The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1899-07-01
TRUSTS AND TARIFF.
Combines Are Not the 0utgrowth of
Protection.
An Effective Remedy Cannot BE
Found In Removal of Duties from
Commodities Manufactured in
Foreign Countries.

Commenting on the organization of
trusts, the GAINESVILLE Courier recently
said
The Courier desires to protest against
the attempt, now beginning to be again
apparent in some of the old free trade
organs, to attribute the increase of trusts
to the fostering influence of protection.
We do not believe that tariff, high or
low, has anything to do with formation OF
trusts. The impulse toward the combina-
ton of capital, as the Courier pointed out
some time since, does not primarily spring
from the relations of manufacturers to the
public, but from the internal economy of
their own business affairs. Usually the
movement to establish a trust does not
originate in desire to increase prices, but
in the purpose to reduce expenses, and
to improve the stability and certainty of
business by enlarging the base. Generally
speaking price increases are incidental
and not burdensome to the public.
1t has been the contention of free
traders from the founding OF the first
trust that protection is at the bottom
equally positive contention OF the free
traders that high duties on imported
goods prevent the sale OF American
goods to foreign nations.
Experience has demonstrated the fall
lacy of the latter contention as it
would the fallacy Of the former. Ii
every customhouse were leveled to the
ground, and every port opened to free
importation of foreign goods, trusts
would be formed and they would be
more necessary than under protective
tariff, unless we are willing to abandon
manufacturing and become purely an
agricultural people.
The primary object Of trusts is to in
crease profits by reducing expenses.
Under trust, the aggregate of wages
in particular industry is reduced, not
by cutting down the wages Of those
continuing in employ, but by reducing
the number of high-priced employees,
chiefly in the managing and selling de-
partments of that Industry.
If all the republican papers of Ohio
were combined under one management
with one chief editor, a half-dozen edi-
torial writer's would do the work now
done by hundreds of writer's. The
same political views would be expressed
in all of them just as the same political
views are expressed in all of them now,
and the variety would be solely in the
local departments of the several papers,
because that variety would be necessary
and essential to success in each par
ticular locality. One man would do the
buying for all of them, and 500 buyers
would be thrown out of employment.
Those still employed would probably
receive higher wages than at present
allowed. The saving would be in the
reduction of the force. The political
articles would be prepared under the
supervision of one chief editor instead
of under hundreds, and so in every de-
partment. The saving would reach mil
lions of dollars and the profits to the
stockholders would be correspondingly
increased.
The greatest trust in the United
States pays the highest wages. 1t saves
by confning the management of great
industry to few men, and not by cut
ting down the wages of those who are
the actual producers. Split this trust
into several pieces, and we either cut
down the profits to the owners of the
plants or increase the prices to the con-
sumers of the product. The tariff has
nothing to do with it.
Strike the duty off of steel rails, and
the necessity for trust in that indus
try would be greater than it is now, and
"a trust would be formed to take in
every possible foreign competitor.
Strictly speaking, undcr absolute free
trade human industry would be trade
without a country, would know no
country, would be cosmo-national, not
national. The industry would ignore
geographical lines and gather into one
fold all it's branches and outposts and
become an international trust. There
is not steel rail maker in England who
would not gladly combine. with his
American competitor to control the
output and absorb the market.
Then the wages of the producing Ia
borer would be cut to an international
scale and he would be helpless in the
hands of the octopus" The only safe
guard the American employee has is in
the protection given him by the duty
on the foreign product. Deprive him
of that, and wages in the United States
would drop to the European level, he
cause the laborer would be at the mercy
of an international combination of cap
ital and the interest Of capital in his
particular industry.
Protection is far more beneficial 20
the laborer than to the capitalist.
Given q free course, with no protection
to the employee, capital would speedily
come to an agreement, and it would not
matter to the capitalist whether the
product on which he makes n profit is
made in Europe or America, ct home or
abroad. Capital is citizen of the
world. Labor is the citizen of locality.
The men who possess the capital will
send their money into the remotest
parts of The world if assured the larger
profits. They do not believe that din
ner of herbs larded with content is bet
ter than fat OK without contentment.