages Who keeps
| that account: The fellow who kept the
| other and in the way II it IS true, my
/ hearers that this tax IS levied collected
| for the benefit OF American Iatorers. did any
| one ever hear Of such shiftless way of doing
! busines52
The men who levy and collect Il distribute
| il. They keep no account OF either side. They
| keep no bond. They are responsible 10 no pow
! er on earth for good faith even. II they eIbeZ-
| Zle every dollar they collect It is a crime,
! not even n moral delinquency OF which the
| most orthodox OF Christian churches could take
ccgniZance
If our friends are honest when they say they
made the Mckinley bill for the benefit of Amer
/ lean workInen. every man who voted for it
! ought TO be inapeached for incompetency.
If this was its purpose there is parallel
for such legislation N the history of the world
| But il was not its purpose When it was under
| consideration 1t was not the la boring man who
| appeared at the capitol Of this nation and asked
! to have it passed. Hundreds. If not thousands
| of manufacturers. with the abiest attorneys
| they could employ did SO appear. It has now
been in force for two whole years. Has it al
layed the struggle or leSsened the contest be-
t tween capital and labor: Let Homestead an
| swer first. and then let US examine broader
| field.
I The tariff. although at the beginning
| levied for revenue alone was. because Of its
| magnitude and general application 70 all manu-
featured goods, highly protective It has been
continued for more than quarter of a century.
! II the laooring men OF this country have re-
| ceived its benefits they surely should be indie
| pendent by this time. What ara the facts:
| The censt:s is u wonderful educator. 1t dis
pels many illusion that could not be gotten
| rid of any other way. The results Of our last
| one made public yet to a limited extent
| only. A bulletin issued on jug 20 of this year
deals with the state of Maine. This is one of
| the states of the union in which the protected
| industries flourish and where laDoring men
should be independent if protection is for them
| The census tells Us that 3. per cent of all the
families Of that state are homeless - per cent
| alone live under roofs they call their own. To
| which OF these classes do you suppose the man
ufacture-s Of that state beiong-to those who
| own their homes or those who rent them:
| Turn from this to the city of Boston, in the
very center of the protected indus tries OF this
| country. From the report OF the labor commits
SiOner of Massachusetts we find that the total
lumber of houses IL that city is 5i,l4l: OF these
i7sS occupied by owners, Sc, s23 by renters.
| The number OF persons living in these rented
| houses is 6. per cent OF the entire population;
| 33 per cent. alone own the homes in which they
| live.
(Which of these classes do you suppose are
| the manufacturers and which the laborerS:
| NO. ny friends, this will not do Put aside
| this argument. To all except those who will
not see it is trans parent illusion protec-
tive tariff is made for the manufacturer. not for
| his worhneT. He hires his help precisely
| the unprotected producer does, in the labor
markets OF the country, wherever he can get it
| the cheapest and puts into his own pocket the
| profits OF his business which the tariff enables
| him to make Just other men would do under
| the same circumstances. II we are honest with
| ourselves and really desire to ascertain the eff
| feet of protective tariff on wages, ought to
! take labor markets in protected and unpro-
! tected countries as nearly alike in their sur
roundings as possible We can find protected
/ markets in Germany. in France and IL Russia,
| a.. Of which countries levy u tariff tax or i'm
| ports and unprotected markets in England and
some other countries where practically free
| trade prevails.
| These ali found in old countries where
| population IS dense and the demand for labor
| fully supplied 1t is well-known fact that a
/ comparison between these markets is decided
| " in favor of those that are not protected by
| tariff laws Republicans however, never re-
sort to this comparison II answers their pur
! pose better to compare the crowded markets of
| England with the sparsely supplied markets OF
| our own country and attribute the difference in
wages to tie tariff instead Of natural laws Of
supply and demand"