The Red Cloud chief., 1892-10-21
WHY WAGES HAVE RISEN.
CaIamity-liowIing Democrats Have .
Hard Road to Travel.

Cnlaintty-uOw1lng Democrats Have .
Hard Road TO Travel.
Democratic newspapers deny that the
rate Of wages has risen and that the
aggregate OF wages paid since the pas
sage Of the Mckinley tariff has in
creased because all democratic papers
during a presidential campaign are in
the business Of showing how poor
everybody Is and how the country is
going To the dogs. This preaching loss,
panic and bankruptcy Is . poor trade
anywhere; but IL is n particularly hard
rond to travel in the most prosperous
country on earth, and just now, In this
current year, the only one.
But there Is every reason why wages
both In rate and amount should be
greater because the manufacturing out
put of the country is greater. Nothing
measures wages like output. More
cotton cloth, woolcns, more boots
and shoes, and more pig iron can be
made without paying more men more
wages and higher and better. There
are many trades Of which this can be
found out only as Commissioner Peck
did 10y sending out inquiries. These
showed that In 1891, in sixty-scvcn in
dustrics covering 1,121 trades" and
giving employment to 2s5, 600 men and
women, there was an average advance
To each one Of these men and women Of
23.1l over the wages paid the year be-
| fore.
In regard to the great staples, how
ever, IL is possible To tell the increase
IL x.. ..I l.-. Al. .-llI.
not to say certain, increase Of wages.
The cotton mills OF this country have
taken 2,256,9 72 bales this year to date,
against 2, 062, 52s bales last year., an adj
vance Of an eighth. The wool alb
sorbed by our manufacturers, as meas.
ured by receipts at Boston. has been
for the first half of 1902 33i, 1906 bales.
against $50, 437 balcs, or an advance Of
one-sevcnth. Wool sales ut three prin-
cipal ports, Boston, New York and
Philadelphia, have this year been 203,-
702,6 7s pounds, against 163, 015, 4O6 last
year, an advance of 35 per cent I'm
ports Of raw wool for the fiscal year
ending last June were 49, go, 672
pounds, against 1870, 303, 04s pounds in
1891 and l05, 431, 1881 pounds in 1890, so
that the increase in these imports Of
wool since the year before the passage
Of the Mckinley tariff has been a
per cent, and the total increase In the
consumption OF wool has been 10 per
cent. At the same time the imports of
foreign manufactures Of wool have
fallen from $50. $50. 4l2 In the fiscal
year just before the present tariff was
,a..ul a. Qur kHr p-n L., Al.. a... .x--
just closed, n reduction Of 81 per cent,
or s21, Ol6. 1893, all taken by home goods.
Two-thirds Of the boots and shoes
made in this country arc manufactured
about Boston, and the shipments of
cases from that point are TO date ., 400,
1903 cases, against $3.50, $50, an average
Of 1t5, 500. or 8 per cent more than last
year. The output of pig iron for the
first half Of 1892 was 5,374, 043 tons.
against 3, 772, $50 tons In the first half
Of 1891, nm advance Of one-half. Or
take it another way, here is the iron
product for the years ending each June
for four years:
7ons.
Year ending June, $780,. ............ 10, s76, iIs
Year ending June, 1891 ......... ........ R,g73, s3s
Year ending June. 1880 ................. p,5s2, SIS
heut suuine Juuc' ioco troo,fSs
AS will be seen, our pig-iron output
Is 81 per cent. more for the last twelve
months than for the year before; II
per cent. more than for the year he.
fore the passage of the Mckinley tariff,
and 80 per cent. more than in the last
year before the election Of n republican
president.
This increase in output and in con.