The weekly register. [volume] (Point Pleasant, Va. [W. Va.]) 1862-1909, 1892-09-27
CREDUL0US MIR. PECK
RIDICULOUS REPORT OF THE NEW
YORK LABOR COMMISSIONER.

|HMm |nmmM mMM.~W
',""eiAe'nrers coneoct Their
o"h Statistics and Peek Uses Them
fnilaeions neasonIng. Illogical conelu-
sion- and Grave misconceptions
WHAT l. t,,;. -.
.;<,,,o ~, =, Ia ~. ooalli1ils-
-, recK' OF new ork,
.iiion 11esldent darr1sonls quoting and
aOout winch the Republicans are making
as much fuss as If it We're the only really
Faiua0 Die piece Of campaign material that
hey have got hold of this year2 1.
" nat did Mr.. Peck attempt to show9
= W nat did he think wonld show this?
.. now dld he obtain the required in
Lorinntlon. 4. What figures or facts cid
ne obtain 5. What do and do not these
neures proven
rrst-Mr. Peck attempted to show
tne erect OF the tariff on labor and
wages IN order that voters might know
Xnelher a protective tariff" or a tariff
1or revenue only" IS to be preferred
oecond-He evidently assumed and
tnQnght that increased production and
earnings would show that the effects of
the nigh protective tarih act of 1890 were
beneficial to labor This was violent
assumption ON the part of Mr. Peck and
Is not creditable TO him as a statisticiar,
ioglclrn or Democrat. There might
be dozen different causes for either
nigh or low production or earnings, the
most important of which might have no
connection directly or indirectly with
tariffs. For example, bountiful rains
and favorable weather in 1891 produced
good crops here when there was a search
ty abroad. This caused unusual returns
for our crops and boom in business in
no way due to any tariff act. The low
price of cotton made cotton mills pros
porous and made more hours (day and
night work for spinners, weayers, etc.
Such causes as these may. and probably
do, account for most of the increased
production and earnings-which are by
no means synonymous with increased
wages and may mean more work for
more pay, the rate of wages being the
same or even lower, but Mr.. Peck sees
nothing except the tariff in all this. He
had a .preconceiyed theory" which
makes the tariff responsible for prosper
ity or depression in business, and though
he pretends to be u Democrat yet it is
evident that he is neither a Democrat
nor does he understand Democratic doc
trine on the tariff question.
Democrats do not claim, as his report
assumes, that protection will entirely
prevent increased production and earn
ings or that 1t viii raise or lower nom
inal wages. They simply claim that it
has little or nothing to do with high or
low wages, but that it does have much
to do with the amount of goods that can
be purchased with wages But ON this
most important phase of the subject Mr..
Peck silent aVnlrlf fhof hfa
the omission IN manner that would in
dicate that 1T Is comparatively unim
portant. That his sspreconceiyed the
ories' were in favor of protection is
obvious from his statement in the New
York Tribune of Sept. 3, in which he
says: II see that protection is a good
thing FOR the manufacturers, and / know.
also that the manufacturers would not
pay higher prices for their labor If It
were not for the unions. By means os
protection labor is able to enforce the
demands that it makes upon the manu-
facturers." OF course there is but little
connection, except in the minds of MIR.
Peck and other protectionists, between a
duty on manufactured goods and wages
This report that has knocked the Chi.
cago platform silly" and ..raised the
.-Sl~-' VI eAb ~ per CGHI.
is then but the half fiedged and Illogical
conception of protectionist. In the
name of Democracy it seeks to prove or
disproye the Republican claim that pros.
perity is impossible without ..protec-
ton, y whereas Democrats do not DENY.
that in u country like this-the biggest
free trade country in the world when
territory is considered = considerable
prosperity may accompany even Nc
Kinley protection.
Third-Notice now how Mr.. Peck
went to work to obtain the data which
was to settle forever this tariff discus.
sion. .'Some 5000 blanks" lie says
..were addressed and mailed to as
many separate establishments through
out the state" A circular letter in
formed the manufacturers that '.the in
formation received would be used only
in general way, so that the business OF
any individual firm would not be recog-
nized." Thus guaranteed against de-
lection, 5000 of these protected manu-
facturers and jealous Republicans did
their duty to their country and them
selves by fixing up figures which should
leave no doubt as to the effects of Nc
Kinleyism and sent them to Mr.. Peck.
fl.a who s.aogaecae, n ...ol.T