Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1894-06-07
CAUSE AND EFFECT.

CAUSE AND EFE>ECI.
The sixth Wisconsin district is com
posed of Calumet, Fond du Lac, Green
Lake, ManitoWOc, Marquette Wau-
shara, and WinnebagO counties. In
1888 these counties gave Il democratic
vote went over to the democrats, and
Governor Peck received a plurality
of 5.507 in these counties, making a
change Of nearly five thousand votes
in the district. In 1892 the district
gave Cleveland Il plurality of 4,0S5 and
congressman Wells a plurality of
1866. In 1888 Green Lake, Marquette,
WauShara, and WinnebagO were re-
publican. In 1890 and 1892 all were
democratic except Waushara, which
continued to give Il republican plur-
ality.
At the April elections the republicans
made Il clean sweep of the town of
fees in Fond du Lac, Neenah, and
ManitOWOc All had been democratic
in 1892. The Lutheran vote is back
with the republicans, and in addition
to that has come over a large demo
cratic vote among the wage workers
in the manufacturing cities of Oshkosh,
Mantowoc, Neenah, and Fond du Lac,
where the hard times have been felt
most. The barley raisers of this sec.
ton and also the dairy men have been
contrasting prices III 1892 with those
in 1894
In Oshkosh the furniture factories
have suffered most. There are five
large furniture factories in the city,
and in 1892 they employed LOO and
1000 men. Today they do not employ
half that number and are running on
short time at reduced wages, while
three of them are closed. The largest
sash, door, and blind factories in the
world are at Oshkosh, and in 1892
they employed 300 men. The lum-
Der interest was the last to feel the
depression of business, but it has come
this spring and lumber in bulk, as it
comes from the mills and even last
fall sold for SIC, is today worth only
$11. Oshkosh supplies the whole coun
try with lumber and her lumber in
terests did not suffer until everything
else had felt the depression.
In all there were about 5000 en-
ployes in the factories of Oshkosh. and
they earned from $3.50 to 81 q day.
The pay roll averaged $225,0O0 a
month. For the past year these fac
tories have been closed much of the
time, some are closed now, all have
reduced wages and time, and the wage
earnings have been cut down fully
one-half.
In Fond du Lac there are furniture
factories, planing-mills manufacturers
of agricultural implements, tanning
factories. In all these establishments
1000 people were employed, and they
earned S150,000 a month. In the last
year they have not averaged one-half
that amount. In Manitowoc they have
q large malthouSe which converts the
barley Of this section into malt and
supplies the brewers of st. Louis, Gin.
cinnati, and the east. Several years
ago these maltSterS, Rake Bros, who
are democrats, united with the Other
brewers and maltSterS of the country
in a petition to congress asking fol
free barley. Now that they are abOu
to get free barley in the Wilson bill
the western maltsters have discovered
that it will cut off their trade in tn
east and give it to the Canadian
maltsters They have sent protes
to congress against free barley or eve
reduction of the tariff. Mr.. Rake ad
mits that it makes a difference whel
free trade strikes his own business
and that flee barley would destro
the market of the barley-grOwers i
the northwest and also that of tn
maltSters in this section of the country
Canada can raise barley cheaper tina
Wisconsin farmers can, and New Yor
brewers would get their malt fro1
Canada rather than from the west
Manitowoc had two pearl butte
factories as the result of the McKinle
law. Two young men started one ia,
tory here. and soon developed quit
a trade for their product. Tt prom
ised to become a thriving business, bl
Secretary Carlisle did not wait for tt
democratic congress to crush 1t on
He took hand in it himself. When tt
importers of New York tried to bril-
in pearl buttons without the hol
punched as raw materials the repu
lican collector in New York stOppt
them. They appealed to the a
praiser, and the collector was su
tanned. They appealed their case
the board of appraisers, and again w:
the collector sustained. They then a
pealed to the United States distri