Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1892-04-21

able him to increase the wages of his
employees. Indeed this plausible argu-
ment was supplemented by /. positive
promise that the workingmen employd
in protected Industries should have i'll
creased wages us Il result OF the higher
prices Of manufactured goods which
increased protection would create. In
creased profits, it WAS urged, would
enable the manufactures to pay more
money to those who worked for him.
Those workingmen who took stock in
the promise have been looking anxious
ly for their increase Of wages ever since
the Mckinley bill passed. AS the Times
has shown they have bsen looking in
vain. Instead of an increase there has
been Il steady reduction in wages since
the enactment of that law.
Using the census of 1850. in the alb
sence of later statistics, Mr. Edward
Atkinson shows that the population of
the. United States engaged in gainful
pursuits was II 100000, that in their
relation to the tariff they were distri-
buted rs follows:
Number engaged in producing things
which in some measure might be COM
peted with by a foreign product impor-
ted into our country, 200, 900; number
engaged IN producing our surplus pro-
duets, chiefly agricultural and depend
exclusively Oh Il foreign market for the
sale, 900 900; and lastly. those subject
to no direct influence from the tariff
except us customers, $4,000 900.
1t thus appears that the number of
laborcrs dependent fol thcir support Oh
the sale of their product ia foreign
markets is onc-third more than the
number fully or partially ''protccted," :"
by the tariff, OF in the proportion Of lG
to II; while the number Of our people
in no way subject to influence from the
tariff: except as consumers, was more
th"n five times that Of the other two
classes. Or to state it differently, for
the purpose OF protecting" - Ameri-
can laborers and securing them wages
ut the current market rates in the
country, we impose heavy taxes upon
14G other Amarican laborers, and in
addition seek to deprive 16 more AM
erican laborers-who are also heavily
taxed--of the only market tEey have
for the products Of their labor.
If protection took from the 16 200, 600
American citizens engaged in earning
their living only enough to pay to the
l 100000 who are engaged in industries
affected by foreign competition the
difference between their wages and the
wages of the same number Of foreign
laborers engaged in making like pro.
ducts; there would be but little cause
for complaint. But, Notwithstanding
they are the only parties for whom, ,anC
their advantage the only purpose fol
which. protection duties are claimed
when it comes to levying tariff taxes
it is seen at once that they are not al
all the direct beneficiaries of the taxes
nor, indeed, can be. The tariff lays NJ
tax on the importation OF the foreigl
article that completes with the only ar
ticle that these laDorers have to sell
viz: their labor. There is, and alway
has been, free trade in labor The tar
iii tax is on the Importation Of the pro
duct that completes with what the en-
ployer has to sell. 1T is the employer
not the laborer; the capitalist, not tn
WOrkingman, who is the direct Deneli
ciary Of protection, and his pocket re
ceiyes the ample bounties it bestows.
We see. then, that it is not the grea
mass of workingmen that RECEIVES TIN
benefit Of tariff taxation, nor yet ever
the .2O0, ,GGG employees in the protecte
industries, but the employers of thes
latter alone. What is the number o
these employers? Let us suppose tha
they are one-tenth the number of thei
employees, viz: 120, ,0G0, and we have til
entire body of'' American workingmcn
for whose advantage and profit the re
publican party taxes all the rest OF tn
American people. These 100000 me
are the ones who actually own the tax
ing powers OF this country, and wit
the help Of Republican congresses ia
the American people for their own bt
neft and by the rule of their own CT
pidity. 1t is said that on one occasio
three tailors Of Tooley street presente
petition to parliment beginning, "W
the people OF England" They WEI
merely the prototypes OF benefciarie
of protection who make their demand
Of congress in the name Of the Amer
can people.-Minneapolis Times.
: A BATCH OFF PATENTS.
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