The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1893-03-03
Friday, Mar. 3, 1898.
The Truth About American Tin.

report on the production of tin and terne
plates in the United States, so as to see
whether or not the provisions of the law
requiring that one-third Of the net importa-
lions shall be equalled by the production in
the United States during one fthe six fiscal
years ending June 30, 1897, has just pre-
santed TO the Secretary of the Treasury his
report for the quarter ending December 81.
and ii shows a rapidly continuing increase
in the production Of tin and terne plates in
this country.
The Washington correspondent of the
Philadelphia Press makes digest of special
agent Ayers report in which the true in
wardness of the american tin industry of
campaign notoriety appears by closely scan
uing the correspondents digest. The first
paragraph of this tell-tale correspondent is.
THE PIG TIN PRODUCTION.
s'As to the production OF pig lin in this
country, it seems to be generally conceded
that the rate of duty provided in the
Mckinley bill, which is TO take effect the
first of next July, ought to be repealed. AT
the present time the raw tin is just as cheap
in New York as in Liverpool. The devel-
opment of tin mines in the United States has
been retared, owing to the change in the
control of the House of Representatives and
the fear that sufficient protection would not
be guaranteed. As this is condition OF
things that cannot be overcome at presents
many Republicans are in favor OF repeating
the law which imposes the duty on pig TIN
after the LIST of next july"
This bit of information knocks out the tie
mining ''induslryi' which the Press last
summer used barrels of ink and tons OF
paper 10 prove that tin mining was vital
necessity to the production Of tin plates.
Now the same paper tells its readers that
pig tin is as cheap in New York as iE Liver
pool, and the duty which the Mckinley
bill places on pig tin ought TO be repealed,
so that our tin plate manufacturers may be
permitted to purchase their pig tin in the
markets of the world. But if the doctrine
which the Press and all the high tariff
papers preached last year was true, it is
Just as necessary now and will continue TO
be henceforth that the duty should be con-
tinued on foreign tin TO enable our mines TO
to be developed. 1t is clear enough by the
Press voluntary confession that there was
clever sized African in that wood pile. Let
us see if we can find him. The next para
graph we quote reads thusly:
''Inasmuch as it now seems probable that
the tin mines of this country will not be
that will afford substantial return in the
product of the metal, it is worthy Of con-
sideration whether in the interest Of all
concerned and particularly of Tin plate
manufacturers, the law which imposes a
duty of cents per pound on and after July
4, 1893, on casslterite, and bar, block and
pig tin, might not be advantageousy
repealed"
This sounds strangely coming from a
Mckinley bill paper, in view of the same
papers rage against such heresy last fall.
The following paragraph discloses the myth
zeal colored man. The Press commentator
continues:
''If the Democrats restore the old duty, OF
course it will put premium on the coating
of iron and steel plates in Europe, and the
business in this country will necessarily
cease to exist, the same as it did before.
But Mr.. Aver says that if the duty on this
manufactured product is made proportion
ate with the duty on the other manufactures
of iron and steel, then the producers of tin
plate in this country would not haye to
reduce their wages below the rates paid in
other iron and steel industries, and they
20 could continue their business"
The meaning of this rendered in plain
Saxon is that our American manufacturers
would not furnish steel and iron plates for
dipping sheet tin at prices low enough to
allow sheet tin TO be made in this country,
because the tariff on iron enabled them to
produce sheets for other purposes that had
more money in them, the sheet tin which
was made in Wales having less duty on il
than if imported as naked iron. Bat Mr..
Ayers says, "if the duty on this manufactur
ed product sheet TIM is made proportionate
with the duty on the other manufactures of
iron and steel, then the producers of tin
plate in this country will not have to reduce
the wages" etc. In place of "Vages, F"
which is inserted as blind, the paragraph
we have quoted should read, if the import
ers of sheet tin haye to pay the same pro-
portIonate duty on the iron in the plates as
on naked iron, then our iron rollers will
make sheets for dipping tin as freely as for
any other purpose, and the manufacturers of
tin can go ahead and prosper. So in the
light of these admitted facts 1t was not the
want of undeveloped tin mines. or skilled
WEIGH labor, etc., which prevented the
sheet lin industry from becoming one OF he
manufacturing industries of Inc United
States, but the higher tariff on sheet steel
and iron than on tin plate. There is only
three to ten pounds of tin coating on hun
dred pounds of sheets, and if the duty is
taken off of block tin and the came duty
placed on the iron in the foreign tin that is
on similar grades of steel and iron, then
there will be no difficulty about the great
tin industry over which there was made such
a din last year.
The report of Mr.. Aver being true-and
no doubt it is-there has never been any
thing to prevent the tin industry being