Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1898-10-13
LOG Ro.z1Ne EXTRAORDINARY
The Foolish Trade Policy Of the
Party That Stands for
High Tariff.

Under the Wilson tariff law, which,
though by no means perfect, was
measurably enlightened, lumber was
on the free list, to the great advantage
of every consumer of lumber, an adj
vantage enjoyed largely by the people
| in the northwest, where the use OF
lumber in the construction of dwell
| ings and farms is well-nigh universal.
But lumber manufacturers who had
| denuded the great natural forests of
the northwest made an outcry. Their
| privileges-that is, their opportunity
| to put their hands in another mans
pocket by the aid of the general gov
ernment-were infringed.
When this country returned to Nc
Kinleyism tariff tax was placed upon
| lumber, the purpose being to shut out
from this market the manufactured
product of Canadian forests. But the
schedule was cunningly contrived.
Logs were not placed upon the free list
| by name, but the schedule of lumber
was so drawn that, as matter of fact,
| they were exempt. The reason was
that the great lumber barons of the
northwest, who had grown mighty in
| their riches taken with the aid of the
| government from every household
| found themselves without sufficient
supply of logs to be dressed. They
wanted free trade in logs, and so the
| schedule was arranged that logs raft
ed from the Canadian possessions Oh
| the great lakes should come to then
free, while the product of the Cana
dian mills should come to this country
| taxed.
Mr.. Dinghy, who prepared the latest
Mckinley atrocity, was particularly
careful to look after his own constit
uents, and, lest the general claus
might fail he had clause incorporat
ed looking to the especial protectio:
| of American owners of forests of the
state of Maine upon the st. John river
| and its tributaries and the ST. CroiS
river if logs were sawed or hewed in
| the province of New Brunswick, all
such product to come in free.
When Canadians found that the
| United States had so arranged thei1
| tariff as to gain for the lumber barons
| CT the American lake region free logs
| and tariff on sawed lumber they rose
| in their wrath, and. intimating that
| they could do something of the Ding
| ley act themselves, put an export duty
on Canadian logs equivalent to Amer
lean duty on sawed lumber. Thus the
lumber barons of the United States in
| the lake region were beaten at their
own game. They could not have the
whole hog themselves.
Since divers and sundry differences
have arisen largely by reason of arti-
fetal restraints on freedom of COM
merce between Canada and the United
States commission has been created
to adjust them. It is now sitting in
Quebec, making little progress be-
cause of the hide-bound, moss-backed
character of the American commits
sioners, who do not understand the
benefits of freedom of commerce, but
imagine that the American people may
get rich by taking themselves for the
benefit of some particular manufac.
turing millionaires. They want Can.
ada to throw off the export duty on
logs, but the Canadian commissioners
answer in substance that where equity
is sought, equity must be done, and as:
sert that no concession will be made
on the part of the Canadian govern.
ment In the way of permitting Cam
adam logs to go free into the United
States unless the United States make
some concession in the way of reduc-
ing or removing the present duty Of
two dollars a thousand on Canadian
sawed logs.
Reprisals beget reprisals. At the
end of the nineteenth century. in the
most enterprising and enlightened
quarter of the globe, a foolish trade
policy is pursued worthy of the dark
est of the dark ages.-Chicago Chron.