The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1894-03-10
THE KIMBALL GRAPHIC
cLATE r. TINAN.
The Official Paper Of Bruls County,
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Oyer and over again it is the same old
story. that the American System" BY
which is meant the American tariff
system. keeps the wages Of workmen
high.
II the wages Of all workmen could be
kept high by any system, it would be a
good one and would not have any enemy,
for almost every American is workman
and would like high wages.
But the wages Of everybody cannot he
kept high by law. That would be magic.
1t is even claimed that no wages can be
made higher by human law, but that
there is natural law which regulates
wages. But this last proposition is not
sound. By law we regulate the wages
of judges, sheriffs, clerks, etc, but we
first have have to limit the number who
may be judges, sherlffs and clerks, else
We should soon have SO many OF them
that their wages would fall in obedience,
to the law Of competition.
Those who persist In saying that wages
can be regulated BY law should be just
and Nv not all wages. but only some
wages. Again. they should say that even
some wages cannot long be controlled by.
law. unless the Law at the Same time
limits the number Of laberers.
lftt were possible to make everybody's
wages high By Law what good would
come Of it2
Men want wages to buy things with.
Things ore made By work. and the prices
Of things depend upon the cost Of work
In them. II everybody had high wages
everything made would be correspond
ingiy high. no that, when oil vas done
high wages would buy no more things
than less wages. But IL the law which
made all wages, high had-to be enforced
by vast army OF officers there would be
expense connected with its operations
that would have to come out of wages.
In that case the wealth. producers would
be out just the expense of the process
without any corresponding benefit.
II the american System" makes some
wages high at the expense Of other
American wages, is it right to call it
"American?" 1t is more like British
system; for it is in the country named
that the wages Of some classes aro taxed
most to keep the wages of other ard less.
numerous classes who return no equiva-
lent for what they receive. To call such
systems American. all would agree to be
a very dubious use OF terms.
If 1t could be shown that even some
American wages are kept high by the
american svsteln." the natural question
is, whose wages? What class or classes
get the benefit Of this system?
!; The most ardent friend of the system
will not say all classes. Can he point
out any save those whose wages come to
them in profits. aud who find the trust
necessary to temporarily defeat the nat
ural law of competition?
But supposing it could be shown that
some classes Of workingmen get high
wages at the taxed expense Of other class
es Of wcrkingmen would there be justice
in this2 Could such q process be justly
called Americana" Does any honorable
American laborer want his extra pay
wrung out Of another American laborer
in the form Of a tax without an equivalent
beneft2
These are all things to be understood
and agreed abOut before "American
system" is adopted as the proper definition
ofexisting conditions. When fully un-
derstood it might be found to be more
foreign than American.