The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1895-09-27
FRIDAY SEPTEMBER q, 1895.
THE TARIFF AND WAGES.

1t would naturally be expected thai
the free traders would try to put the
best possible face upon the condition
of business and industrial matters as
result of the agitation they MADE 10
in favor of change in our economic
policy, and the legislation they hnaliy
enacted. After the present law had
been in effect one year, the New
York Herald published what it called
the comparative conditions or traoe
and labor under the operations OF the
Mckinley and Gormau-WIlson tarlH
laws. Had the comparison been a
fair one, it would have been most
interesting and valuable, but the
Herald allowed the ideas OF what III
desired to prevail, rather than the
exact facts. For instance it gave the
various instances where wages had
been increased during the past few
months and held that such advance
ment was over the rates that prevail
ed in 1892. The truth is that the
average reduction in wages from 1877
averaged about 25 per cent. and the
average is only per cent.
The american Economist showed up
to considerable extent the fallacy OF
the HeraLd'S claim and the Philadel-
Dhia Press showed it up in a better
light yet. In view of the HeratdS
claim as to wages, ETC., it addressed
a series of questions to large num-
her of manufacturing establishments
and received answers from eighty
eight. The questions and answers
are as follows:
Question No. /. Are you paying In
yonr establishment as high wages now
as Won were in 1891 and 1892! Yes,
%; no, 66. .o 90
Question No. 2. Is the rate OF
wages in your line OF manufacture
generally as high now as it was then!
Yes, 10; no, rs.
Question No. 3. Are you employing
as many men now as you were IN 1881
and 1892? Yes 40; no 80.
Question No. 4. Are demand ana
production in your line of business as
strong and as great now as they were
IN 1891 and 1892? Yes, q; no, 81.
Question No. 5. Has there been any
change since the enactment OF the
Wilson tariff in the kind OF grace OF
grade of goods produced in your line
of manufacture, and if so, what IS the
nature of the change? Yes, ~: no,
Al.
Making lower grade goods, 26; max
ing higher grade goods, ).
1t will be noted that the answers to
these questions do not in any way Sus-
tain the assumption of the Herald.
ONLY in few cases are the wages OF
1891 -92 being paid, and only in few
lines of manufacture are they being
sustained at as high point as in 1892
Probably no question brought out as
significant an answer as that in re-
gard to the grade of goods made.
Twenty-siX firms state that they are
making a lower grade of goods than
they did under the Mckinley law,
while only three report a higher
grade. This of course is made neces-
sary because of the increased compe-
tttion they have with the cheap
labor and inferior quality OF the goods
from abroad. Under the Mckinley
law the quality of the goods was con-
stantly improved, because American
manufacturers found that they must
strive to surpass each other in
uality in order to get and hold trade.
Now their competition has changed
base entirely. Thus we see that
on the whole wages are considerably
lower than under the Mckinley law,
while the quality of the goods is in
ferior and the alleged cheapness does
not ia reality exist. This is one of
the practical effects of the step to-
ward free trade. There is no calam-
ity howl in this as free traders at
tempt to make out, it is the facing OF
actual facts.