New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-02-22

n1 rrice these articles used to bring anu ue
nrice they are selling at now are niac.ei Vi
mc,norv also with me. l will defy any Free lraoer
IA name q single article. not luxury, "hion VIC
are manufacturing in this country ana Is pio'eoV,u
bv a dutv. which has not been cheapened IN the
-. nav 7 mean of course, any article that we
have been producing for length OF time su'icien'
60 not our factories we'll in hand My first propo-
sition is true beyond all question IL is noI
question of theory, but a simple question Oh lacV'
The facts are all on my side OF the case.
Now comes the second question: Would this
obeaneninv process have been the same had we
never produced the articles in this country!
answer. No Why not? For many reasons. VIZ
The supply of such goods would have peen iesS
and that always tends to keep prices up ANY
increase in the supply tends to cheaper the Plloo
Of goods by creating sharper compe'i'don. ~
So long as no such articles were prodcceo IN oh,s
country, American ingenuity system and funds
would not and could not be utilized in periectihs
machinery and jnventing new methods OF pro-
duction. 49, More than that. the history Oh uie
mast proves the correctness of my position.
Sharp competition leads to inventions and I'M.
provements all over the world Listen! o'eei
rails are all steel They have been driven GOWN
In price year after year for twenty-five yeaio
Tin plate is also nearly all steel Why has hoc
tin plate been cheapened in the same ra,io %
steel rails? 1t has not been. The reason b. we
have not made it in this country IN the Pas'' -
my theory is true, il will be cheapehed "i'hin ''c
next three years. Why? Because we are now
beginning 10 make it in this country DOCS any
enc know a single Free Trader who dares submit
the correctness of his belief 10 the one simple test
of tin plate? dare submit the correctness Oh
mine to the outcome as to tin plate.
Now comes the last question of Mr. CoiIanier'
If we are now underselling the foreign producers
Of those articles. why not put them on Cne ii'e
list? The reason is that we do not claim 10 pe
able 70 produce protected goods as cheapiy os
they can be produced in the Old World. 30 long
as Americans pay more than twice as much per oaS
for their labor os foreigners pay for theirs, we
must protect our manufacturers against 1oIeiSh
cheap labor, or else reduce the pay Of our WORKERS
70 level with the wages paid in the Ola Worid'
or else shut up our shops and go out OF the manu-
fatcuring business altogether. The Free 1raders
say of course. shut up the shops" The Pro-
tectionists say mo, keep them open and keep
them running If we shut them up, our own
people will be thrown out of employment. Our
consumers will be in the power of foreign pre-
duceB. The supply will De diminished, the price
OF the goods will again be advanced and the ruin
Of this country will surely follow.
The first object of Protection is not TO make
the price of goods high or low The first object
Is TO put American manufacturers in such q po-
stion that they can do business prosperously, pay
the high wages customary in this country and
hold the home market in the United States against
the foreign manufacturers who pay low wages.
1t Is just as necessary 10 keep the duty on steel
rails when they are selling for 800 ton us
when we bought all rails abroad and paid
$50 ton for them 1t will he needed always.
unless the foreign manufacturers put up the wages
q their workmer. because We do not propose to