New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-08-29

sprprs pFroIE THE PAS.A" OF TIE TARIFF
Acr-AN AMERICAN INDUSTRY SAVED
FROM EEsTRUCTIoN-FULL INSTEAD
oFuALr TuME-LowER PRICES
FOR CONSUMERS.
,.,ov . e,.vv CORRESPONDENT Of THR TRIBrNE.l
Troy. Aug CA stranger visiting this Guy az
he head of navigation upon the lindson hNer
must be impressed by the business life ana ANNA
lion manifest upon the chief thoroughfares aiohs
lite water front Here on Rivcr-st are raneeu one
after another the factories OF the place ana ha''
OF it's largest retail stores. current OF puy n"-
man beinps men women and children, flows along
this street from morning until night, ana every
one apparently has some occupation. III Is esp"
cially at o'clock in the evening, when the o,ooo
men and women employed In the collar, cum ana
shirt manufactures quit work and seek the'r
homes that pcrceives the business ACTIVITY OF
the city Then River-st. is black with people,
happy with the consciousness that another days
work has been done: and as they tread their way
tbrongh the side streets one secs that they are
suitably dressed and Obviously well fed. Troy,
husv az il is. has had some business misfortnnes
Of late years Strikes and the competition OF
Western stovemakers have greatly harmed what
was once the chief manufacturing industry OF 'he
city The iron founders who were in former years
conspicuous in tho trade, have had aoVers"ieS'
and they also do a smaller business IN conSe~
ouence of Western competition. There Is, now
ever one great industry. the manufacture OF cuifs
collars and shirts, which 10 remarkably prosper
ous That II is so now is due, In the opinion OF
the leading citizens of Troy wholly TO the Mchin-
ley tariff.
Two wears ago the makers Of cuffs, collars and
shirts looked forward with great apprehension
~ ho nmin r
that time they had conducted their factories at
rroHt and given employment at good wages to
= 900 persons within their walls and to 5000
outside of them, but there had been re-
Gently large importation Of foreign-made collars.
cuffs and shirts and this threatened to reduce the
market for goods of this kind made in America
In speaking of this period to-day, j. w. a.
Cluett. of the firm of Cluett, Coon d Co.. said
I'VE began to feel in 1890 curtailment OF our
American market, owing to the lmportatisn OF
foreign goods in our line. The great retail dry
goods stores and ready clothing establish
ments in the cities purchased large quantities OF
cuffs, collars and shirts made in Europe and ad-
yert,sing them extensively sold them In comPeu-
ton with our goods There is portion OF our
population that takes anything foreign-made and
still another portion that likes TO wear styles OF
Foods different from those in ordinary use These
Palpably IL was growing trade in competition
with ours, and we felt that, much as it was then
DANA ring U.S. il would soon be developed into
such dimensions as to compel us greatly to cur
tail our product and largely reduce the wages of
our employees The competition came chiefly from
Berlin and other large cities in Germany, and we
were informed that the people who worked In the
shirt, cuff and collar factories there received on
the average only 90 cents day. Any manufac
turer here who examined foreign goods and noted
the quality of the workmanship. the quantity of
handwork, and the prices asked could see at once
that starvation wages were paid. Our women
make from 81 80 to So % a day We have in
our factory a German woman who testiies that
she was able to make in Germany at the same
class of work she does here only ls cents day.
Here she makes 81 so a day. What rendered this
competition the more dangerous the fact that.
being much nearer to the chief linen markets than
we WERE the foreign manufacturers had the OPP
portunty of obtaining a higher grade Of linens
than we could II was also evident that they were
making great efforts 10 get into our markets and
possibly were selling their goods at cost with this
aim"
Under these circumstances the manufacturers
appealed to Congress to increase the duty on col
lars cuffs and shirts, and Senator lliscock and
Congressman Quackcnbush Of this Congress Dis
frict by earnest effort succee lnd in havinc the
duty increased upon every one Of the articles
mentioned in tho Mckinley act Two wears have
passed and it is possible to learn the effect Of
this increase Of duties. The testimony OF Fred
erick Beirmaster, Of the United Shirt and Collar
Company may be given upon this point. Eeforc
the duties on cuffs collars ard shirts were in
creased by the Mckinley act he said to-day,
I'VE were having 40 much competition with
fnot mi
on laf-tlmc in some months, and AZ a result our
operatives were making only half their usual
wages The result of the increase in duties was
TO prevent the importation of the foreign goods
in excessive quantities. Having reeained con 70!
OF the American market we have been able tn
keep our and women at work every day on
full time. / know positively that we are recciv-
ing orders which dsplace former orders for foreign
goods Moreover, We have been enabled 10 give
our shirtmakcrs higher wages. Added to this,
the volume of the business done by the manu-
facturers has so greatly expanded that We have
been able 10 oyer the price of almost every
grade Of these articles. The American working
man never was able TO buy such cheap and such
wellmade shirts, cuffs and collars as he Is now.
The quality OF these articles at the same price
is better. The greater volume Of business and
certain economies in handling in the laundry
department, combined with keen competition, have
decreased the cost Of the finished goods, despite
the advance in linen"
That the shirt, cuff and collar industry Of the
CITY Is fourshing is eviden, by the signs upon
nearly every factory advertising for help. One
reads: Wanted-Fifty shirt-maSers and girls 10
learn the trade Another reads: Wanted
Shirf-ironers and hand button-holers' Still
another reads: "Wantcd-EAperienced bcnders."
leading manufacturer estimates that 1000
skilled hands could now obtain employment in
the shirt, cuff and collar factories of Troy.
Where 1000 hands were employed in 1890 there
are now 5000 This estimate does not include