St. Paul daily globe., 1896-04-15
In THE HOUSE OF THEIR FRIENDS

The tin-plate men are again in the
depths of dependency. 1t is not ap-
prehension Of Democratic free trade,
not the reduction of one cent pound
in their protection made by the senate
bill, that is paralyZing their industry.
Loudly as they protested that they
could not stand the reduction, and bit
the deluge of cheap foreign tin plates
that was about to submerge them,
they stood up under the reduction
bravely; and, as if to strip their old
scare-crow Of all dlsguises, the tin
plate mills 1ourished and multiplied
under and in spite Of the reduction
until John Jarrett, the secretary of
their association, predicted that 1896
would see domestic mills supplying
the entire home demand. 1t is not Of
Democratic free trade they are now
complaining. but Of an overdose of
their own policy of protection admin
istered to them remorselessly by a
combination Of protectees who, as
their material men, are proposing to
have their full measure of protection
regardless Of tfeir dependents, the tin
plate men.
We alluded recently to the formation
of the steel billet combination. Sc
cretly as were kept the sessions Of the
combiners,it leaked out that their pur-
pose was to utilize the protection Sem
ator Gorman's little coterie Of senators
gave them to its fullest. They had
been selling billets as low as SIS a ton
within the year. The tariff, as nearly
as one can find the rate in the maze
of the schedule, is $6.72 ton, which
would bring the import price up to
about $22 or $23. This tariff profit the
billet men want, and they agreed that
$22.5O was about the figure the market
would stand. What's the use Of pro-
lection unless you get it? And what
is it for unless 1t Is "enjoyed?" So
the price was marked up to $2275 for
Eastern billets and S20.25 for Western.
Billets are the raw material of the tin
bars and again into the thin sheets for
timing. Increase Of the cost of ma
terial means either increase of price
for plates or, If that cannot be done, a
loss of profit and, possibly, of capital.
So the action Of the steel combine
was a matter Of serious import to the
tin plate men. The reduction of the
tax was a pressure from above; this
is pressure from below. Within the
limits Of the IL cents a pound tax on
imports price could be advanced had
not the margin been already used I'D.
for tin plate prices have kept close to
the import price. If the price exceeds
the latter then comes the flood of
plates from Wales, and the dickens is
to pay. So it can be seen that it was
with no pleasure the plate men saw
the billet men getting ready for their
harvest. They sent an unlimited del
egation down to the meeting of the
bllleteers, to coin fit term, to get a
hearing and make protest, or rather
to beg for permission to continue max
ing tin plates. What was their recep-
ton? How did one set of protectees
greet another of the same family
What tender consideration did thew
show them? What share of their
protection" did they accord them?
Let Mr.. Graham, president of the
tin plate association, tell. ''Were the
steel makers" asks the reporter of the
Ohio Valley Manufacturer, an organ
of the stiffest sort Of protection, "ad-
vised of the unfavorable influence OF
their action on the tin plate business ?''
"a statement" said Mr. Graham
practically as made to you Chat "tin
plate makers can only hope to avoid
the greatest loss by closing their
works) was made to the meeting OF
steel plate makers at their meeting in
New York last week. Not in Sc
many words, but in matter, the reply
to the tin plate makers who appealed
for aid to the extent that tin plate
bars and these alone, be excluded from
the pool products, was: You have our
sympathy, We are very sorry indeed