Los Angeles herald., 1892-07-11
LETTER BAG.
Homestead and Protection.

Homestead and Protection.
EDITORS HERALD: The unfortunate
affair at Homestead must certainly open
the eyes of the wage-workers Of the
country to the fact that putting tariff
duties into the pockets of the employers
does not tend to raise wages, and as the
Republican newspapers very truly say
the Democratic press seizes this golden
opportunity to expose the iallacies of
the so-called protective" system-as it
is in duty bound to do 30 if it has the
welfare of the people at heart. But, as
was to be expected, the McKinleyites
are trying to parry the effect of this lat
est object lesson by stating that the
Mckinley bill has lowered the tariff on
such articles as the works OF Carnegie,
Phipps & Co. turn out, thereby creating,
or attempting to create, the impression
that the decrease in tariff necessitates a
decrease in wages. Perhaps the bene-
iciaries of the Mckinley law, such as
Carnegie, Phipps & Co., had this latest
attempt to scale down wages in view
when they consented to a
reduction in the tariff upon
these articles. However, be that as
may, one thing is certain, and that is
that the excuse put forth by the expo
nents of Republican protectionism for
scaling down wages will not bear the
seerch light of close examination, and
cannot afford even small crumb of
comfort to these hard pressed apolo-
gists; and in support OF this statement
we submit the following facts cleaned
from the Examiner articles of s. E..
Moffett, who has made this subject q
close study:
"The schedule of the Mckinley bill,
dealing with metals, is very artfully
drawn. 1t makes number of reduc-
tions. For instance, the rate on steel
rails is cut down from $17 to 1914 per
ton; that on heavy forgings for vessels
and engines, from $44 80 to $44.32, and
that on iron and steel axles from $56 to
$44.80. But these reductions were
carefully arranged so as not to cut
into the prices of home manufactur-
era. American prices of steel rails
usually run about $40 ton higher
than the English prices. That almost
covers the entire cost of all the labor
used in the manufacture, from the time
the miners begin to dig out the coal and
iron ore until the finished rails are
turned out at the rolling mills. The
new duty of 1914 ton allows the
manufacturers to charge just as much
as they could get without killing their
market, even il the tax were doubled. .
That is to say, the American manufac-
turer Of steel rails can not sell at a
greater advance than $40 ton over the
English price. To sell at greater ad.
u, ice than $40 ton over the English
ce would so reduce the demand as to
the market. Hence the tariff might
II. We been reduced from $17 ton to SIC
ION, instead of to $1344, without in
iy manner decreasing the advantages
which the iron baron beneficiary of Re
publican protectionism derives from the
Mckinley bill.
The hollowDess of the pretexts put
forth by the Republican apologists fol
the Homestead fruits of McKinleyism
is still more strikingly shown by the
figures contained in the sixth annua
report of President Harrison's comis
sioner OF labor, in which is contained &
thorough and accurate study OF the
comparative labor cost in the iron anc
steel industries OF this country ane
Europe.
The "protectionist." so called, iusti
fies his system upon the theory that tn,