Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1892-03-14
WHAT MR.. SPRINGER WOULD Do
FOR THE FARMER.

enue last year from wool which his
bill proposes to admit free, and that
his scaling down of duties on other
things involved further reduction OF
revenue, on last years importations
as basis, of $40, 500, 900 more. He was
reminded that the government needed
every cent collected under existing
laws for legitimate expenditure and
asked how the loss of revenue fore
Swallowed in his free wool bill was to
be made up 60, there will no loss of
revenue he in effect replied. sThe
lower duties on woolens and worsteds
will invite larger importations, SO that
just as much revenue will result from
the lower rates as was last year OBJ
tanned from the Mckinley duties.''
Do the American people realize the
Specification of that brief statement?
Last year we imported 43, 900, 900 dol
lars worth of wool manufactures. At
the decreased rates fixed in the Spring
er bill-they average about So per ct.
on last years imports as basis we
should have to import 115, 100000 dol
lars worth, an increase of $4,000, 900
dollars over 1891, in order to make up
the $26, 100000 deficiency in revenue.
This, remember, is what Mr.. Springer
himself says would take place. =.
What effect would this increase in
imported goods have on domestic in
dustry?
First, as to the farmer: The $72, 0OO,-
600 increase in manufactured wool
would contain 216,OOO,OOO pounds of
raw wool, which would come in to take
the place of 72,OOO,O 900 dollars worth
of goods now made in this country of
domestic wool, and to reduce the de-
mand for the product of our own
sheep growers by ZIG, 0O0, 900 pounds.
But this is not all. Since Mr.. Spring
er admits that mere decrease in du-
ties will increase imports SO enor-
mously, certainly he can not deny that
his removing the whole duty from
raw wool will tend to increase imports
Of it also. At the very least we should
import no less of raw wool than was
imported last year, when the amount
was 100000 pounds. Of this 49,
100000 pounds were carpet wool,
which we should have to import any
way, since it is not and, as Free-Trad-
ers contend, can not be successfully
produced here.
We consume, at liberal estimate,
600, 0OO, 900 pounds of raw wool in the
United States. We can safely assume
that the amount would not go above
that figure the first year of Mr.. Spring
er's policy if it should be inaugurated
by the present congress. Now, let us
see where the farmer would come out:
There would be imported of manufactures
of wool:
Pounds.
$4,000, 600, last years amount, repre-
senting of raw wool. .129, 600 900
Plus $72,OO 600, Mr.. Springer's in
reaserepresenting of raw wool. .216, 900 900
There would be imported of raw wool
Clothing and combing, last years
amount .33, 600 900
Carpet woods, which must import. sc, 900 900
Total imports of wool. ......... .464, 600 900
Total demand for wool in United
States SOC, 0O0, 600
Difference, to be supplied by Ameri-
can farmers. -.-......l3o,OoO,oO
But they raised last year. 300, 000, 900
Difference, shrinkage in domestic
demand. 167 600 900
Here would be 1877 900, 900 pounds of
American farmers wool left on their
81 bot LoI
been fully supplied.
What would they do with it? There
is but one answer. They must sell it
for what it would bring-low enough
to undersen the cheapest wool in the
world. The existence of such an enor-
nous surplus, over half of the whole
domestic product, would send the
market so low that farmers would
again slaughter their f1ocks for tallow.
Never again would good times return
for our sheep owners while the free
wool policy prevailed. Even when
domestic production had fallen the
necessary 167, 200, 900 pounds, the pres
sure of cheap Australian, African and
Argentine wool upon the marketswould |
continually tend to send prices even |
lower and lower till American sheep |
raising was confined to the semi des
ert plains of the West. There it might |
be possible for some wool to be grown,
but our main dependence must be |
upon foreign woods. This is the inev
liable logic of Mr.. Springer's admis
sion, and it would be well for Ameri-
can farmers to understand what it
means to them-Americun Economist.
THE BEHRING SEA SITUA TTON.