The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1892-07-19
AN ENEMY or LABOR.
Tho New York warId's DANA GoEtcal Plea
Tor Tariff Reduction.

Tho New York Worlds Damn RoEicnt Flea
iorTariE Reduction.
Ettr lorE sua tDtrLl
The infamous World calls on tho
Democrats Of the house to Suspend the
ruies and pass a bill reducing the duties
on iron and on all of the Carnegie steel
manufactures atleast one-halt.n "That,"
II telIsthe Democratic majority, would
be poetic justice, good politics and an
admirable enforcement OF the Home.
stead object lesson upon the relation OF
high tariffs to lowered wages"
This pretended friend OF labor wants
the Democrats IN Congress to punish
Mr.. Carnegie by declaring themselves
in favor OF q policy to reduce the wages
OF his workmon fur below tho scale
against which they are now fighting.
1t would make the Democratic party re.
sponsible for policy which would shut
up all our iron aud steel mills and lock
ont many thousands OF operatives and
compel them to remain out until they
were forced by starvation to work for
less than tho cheapest of the Carnegie
worknien.
The whole iron and steel industry in
this country, whether 1t has its seat at
Homestead or elsewhere, is dependent
on tho tariff which the scattered
brained and anarchistic World would
have tho Democratic Congress vote to
destroy. 1t Is organized under that tar
ifl. The tariff is essential to its pros
perity, its very continuance, on the
present scale Of wages. The mills can
not sell their iron and steel cheaper I'M
less they pay less for their production.
In other words, they must pay lower
wages. Even with the tariff the mar
gin OF profit is now SO small that the
manufacture does not pay unless the
production and sale are enormous. 1t
Is a very small percentage, and home
com petition tends steadily to make 1t
less. Even protection cannot save the
producer from that competition. 1t
only helps him against foreign compe.
tition.
II, then, the producer must meet both
home and foreign competition, he must
get down the cost Of manufacture. lie
must reduce wages to the foreign
standard. Otherwise he will have to go
out OF the business, and his operatives
will be- without employment, unless
they 20 into other employments and
reduce abe scale OF wages in those by
reason Of their competition with. the
laborers already there. II the tariff on
iron and steel were reduced by "at
least one-half," OF course they would
fall in price, and not less certainly
would the wages OF the operatives con-
cerned in their production fall proper
tionately. Men will not put their cap
ital into manufactures if they cannot
make fair interest on it. They will
shut up their mills II they cannot run
them without losing money.
The demagogical World, the pestilent
enemy OF labor, would follow the
Oriental method of Furnishing a man
against whom you have Q grudGe by
committing suicide on his doorstep.
Free trade, OF course, means lower
wages. The two together necessarily.
With free trade, all around. however,
argue tho free traders, the lower wages
would buy moro. Everything would be
cheaper, they say, tor the cost of pro.
duction would DO less because OF the
lower wages paid. But to take of the
tariff on one protected industry with
out removing II from all Is an outrage
on the FREQ trade doctrine. The equilib-
rum Of the free trade, theorists is not
established. II tho law tends to reduce
tho wogcs OF tho iron operative by
bringing in foreign competition, justice
demands that it shall put all other pro-
ducers in the same boat. SO everything
he buyl shall be. made cheaper for. him.
lie must have cheaper rent, cheaper
food, and choaper clothes. II no gots
81 day instead OF g, the price Of all
he buys must DO reduced proportion
a.cly or lie Is the loser. Hence all labor.
OF all kinds must 20 down with his, 80
that tho cost Of production genorally
may DO decreased Tor his benefit That,
in briof, is the freq tiado theory. 1t IS
low wagcs, low production, aud cheap