The Logan County banner. [volume] (Logan, W. Va.) 1889-1903, 1892-08-18

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The word IN tho English lar:guage
that protectionists nee oftenest il
American. They appeal to our se.asii
and patriotic feelings by linking to-
getlier as often as possible "Protectionr
and american On banner dis.
played at the Minneapolis convention by
the Boston Home Market club was t.lo
following:
:Americau Wages for American Wors.ncrt:
American Markets for American People. +:
Protection for American Tonesl !:
;..............-,....
Is, then, protection the conservator
If American worhmcn, markets and
homeel Does it keep ont foreigners
who come here to compete with Aneri
cans AID lower wages? Does it Iys2ss
home markets where the American peo-
pie cnn-supply themselves with goods IL
the lowest possible priceS Does it pro
tect American homes by reducing the
expenses u running them. and thereby
encouraging thcir foundation and maxi
ing itpossible to bring upsanl educate
the aclailaEnla, xhiell-are= The necessary
sequence american Igslless ffsets=tss
examine history little.
Onr present protection period began
with the high tariff act OF July II, 1862.
and WINS perfected on June Sc, 1861.
that il, until tho genius of Mckinley
took MP tho subject. On the 4th Of July,
1854, before real "protection" was
week old, congress passed and the presi-
dent signed the contract labor law
entitled AN act to encourage inmigTa-
ton Its object, as explained by Sera-
tor sherman at that time, was Ito Gu
courage, facilitate and protect foreign
Immigration to and within the United
States" The avowod object was to
keep wages down by importing foreign
ers to takc the place Of American work
men who We're then absent fighting for
their country, AMI who On Iholl return
would thus find their Jobs permanently
gone. unless they could underl3il the
foreigners whom their bosses had I'M
ported. That's the way our tariff WAS
planned to work; certainly not much
american wages for American WORK
men" in it.
Laws in regard to contract labor"
have been changed since 1864, but the
customs of protectionists in importing
under contract the cheapest and most
degraded labor of Europe and Asia has
not changed. There has probably not
been year since 1864 when. protected
manufacturers did not hive ageuts
securing the Cid World Offering to adj
vance passaga money to those who were
SO poor and miserable that they were
willing to rnake any chang 1t is upon
this Importation OF miserable wretches
that manufacturers often rely to via.
when American werkp1en strike for
American wages, Not that this class of
worknen are always or generally cheup-
er, but that they are useful to lower the
wage scale, after which American work
men viii be taken back into the mills to
work ut European or Asiatic wages
alongside OF foreign workmen. This Is
one explanation of why wages are lower
In protected than in unprotected in
dpstries.
A typical illustration Of the class of
men brought over by protectioni.ts IS
found, at 4Ho4rgtead, Pa: 1.-THE total
poppkation Of Mifilin township which for
all practical purposes is nothing more
than Homestead, is IL, l44, and the total
number OF foreign born and native white
of foreign parentage is 7,713. OF foreign
born males eighteen years Of ago and
over there are ,7f3; Of native born males
of the same age limit there are 1,747. A
precise division Of the native and foreign
born in the total population shows that
in the former classification there are
1896 as Of them colored), in the latter
$780,
But many Of the males over eighteen
that are classed as Americans are the
offspring OF foreign parents, and in their
habits and customs are RS much foreign
as their foreign born brothers. Tins
nearly two-thirds OF the american"
workman at work at American" wages
in this leading protected American in
dustry, located at Homestead, are virtu-
ally foreigners.
Next, does protection make markets
where American people can get the full
worth of their money? On the contrary,
tariff. whenever effective, always en-
hances the cost Of goods, increases the
cost of living, and therefore virtually
lowers wages. Prices of all protected
articles are always higher in protected
than in unprotected markets, whether
or not there is any economic necessity
for it. Often when goods are made
cheaper here than elsewhere our manu-
factvrers ntilize their protection and
sustain high prices at home, though they
sell much cheaper to foreigners. This
is-the case with axes, saws. agricultural
machinery, cartridges, etc. Drawback
duties also enable foreigners to procure
orr manufactures at lower figures than
We must pay for them. Never. under
any circumstances, does protection" in
crease the amount of goods that can be
purchased for certain sum of. money
Many of the leading advocates of pro
lection hold that cheapness is curse.
that it is y-a-American, etc; hence it is
not strange that theySso legislate that
neither our own nor foreign manufqc-.
lures may be sold cheap here, though
both may be sold very low abroad. Pro.
lection. then, makes the worst marke:
imaginable in which to buy.
Now as to this american home
question. just how does high tariff
protect American homes? Is it by en-
couraging the importation of contract
labor to lower.the wages Of American
labor? This might build up some for
eigu homes here, but they would occupy
r the ruins Of American ones. Is it by
increasing the cost of running home
by making dearer nearly every article
from the wedding outfit to the funeral
shroud2 Not bit of it. Many couples
would establish homes earlier ia life If
competition were less in the labor
market and more severe in the goods
market, Not only this, but there would
he more life. health and happiness and
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