Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1894-02-28
THE TARIFF ON WOOL
FIGURES FOR The FARMERS FROM THE
MARKETS OF THg PAST,
Showing How As Price Of Wool has Uniformly
Declined Under a Protective Tariff, as the
Pro.sstoniss Intended h Should, and How Free
Trade Has Always Broagh. Up the Price Of
Wcol-Who ihs Farmers Friends Ara



a criticism in the IntcQiGuccr of my
article on wool Ia your paper of Febru-
airy no.
Mr. Justice says "Mr Welles dis
proves his own statements" I made
mo- statement Of my own. I simply
quoted Justice, Bateman g. Co. against
Theodore Juatice, aud showed tina. Mr..
Justice could not be relied upon where
his interests in wool are concerned.
Mr.. Justice, 20 prove his case, quotes
foreign wool 40 two-thirds of the price
on an average OF that quoted by other
reliable authorities, including his own
firm. The fluctuations in the market
are such that 10 is comparatively easy
20 pick out one year when the prices
are relatively higher in this country
than abrOad-Such was the year lSSS.
ln 1850, however, the case was differ
cut, aud foreign woods delivered in
Philadelphia were as high as American
woods.
Mr. Justice is trying 90 scare the
farmer with the idea that he must take
his wool 90 London for sale, and shat he
must add or cents more 90 the cost
of 10 for freights and theu take the Lon
don price. lie knows well, and has so
stated that we do not produce one-halt
OF the wool which we actually consume.
He also knows that foreign wool
can, ~ free of duty enter any
port in the United States with
The addition of four or five cents per
pound 90 the foreign cost. That the
900 WO8len mills lu the West thrown
out of business by protection will be
encouraged 90 resume, and thus, ln
time, that the wool of this country Will
be used up near the place Of produc-
tiOn, 90 the great advantage of the
manufacture, grower and consumer
That the Eastern manufacturer then,
in order 30 get Western wool, will have
TO much more for 10 than be now
does. He also knows that under such
"a system he viii cease 20 handle this
wool and that the industry will be de
versifed rather than centralized, as 10
now is.
Wish Mr.. Justices facility in making
figures TO suit his arguments be can
doubtless prove that wool in the United
States has been worth double the price
OF foreign wool for twenty OF even one
hundred years, but be viii have 20 ex-
cuss noe from accepting itupon his own
statement especially since no TWO or
his statements are consistent.
For example, in his article in the
InfcIiguccr be starts out 90 prove
that secured NN wool had declined To-
this country only 1925 per cent since
before 1860, aud that foreign wool had
declined in that time 45 per cent /
do not understand Philadelphia math-
!. De-. BON " u u
Jersey, i became pretty well posted
upon the genuine article, and
viii illustrate my idea of how 20 make
such q calculation. From tue fifteenth
statistical abstract I find that Xxx Ohio
wool in 1859 averaged htty-niue cents
per pound tn 100 pounds, worth $50
Oh, VII 10 secured, there would be forty
eighg pounds OF clean wool, costing S5e.-
oo 5000 divided by i0r,y-eight gives
cents per pound for secured Inc
d OF eighty cents as Mr. Justice
lives it tn 1893 Xxx Ohio wool Is quot
ed 40 thirtv-oue cents and 100 pounds
cost S3LOO. $500 divided by forty
eight gives the price of secured wool at
siXty-fve cents, instead OF seventy
cents as SIR. Justice gives TO, making a
decline OF about i0rty-eight per cent
which Mr. Justice puts at - per cent
Mr. Justice claims decline under
protection of only 1256 per cent against
fortv-six per cent iu foreign wool
The actual truth IS that the decline in
the United States Isl f0rty-eight per
cent. against about an equal decline
abroad.
The statement quoted Inn his article,
as evidence OF the truth oil bis position,
was without doubt written by himself
for the american Econ 0Uist OF Fcbru-
airy lG. and there appears, word for
word, as original natter without quo
tation marks on change OF type. no
name IS .gned t1 thar article, uut he
writes for that paper 0c the WOO. Ques-
sion, and j recognize his express Ions.
When man has to su0stant.ate his
statements by an appeal Co himself, he
must be rather hard up.
The truth is tnat Mr. Justice Is
gambling. upon the ignorance of the
farmer, and yet De was ashamed Co att
tach his name to such @ mathematical
bunco as that percentage point first
mentioned.
To that same article in the Economist,
7 find the following: "Cnder the
shadow OF the Wilson bin American
wool. for the first time since the panic
of 1857. seeks market loo Tree trade
ENGLAND" If Mr.. Justice will examine
the reprrt on Commerce and Nav.ga-
tIon of the United States Treasury for
the fiscal year 1901, be will mud that
the Mckinley bin has already had the
honor of producing conditions tavora-
bic 90 the shipment OF Large lot OF
wool" lat 1l cents per pound), TO
,.Free trade England two years before
MIR. Justices irstl2l shipment.
I submit further evidence Of Mr.
Justices unreIiability, where statistics
are concerned. He says 'in July, 1885,
Xxx wool was go cents per pound and
bv December OF that year had fallen
one-baf. or 3O cents. The United
States Treasury reports give the price
ip July 40 56 cents, -four cents iowerh
and for October lO cents-(lt does not
onote Decemberl, but Jaaury 90 40
cents. showing decline of l6 cents, to-
stead of so cents as given by Mr. JUS
rice. Probably. III there had been a
nrorective tariff behind &c, the price
would have gone 90 30 cents and re-
NAMED there. Under low tariff, how
aver. it rapidly recovered, and
within fifteen months stood again 40 it's
starting point OF SO cents, aud in three
months more reached 90 cents per
Mound and averaged SO cents through
out that year 1859.
Having reviewed the disastrous" ef-
fects of low tariff on wool let us inquire
INFO the "bene6ts" OF high tariff. In
1867. when the high tariff was placed