The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1892-10-05
MR.. BYNUM AND CONVICT LABOR,

In response to an inquiry whether or
not Mr.. Bynum, while the Mills bill was
under consideration by the House, voted
in favor of foreign convict labor, the
facts are these: Several propositions
were presented by Republicans in COM
mittee of the whole. looking either TO
retaining the old duties, doubling them
or excluding foreign goods made by for
eign convict labor. In the committee
of the whole the yeas and nays are not
taken, but as to these propositions it
is asserted that they were defeated by a
strict party vote, the Republicans vot-
ing for them and the Democrats against.
On June / Mr.. Buchanan, of New Jer-
sey, made a statement to the effect that
some of his constituents were in idle
ness because the industry in which they
had found employment could not COM
pete with the convict labor of Austria.
To destroy this competition with con-
vict labor Mr.. Buchanan presented the
following amendment to q section Oftle
free list:
fh6e hO eoOto VI
produced wholly or III part by any prison
labor, or in connection with any penal or
reformatOry institution shall be imported
into the United states under. Il penalty of
$500 for each invoice so imported. and the
forfeiture and destruction OF such goods.
The proposition was defeated. 81 Re-
publicans voting for it and 105 Demo-
Gratis against it. AS Mr.. Bynum APP
pears to have been in the House that
day, it is fair to assume that he voted
with his associates against it. June z,
Mr.. Vandever, of California. offered the
following amendment to the Mills bill
reducing duties:
Provided, that If the aforementioned
articles OF either of them are the product
of Chinese labor in the country whence
i'm ported they shall be subject to the duty
now provided by law.
Mr.. Vandever explained that this was
designed to keep the products of fac
tories in which Chinese might be en-
ployed in Canada or elsewhere from
the freer competition with foreign cheap
labor which the reduced duties invited.
1t was defeated by the Democratic
House, i'm committee of the whole, SO
yeas 10 Sc nays. AS all there opposed
were Democrats it is fair to assume that
Mr.. Bynum was one of the eighty-six.
The same day Mr.. Farquhar, of New
York, offered as an amendment to a long
list of articles. the duties OH which had
been reduced, the following amendments:
Provided, that none of the above arti-
Giles. manufactured either wholly or In part
by convict labor. shall be admitted except
In payment of double the duty now inn
posed. and any person who shali i'm port any
such articles or manufactures shall be
guilty of a misdemeanor. and. upon convic-
ton, shall be fined 500 for every article so
i'm ported.
The foregoing proposition was re-
jected by the committee of the whole
by a vote of 70 Republicans in favor, to
SO Democrats opposed. MIR. Bynum
was q member of the ways and means
committee. participating in the discus
sion, therefore it is fair to assume that
he voted against the proposition to pre-
vent the equal competition of convict
labor with free. And why should he
not? Mr.. Bynum Is a advo-
cate Of the policy of buying in the
cheapest market" Merchandise is the
product of labor, and must be cheapest
where labor costs the least. When,
therefore, n buys goods in the
cheapest market he buys labor in that
sort of market. Convict labor, Chinese
and Asiatic labor generally is the cheap
est IN the world. The free-trader
should welcome its free products.