The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-04-04
Fighting Over the Plumber.

The press dispatches contained brief
announcement that there was war
on among the tin plate manufacturers
and that prices had been cut to $2.70
hundred. The meagerness of the de-
tail left it uncertain whether this was
disruption of the combination that
Included nearly all the mills, or whether
1t is a combined assault upon those
mills that have refused to come into
the combination, to freeze them out or
force them into the combination. It
would be interesting to know this phase
of the matter; but it is immaterial for
the purpose in hand, and that is to
show the utter uselesSness Of the tax
of one and a half cents a pound laid
on imports of tin plate for either rev.
enue purposes or the protection of the
lustieSt of our infants .-.
We have adverted to the fact that
the reduction of the tax on imports
from 20 to IL cents a pound in 1894
was followed not only not by closing
mills, but by an increase in their num-
Der and the enlargement of many of
the mills previously established. Nor
has the increase of tax granted by
Dingley's act to is cents made any per-
ceptible increase in their number or
output, while it has materially decreas-
ed the importations. For the year end
ing June 80, 1897, the domestic output
was 446,962,063 pounds, an increase of
Al per cent over the previous year, and
the net imports-for there were 1884,
246, $50 pounds eXported-were 105, 161, All
pounds. The approximate annual con-
sumption Of the country is 552. 900, coo
pounds. The capacity of the mills al
ready in operation is about $50, 000, 900
pounds yearly.
During 1897 the wholesale price of do
nestle plate averaged 1915 box of 100
pounds. In December the price rose to
$3.50, and to $685. in January, 1893
at which price it remained until
this break. The import price of
tin plate, that is, the cost In
foreign markets, ranged between
1920 and $40 box, the January quo
tation being $500. The tax of $1.5O
brings this cost, aside from freights,
insurance and commission, to from So. 70
to $3.50. The domestic price, 1t Is thus
seen, has ranged closely to the import
cost Of the foreign plate, showing that
the plate makers have utilized to the
full the opportunity given them by the
Dingley act. Without the tax the price
of plate, laid down, would be about
that now made by the rupture, around
$2.70 box.
That our plate makers can make their
plate at that price and thrive Is shown
by the fact that they have exported a
considerable quantity. This they had
to dispose of at the same price as the
foreign makers got for their plate. 1t
follows that the is cents tax on imports
operates as a direct tax on the consum-
ers for every pound of the domestic
plate. This amounted to Sc, 700, 900 on
the product of the year 1897 On the
other hand the impost produces little
or no revenue, for the bulk of the plate
imported is used by the Standard Oil
and other canning companies for their
export trade, and they get rebate of
all but ! per cent of the tax paid
when the plate made into cans, Is ex-
ported. The quarrel over the plumber
of the consumers of tin-for we as
vision Of the spoils-should open the
eyes of those who yet think tin plate
could not be made here but for the
tax of is cents pound on imports
1t Is but another of the many phased
use of the government to enrich a few
AT the common cost