Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1899-03-24
THE TARIFF, FOREIGN TRADE AND
TRUSTS.

| TRUSTS.
For the twenty months ending with
! February exports from the United States
aggregated ST. O62, S99 $3.50, while the exports
from the United Kingdom on1 10 dor me same 4r
| period aggregated 81, $40, 904, 19S. Your IN
! Gle Sam leads the world IN eXports.-heg-
! lister.
| 1.-The markets of the world" in spite of
! the "Dingley iniquity' isn't it?-Intelli-
gencer.
in spite of the 'Dingley iniquity' !"
is good, very good! Our contemporary
intended to be sarcastic. but in the
effort unconsciously made confession
of the truth and hit the tariff nail on
the head
Uncle Sam, most truly, has gained
possession of the markets of the world
IN SPITE OF a monopoly and trust
breeding tariff.
For decades the American giants
grand young limbs have been shackled
and his progress impeded by the dead
weight of a selfish and unwise policy
that long confined his efforts within
Chinese wall of so-called protection
practically cutting him off from the
worlds markets, which he has since
attained only because no artificial
means can confine forever his mighty
power. This unwise policy was ex-
plotted in this country under the guise
of protection to American labor
| heaven save the mark!-although it
has proven the greatest detriment and
hindrance to the prosperity of Ameri-
can labor and the advancement of
American industry. 1t began its work
| by destroying the American merchant
marine, which it has since vainly been
sought to rebuild by the bounty meth
cd, and with which American industry
kets of the world a generation ago and
would have done so but for this selfish
and piratical policy whose adherents
were satisfied to form trust combina-
tions under protection of the tariff to
control the home market and plumber
! the American consumer rather than
reap the fruits of legitimate industry
and trade.
The trust combine, which, with rare
exceptions, is the direct fruit Of the
eXorbitant tariff and could not exist
without that artificial aid. has long
been a great and growing menace to
American. industry. 1t has been a
cancer on industrial America that has
been constantly growing and sapping
it's life until now it has reached that
stage when the patient can be saved
only by the free use of the knife to cut
out the malignant growth by the roots.
Instead of reaching out for foreign
markets, the trusts have only sought
them when compelled to dispose of
their surplus production the trusts
have been unable to avoid surplus of
products although it is the cardinal
trust principle to prevent such by linn
iting production, that Is, by shutting
down and dismantling mills and throw
ing protected" American labor out Of
work, to maintain trust prices and
trust profits. But the trusts have sought
foreign markets only when compelled
to, for it is so much easier and requires
so much less enterprise to manipulate
the home market and rob the Amer
lean consumer.
So great and powerful have the
trusts become that in this year of our
Lord we find them in absolute control
not only of practically every branch of
American industry, but of the govern
ment, itself, as WELL No one will have
the hardihood to dispute that the pres
ert national administration is domi-
mated, yes, utterly and absolutely DOM
mated and controlled, not to say own
ed, by the trusts and the money power,
which are one and the same.
We have already brought expert tes-
timony from non-political trade jour-
mails to bear on this subject of the
trusts and the tariff, but here is some
more of the same, this time from the
American Wool and Cotton Reporter,
which is exceedingly interesting and
which we commend to the careful con-
sideration of reasonable men of all
parties:
| Last week in discussing the extraor(ii-
nary movement towards the formation of
trusts, we said: The subject of trusts
cannot be dismissed without a word being
said regarding the part which the public
are likely TO play in the matter. 1t is
claimed by many that the promoting of
| trusts cannot go much further without ex-
citing a revolt on the part of the people
and that this will take the form of a
mandate that Congress shall repeal all
tariff schedules favorable to industries