Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1892-09-08
An English Manufacturers
View Of the Effect of Cleve-
lands Election.
he Success Of Grover Would
Mean an Eventual Fall of
One-Half in Wages.
Important Admissions---State-
ments Worthy the Con-
sideration Of All.

The London Iron and Steel Trades
Journal prints an interview with J. H
! Rogers, the managing partner of the
firm of E. Norwood < Co., proprietorS
! of the South Wales and Cambria tin
| plate works, which is almost as inter
| esting reading to the American work
! man who is asked to vote for Cleve-
! land and free trade next November as
notification OF an actual cut in his
| wages would be, so plain does Mr.
| Rogers make it that lower wages is
what free trade means. Mr.. Rogers is
chairman of the Wales Tin Plate Max
erS' association and as such is far more
| interested in the protection of British
| industries than an American. His firm
| is. building a large tin plate mill near
NOrristown, Pa, and he has just re-
| turned from visit to this country to
look over the ground, but he is anxious
to keep his Wales works going. He
says:
I'VE intend to make a hard fight to
keep our works here and at Cambria
running. Our American works are
what is called in sporting terms Il
hedge so that if the actions of the
leaders of the working people and the
house On parliament make it mprotit-
able for us to carry on our works in this
country, we snail still be able to be
large manufacturers"
This is what he So in answer to the
reporters question, ''SuppOsing Mr..
Cleveland were elected, what do you
think would be the effect of his pol
icy?'
Il think the result would be that the
duties would be gradually lowered, and
that wages would consequently fall.
The working classes would, Of course,
not be wlung to remain without work,
and manufacturers would have to re-
duce wages to enable them to compete
successfully with other countries
Wages in America are at present about
double what they are here, but if Amer
ica adopted free trade they would prob
ably be reduced by One-half, and be-
come equal to the wages paid here
The question of free trade or protection
in America is, therefore, of far more
importance to the working class of
America than it is to any class in this
country. In America the working class
earn high wages at present, and the
cost of living out there is so little more
than it is here that they have much
greater comfort and are able to save
more rapidly"
Could there be a palmer case for the
wOrkingman? Could there be more
take care of itself under free trade and
make labor stand the lower prices be
cause capital will have the power to
force a reduction and labor would not
have the power to refuse it? That is
the testimony of a manufacturer, who
is not a republican nor a politician talk
ing politics, but an EngliShman talking
in an English town, and who would
prefer to see the tin plate duty re-
pealed. But the democratic statement
Of the case really is no better when you
look at it hard:
Proceeding, Mr.. Rogers remarked
that some of the democrats said: we
are quite prepared to admit that if the
duties are reduced wages will have to
be cOrrespondingly reduced, but our
aim is that wages shall be so far re
duced that our manufacturers can I'M
delseu Europe in neutral markets such
as India, Australia, etc, but we believe
that the cost of living and of luXuries
should also be so reduced that work
men would be as well off at the lower
wages as they are now at the higher
wages
The great question is whether work
ingmen will take the chances by voting
for Cleveland and free trade.