The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1894-02-16
THE M'kiNLeY LAW AND PRICES.
Democratic Drivel About High Tariff q,

From time to time some Democratic
orator In the house attacks the Nc
Kinley law. not merely for its alleged
unconstitutionality.b but because it has
raised prices" But the men who
make this claim never give any facts.
They never show what articles which
are affected by the tariff brought high
err prices during 1891 and 1892 than
they did prior to the passage of the
Mckinley bill. Evidently they think
it is safer policy to make no specific
statements, but to stick to general
tiles.
The truth is that there was no gen.
eral rise in the price Of competitive
goods subsequent to the passage Of
the act There was an abortive at
tempt at a rise prior thereto. When
the provisions of the bill became known
and it was evident that it would
become law almost every retail deal
err in the country jumped at the conclu-
sion that here was his opportunity,
and he began marking up the goods
which he had on hand then. UnQues-
tionably he assumed that the effect of
the new tariff would be general adj
vancement in prices But the public
declined with great unanimity to sub
NIT to this marking up of the goods
on hand, and the retailer had to back
down.
The bill was passed. the stocks Of
goods imported in anticipation of that
event, and which had paid the lower
duties, were worked of, and what hap
| pened then? Certainly not a general
advance of prices of competitive ar
! ticles. On the contrary, the prices of
manufactured goods of nearly all kinds
in 1s92L93 were lower than in 1SS9'90.
That is fact known to all observers.
| OF course there were q few exceptions,
such as pearl buttons. some grades OF
| linens, cotton pushes, etc.-half o
dozen articles out of u couple of thou
sand. That the prices of many pro-
tected articles fell is known to all.
Among them was wool. which sold for
less in spite of increased protection.
The democrats have dwelt on this fact
often to show the inutility of protec-
ton to aid the producer.
3 How did it happen that the mer
chants who confidently expected a
jump in prices and the democrats who
so confidently predicted it were mis-
taken? 1t was due in great part to the
fact that the European manufacturers,
merchants, and shippers cut their prof
its down 70 the lowest notch SO as to
retain for their SURPRISES whatever
hold they had on the great American
market 1t was worth too much to
them to be given up without q strug-
gle Once surrendered it might be lost
forever. The cost of producing their
! goods was cut down as much as poSsi-
BILE. In many cases there were wage
reductions, which broke the force OF
the higher duties. When the manu-
facturer was also the importer he SIM
ply cut down the selling price of the
surplus which he sent to the United
! States. If he made a hundred thou
sand yards of cloth and sent ten thou
sand here he submitted to a loss on the
one tenth. but disposed of the other
nine-tenths at the higher rate, thus
making the reduction on the entire
| output comparatively small.
European producers actually paid,
though much against their will, the
greater part of the increase of duties
under the Mckinley tariff law. There
| is no rubbing that out And as the
foreigners paid that increase and their
goods were offered here at the same
price as of old it was impossible for
the American producer OF competing
goods to raise his prices Had he done
SO the consumer would lave bought of
the foreigner. Even in the case OF
pearl buttons, where the advance in
duty was heavy and the industry did
not previously exist here, the increase
| in price was by no means as great as
was expected.
Thus it is manifest that a large part
| of the increased revenue due to the
higher duties of the Mckinley law has
not been paid by the American con-
sumers, but by foreign producers The
| tariff has been tax on the latter, not
the former; tax amounting in the ag-
gregale to d great many millions. Yet
the democrats, headed by Prof. Wilson,
propose to surrender that portion of
the revenue paid now by the foreign
PRODUCERS The American consumers
W i'll not get the goods any cheaper and
their treasury will receive less money.
The deficit in revenue thus created
must be made good in some way, and
the democrats are imposing an income
tax to make it good. That tax will be
paid by Americans. There is no dis
pute on that point Not only will the
foreigners be freed from the tax they
have been paying. but the new COM
peting industries, just getting foot
hold. will be destroyed. Thus the DEM
ocrats will be able to kill two birds
with one stone-to help the foreign
workmen and injure the American
| ones.-Chicago Tribune.