Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1894-02-17

have not been here a. long a. A have with |
''unconstitutionality" on the other side OF |
the chamber are mere phrases. aud that
when gentleman OF the other side. with |
swelling voice. denounces the tariff a. IN
constitutional no merely means that 10
does not like IL.
Inasmuch as nobody In q hundred years
has even asked the supreme court TO pass
on that question. it seems hardly worth
while TO discuss It. IL the Father OF His
Country, fresh from the convention. In sign
ing the first tariff tax bill. signed an un-
constitutional act, the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Turner) and the whole Demo
cratic party are better than George Wash
ington--a tainR not hitherto charged upon
them.
who Pays the Tax7
But do not the people pay the tariff taxes.
and do they not go into the pockets Of mo
nopolistsf Do you believe the consumer
pays the tax or the foreigner Well. ap
going TO be perfectly frank about that and
answer sometimes one, and sometimes the
other, and sometimes both. The drst thing
the foreigner does when a tariff tax Is laid
is to see IL he can get into our market With
out paying anything. II 80. then he win
not reduce his prices. II he cannot. he looks
over his margin Of profit and sees IL he can
by abating some part OF these profits, sec
his goods in. So far as he does abate them.
be pays the tax So far as he does not, the
rest OF the tax is paid by the consumer.
II the foreigner pays all the tax. then
within the limit where his goods can circn-
late there may be protection or there may
not II after paying the whole tax he stu
has n margin of profit to sacrifice In the In
dustrial war. there will be no protection
or very limited protection. But II there be
only a slight margin which he cannot sac
rifice without rendering the market worth
less, then there will be competition tho
same as IL he manufactured here. In the
latter case he at least cannot shutup our
factories.
In these cases the price win not be rnised.
But where the consumer pays any perb
the tax by 80 much Is tho price raised. This
Is the general rule, but often it-does noe
work so. After the act OF 1890 large Inn
portations In anticipation of large profits,
anticipations frustrated by the Barring fasi-
ure panic, made great changes in the case.
Many prices did not rise at all, and yet
manufacturers, knowing that there would
be a certainty Mt least that they could not
be badly undersold, began work.
Fighting Chance.
It often happens that men win begin
manufacturing under tariff that does not
raise prices because they know that such q
tariff will prevent them from going down
It iN not enough to have goods in the nat
| ural market at price which will bring .
profit. The manufacturer must know that
the industrial enemy cannot force the price
below the range OF profit. Then without
any increase he may put up plant. This
| operation Of tariff which does not raise
| the price is because industrial warfare some
times assumes this shape. A rival maker
may sacrifice his goods in order to sacrifice
another mans factory or 10 prevent the es-
adjustment of a competitor. II there be a
tariff then which will not raise prices, but
| which will maintain them, then the native
| manufacturers risk in building a factory Is
limited. He may be put to hard struggle,
but he cannot be beaten out of hand He
will have a fighting chance.
There are. however. SO many instances
where the foreigner pays the tax that there
lis no wonder that the assertion has been
made broadcast. The Bermuda vegetable
men appeared before this very COMMITTEES
to urge this very fact. Canada, both under
the present law and Just after the repeal
Iof the reciprocity act, Is a multitudinous
witness all along our borders that the for
Ieigner pays the tax. venture to say that
the lumber tax. lowered by the act of 1900,
has all of It gone out Of our treasury into
Canadian pockets.
II It would be an interesting chapter In
economic history IL we could have in fig
ures the abatement of foreign prices which
have followed every increase of the tariff,
for it would show what enormous profits
have been made out of us by these people
when no protection existed.
!. Having thus shown that even where Tar.
lR taxes are paid by the foreigner and the
price not raised there may be some protsc-
! - -
where the price Is raised aud she consnr
pays the whole tax or part Of IL. the.
any benefit 20 our country thereby. Dos,
not the public suffer for che bencft OF Tia
. / fewf Not Tor che benefit of The capitalists.
I Cor ia the iouE ram yourpwn political econ
Z cry will show ron that protected industries
II will not obtain any greater remuneration
= than the unprotected. The same IS all thes
( ask for and more than they often get
Protection Establishss xnduatxies.
The public again do not suffer for tn,
sake of the employees Of the protected in
dustries, for they get no higher wages thar
the unprotected. In fact, the increase zoe
to one as much as the other. Who bull
the mills Of Fall Riverf Who made tn
machinery Who furnish the provision
and the other consumeble wealth whicl
Fall River and its mills demandf The an
: "But." says my questioner. ''if you onl,
I distribute this money which was take
from us for the extra price among us al
again who paid 1t, what Is the Roodi"
. that were all there was to X. could still
! answer that at least there was no loss. BIZ
beyond question this system establishe
!. diversified industries. Nobody can doub
THAT. Diversified industries call out ali tn
working powers Of the world. Some me
are fitted for one thing, some for another.
. | The only way to utilize all the powers {
: body and mind in nation is to have some
thing which suits all. BY this means th
!. great army Of the unemployed can be keE
: down. A nation which keeps its peopl
employed Il in the end sure to show th
l largest gains even OF wealth. Diversifie
industries educate the people and give tbeI
broader education than books can Civ
and so help them on the road to create
civilization. We have already seen tia
? greater civilization leads to higher wage
TO greater production. IN acountry Of hie
wages there ara greater Inducements FOR Il
ventors. for they can save more by their il
:. ventions. which are therefore more readil
- adopted
p We were talking awhile ago about high
wages. The question naturally comes u
How can these higher wages be gotf The
= must be something for them to come fror
Just think q moment what wages are. TIL,
- are the devourers of consumable wealt
- In order to have more consumable veal
:. you must have an incentive for its creatio
~ Wealth viii never be made unless q CO
sumner stands ready. More consumah
- wealth therefore, depends upon q broade