Omaha daily bee., 1896-10-18
MENACE OFpOLITICAL FAKlRS
Blight Of Free Trade Accentuated by Free
Silver Agitation.
DIMINISHED COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY
striking Illustration of the EucctS
of TnriT TinLcring aud Fiunu-
cini Agitation Afforded ~ the
Condition OF Cleveland.

CLEVELAND. o. Ost I,-tSpeclal Cor
respondence OF The Bee)-The municipal
Industrial and commercial life OF civilized
nations has invariably ccntered on their great
river or inland water cities. The river cities
OF the Loire, the Rhone, the Garonno and
the Seine have for centuries controlled tho
destiny and added to the splendor Of France,
The great and powerful towns OF Germany
may be found along the fertile valleys Of the
Aller the Elbc, the Rhine and on the Baltic;
OF Russia on the volsa, the Danube and the
Black sea, while the secre; OF wealth, power
and commercial supremacy Of Great Britain
lies on the banks Of the Clyde the Tyne, the
Severn the Mersey and the Thames.
What centers OF water and railway dis
trihution. OF industrial energy, OF CONNER
clal enterprise OF aggregated wealth, of po-
Htical power and OF historic interest the
names OF these renowned waterways suggest
They bring back memories likewise OF a mt
ncipal lie which in its development has
overturned ancient dynastios and left its
impress upon nations.
Great as are these waterways and their
magnificent and tcemins cites. conspicuous
as they have been in modern history. inHu-
entail as they have been in the Industrial
and commercial development Of Europe, the
present century has witnessed the growth
along the shores OF our superb inland lakes
These waterways have not their counterpart
in all Europe. Our lake cities give promise
to greater futures than any OF the great
cities Of Europe. They claim tribute from
areas as vast in extent as some European
nations. They are destined under safe and
conservative government and judiCiCus
fostering Of industry TO become as populous
and opulent as the greatest centers OF Euro
pean population.
INDUSTRIES OF CLEVELAND.
Cleveland is one OF the most conspicuous
Of these lake cities. In a former letter we
have seen the effect OF free trade and fuan-
cial disturbance upon one OF the most pros
porous shipping points on the lakes Cleve-
land as a manufacturing point tells the same
story. Strengthened by the widening means
NJ dsposing Of an immense product, the
varied industries of Cleveland have made
most rapid strides especially since 1850.
The manufactured product was more than
doubled in 1890, as compared with the figures
Of 1850; and this rate OF progress continued
until the close Of 1892.
Cleveland leads the United States in thirty
Industries, and the world In six: Cartons
wire nails. telescopes, large gears. cable
machinery and chewing gum.
Cleveland leads the United States in the
manufacture Of rods, wire, nuts. bolts, car
bons, gas stoves. chemicals wrenches, wire
nails, telescopes large gears. turn buckles
chewing gum, shipbuildng. yapor stoves,
wool shOddies socket shOvels, larGe forCings
heavy stampings, carriage supplies parailne
candles. highway bridges. cable machinery
short buggy bows. malleable castings. hoist
ing machinery, light gray iron castings, sew
ing machine cabinets. iron roofs for freight
cars, ownership OF ship tonnage. bituminous
coal shipments, common saddlery. cooperage
number OF packagcsl. These are only few
4 the industries allied to or dependent upon
the great furnace and rolling mill inter
ests, and they are mentioned simply because
he city is distinctively ahead In the manu-
facture Of these particular articles.
According TO the last United States census
only three or four cities in the country
we're growing more rapidly in population
than Cleveland, and few showed a greater
percentage OF gain IN the aggregate value
Of manufactured products and wages paid
Under such circumstances it might naturally
De expected that the increase during the
past few years would be enormous.
VANISHED EXPECTATIONS.
Were these great expectations realized?
Far from it.
In the decade from 1880 to 1890 the num-
Der OF workmen employed was increased
from 2l,72i to 4S,77l, and by 1892 this num-
Der had been Increased to over $4,000. 1t
might be expected as a natural sequence
nat the number Of artisans employed would
have increased by 1895 to fully 60 900 As
4 matter of fact, the statistics for that year
not only fail to fulfill this expectation, but
actually showed decrease OF about 10 per
cent from the aggregate number OF persons
employed in 1892. During the ten years
from 1850 to 1890 the total wages paid had
increased from $500, 935 to S27596 4OS. but
the total wage payments for the year 1895
aggregated. according to the carefully pre-
pared estimates OF leading manufacturers in
all lines OF Industry. something over IS per
cent less than was expended for the same
purpose in 1892.
From 10 to 10 per cent reduction In wages
-one-ttth less-has been the workman's
part OF the free trade burden in Cleveland.
Engaged in iron manufacture In Cleveland
sire l25 establishments, employing in times
of prosperity upward OF 10000 men and hay-
ing an annual output valued at $50, 600 600
Hardly one of these establishments has been
operated full time and with complete force
Of operatives for single month since the
accession to power Of the democrats In
1871. Take, for instance the case of the
Cleveland Rolling Mil company, concern
capitalized at $4,000. 600 and employing In its
various departments over $500 hands. More
over, the stockholders Of the company con-
troll some of the largest iron mines in the
Lake Superior district and own steel YES
sells on the lakes valued at S725. 900. The
close Of the year 1892 saw this company's.
plant. the largest In the city. in a more
prosperous condition than at any time in its
previous history; in fact. several depart
ments Of the plant we're being remodeled on
an extensive scale. a new blooming mill was
constructed at a cost OF $250,000 and prepa-
rations were made Tor the erection OF an
entire new steel mill. with three ten-ton
converters The depression of 1898, ho,-
ever, worked a complete change, and such
has been the scarcity OF orders that at no
time since the opening Of 1898 has the plant
been operated at its full capacity, and -
fact some of the mills have not operated for
a single day in over two years past.
FACTORIES on HALF TIME.
In the course Of talk which / had with
william Chisholm, the president OF this
company a few days ago he said: 1.-The
iron business could not well be in a more
disastrous condition than it is at present.
We are depending on the small orders we
receive each week to operate our plant, or,
rather. a portion OF II, during the week
following, ard when, as has occurred several
times recently, We do not receive a suf-
ficient number OF orders we are obliged TO
shut down absolutely. The price OF iron
products has Of course, gone down stead
lily ever sir ce the early part of 1893, but
the difference has been made up in reduced
prices OF material and cost of transporta-
tion and We have not reduced the wages
OF our men to any appreciable extent. They
have, however. had their hours OF work