New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-05-23
EYfLES From US7RY.


in their attempt TO work out the tariff puzzle, it
may be well for them to apply few figures.
II they tcSI the workings Of the only scheme
vet placed before the public in definite form
they nav perceive some consequences which
thcy will have 10 avoid The scheme is the
one framed by the committee of the Reform
Club. 1t proposed 10 cut of duties from
articles now dutiible Of which the value i'm
rortcd in 1897 wax $4,000, 600. Then IT
proposed 10 reduce the duties on other duilablc
Articles. Of which the value imported was about
S3lg. 900 600. from an average of is.I 10
a5I per cent. and it was estimated that the
import, Of these articles would be increased in
1894 10 St90I3j. 900 in valIc. OF course
thi, estimate i entirely couiecual. Nobody
can really Judge whether the increase conse-
oucni upon the proposed reduction OF duties
would be- much greater or much l">> than the
estimate. Some part, Of The estimate are APP
rarrntly rather absurd But il il enough here
70 t.,t the plan by the expectation, Of its
flamci'.
The expected in,rcl>c in dutiablc imports in
"A single year i, 81, l.G0O.000. OF considerably
more than half. 1h. large sum we should
have 10 pay to foreigners for goods winch
Americans now produce. and besides 10 pay
for the various articles, principally wool ana
other maiorin~, which 1t i proposed to make
free and which would also be largol, imported.
A. the value Of such other articles imported Is
now Thirty seven millions, and probably no on'
would expect - soc les than ninety millions
worth Of them imported If free oil duty. ms
would make the total increase two hundred and
twenty five millions the first year, To- be Illd
abroad for arid which Americans now pro-
ducc In the a>. twelve months we have I'M
ported goods worth nine hundred and twenty
.iy millions. paving partly in products but en-
poliing one bundled and four millions specie
also. With two hundred and twenty-five mill
ION, more 10 pay abroad, how long would the
specie hold cut? Then the two hundred ana
twenty five millions worth OF products when
Democrats, would have us buy abroad are now
urotncd by the labor Of moro than half "a
million Americans. This is reckoning the Labor
expended in production Al various stages from
the earliest T. the latest 4, rather less than the
average rata Of wages III manufacturing en-
plo,mrnt, tina, far reported. But the half
million Americans would have to find some
thing else to d.. How are they to live They
have at least n million more depending on
them. and how are these TO live? II strikes
one a, rather b,ll proposition that a million
and "A half American, should be deprived Of
their livelihood in the first year after Dem
ocraiic change
Forced t. hunt Tor livelihood somewhere
else. those who could work of this million and
a half would bc>icge employers in all soits OF
occupations, Offering 10 work at any wages
they could got No one can fail 10 see that
lhi, would drive down the wages OF all labor.
How great the depression of wages might be
il is imp ,>iblc to guess, but it would be within
the limits of safety 10 say that such vast
new competition would take off at least a tenth
of the wages now paid This would cut down
by several hundred millions yearly the sum
which labor could spend for products. Hence
the demand for such products would be re-
duccd, so that. instead Of finding room in other
occupations. the half million exilcs from in
dustry would be met by another million or
two. expelled from various avocaiionS by the
decrease Of demand for products
1t may dawn on the Democratic rcformeis
in process Of time that the people whom il is
proposed to treat in this fashion have votes
It would not take them many ycals to get
very tired of reform OF that nature.