Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1892-11-07
OUR POCKETKNIVES.
EXTRA DUTY HAS BEEN OBTAINED
BY MISREPRESENTATION.


Manufacturers and the Employees Are
Foreigners-How the Trust Has Raised
Prices and Robbed the Americans.
Perhaps there is no industry of much
Importance that shows the stimulating
effects of McKinleyism more than the
manufacture of pocket cutlery. And
there Is no industry to which the pro-
tectionist can and does point with more
pride. The act of 1890 increased the
duty from so per cent. to from 20 to over
100 per cent 1t is now the claim of
protectionists, and it is being heralded
far and wide, that this industry, which
was dying under 80 per cent. stimulus,
has been so built up by Mckinley that
wages have been advanced 10 per cent.
in three of the twenty-four factories in
this country. Prices of knives also have
been advanced; but this is a secondary
matter with protectionists, the essential
idea being to start new industries here
or to assist old ones by cutting off for
eign competition. If it ever pays our
government to propagate artifcially any
industry this is probably such an indus
try, and yet let us analyze little the
cost to the nation of such an investment
and see who are benefited by it.
The pocket cutlery industry, like many
other industries, was established in this
country during the free trade" period
from 1910 to 1850. AT that time more
than half of the employees were Ameri-
cans. Since it became highly protected
and began to rely upon governmental aid
rather than meritorious goods for sue
cess the industry has been unsteady,
and since about 1870 has had the blues,
like man who is in the habit of taking
stimulants to keep up his spirits will
have when he is unable to obtain the
ever larger doses which his unnatural
appetite Graves. Wages have been re-
duced often in this industry, and only
four or five years ago reductions of
about 90 per cent. were made in most of
the shops. Partly because of the low
wages, and partly because they were
driven out by the English and German
workmen who were imported to keep
wages down, the skilled American work
men have left this business, until today,
out of the l 400 or 1,500 workers in the
twenty-four establishments (mostly
small ones) which make pocket cutlery,
about LOO are English, 200 are Ger
mans, and 100 or 150 are Americans,
the latter being mostly boys and girls
not doing skilled work and earning only
from so cents to 81 per day. The Ameri-
cans have but little prospect of better
ing their condition, for the foreigners
now have monopoly of this industry
by means of their unions-Spring Knife
Makers union, subdivided into Forgers
and Grinders and Finishers' unions.
Their rules practically prohibit any but
English and German from entering any
except the unskilled departments. The
foreigners are mostly from the Sheffield
district in England and are undesirable
as emigrants; most of them, it is said,
can neither read nor write.
AS to the manufacturers, they are also
largely English, who advocate plenty of
protection and who have shown them
selves willing to pay for it, In conjunc-
ton with the table cutlery manufactur-
ers they kept two men at Washington
much of the time for three or four years
previous to the passage of the Mckinley
tariff act. Their share of this expense
was 1000. They now keep man at the
custom house to prevent undervaluations
and fraud. Having secured all they ex-
pected at Washington they Immediately
set to work to get back the money which
they had invested there. Their associa-
tion held weekly meetings to arrange
prices, and made their first general ad-
vance in October, almost before the Nc.
Kinley act had taken effect. They had
paid for their share of this tariff act and
saw no reason for denying their proprie-
torship in it. Hence some of them bold
ly announced that because of the Nc
Kinley bill they had advanced prices
from 10 to is per cent. In January, 1891,
a second general advance was made
This caused such howl from dealers
and the public that the manufacturers
ceased to send out circulars advancing
prices all along the line at once, and in
stead have held monthly meetings and
made advances by private lists to indi-
vidual dealers. These lists appear regu-
larly, the last being on Aug. 6, 1892.
One month they will inform dealer
that "they are compelled to make the
following changes in prices" The
changes" usually amount to from 10 to
19 per cent. advance on about a dozen
styles. The next month a dozen other
styles will receive the same treatment,
Large dealers say that the advance since
September, 1890, amounts to fully 30 per
cent. on the total of all knives sold
Here are a few samples of the prices of
knives sold by the Ulster Knife COM
pany, Of Ellenville, N. Y:
Price per DOZEN Per cent
Aug 1890. Aug. 1899. advance
Cheap knife, 2 blades. ..s2 90 $275 37ta
Cheap knife, blade. 2 10 $50 39l1
Pruning knife, blade. 10 $50 1915
Knife, blade des......... 4g0 625 HR
Knife, blades......... SO 700 29R
Knife, 1 blades. ......... 775 975 20
Knife, blades. 500 10 90 81
On leading styles the advance always
exceeds 90 and in some cases reaches 60
per cent. The advances are likely to
oootio1a ,7rtil lp;yao baorir - -,