The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1899-02-10
A RoBBER TARIFF.
Repubiicsn Protection Drisgs Pros
perity 20 Trasts and Mo-
aopoltes.

The Mckinley tariff of 1890 enabled
Americans TO put up tinplate factories.
There is no doubt about that. Tinplate
was sold as high as six dollars box.
All consumers of tin, and the consum-
ers of fish. fruit and vegetables canned
In tin, contributed bonus 10 the infant
industry. 1t got on it's feet. Now IL has
grown so great that IL not only supplies
the home market but exports sur
plus; so rich that ii pays dividends on
enormous issues Of stock; SO strong
that it has developed into a most lord
ly and gigantic trust. which controls
every tinplate factory in the country
and advances prices with none 10 mo-
lest or make afraid, The tinplate trust
must be struck down; and the only way
10 strike at il is by adjustment OF the
tariff which supports it.
The American Tinplate company has
acquired the 80 large tinplate fac
tories in the United States. What they
cost nobody knows. But they could be
duplicated for s7.5O0.0O0. The trust is
capitalized, however, at Sj0,0O0.000. OF
which 500, 100000 is preferred stock, and
$50 900 900 common stock. The trust is
expected TO make money on this enor-
nous capitalization. The preferred
stock is quoted as high as 1872, and the
common at 46 bid and so asked. The
promise of the promoters is said to be
for seven per cent dividends.
How will it make the profit? BY ad-
vancing the price of tinplate. Tinplate
could be bought by Columbia river sal
mon Gamers last September at s3.lo a
box. Now il is quoted at S3.65 and con-
tracts cannot be made at that. The sal
mon pack of the Pacific coast is some
10000 cases year. This requires
$4,000 boxes Of tinplate, costing, at
S3G5, 81, ls2 GOO. of which sl7s.2O0 is
taken from us by the advance since Sep
TENDER. There are no figures of Pacific
coast fruit Gamers. Probably they do
rot use quite as much tin as our salmon
Gamers. but large amounts are used in
California for putting up fruits and veg
etables. If the tin consumption OF fruit
and vegetable Gamers is equal TO that
OF the salmon packers, we are out be
tween $3.50 600 and $500 900 through this
latest advance in tinplate. made TO pay
dividends on the swollen stock Of the
trust.
But this is not the real loss 10 bs
borne by consumers of fruit. fish and
vegetables. and by the Oregon farmer
and the Columbia river fishermen. W.
produce iron and steel cheaply enough
TO export il. In fact. we export tin
plates themselves. The duty is super
fuous. This duty amounts TO Sl.20 1
box. On 64s.OO0 boxes of tinplate ths
Pacific coast is filched Of $3.50. 900 year
For the whole country the output .
the trust is estimated al 10000 boxes
Ii will sell this at Si.20 box more thar
II can afford TO sell il for. or S9Coo.Oo
in the aggregate. fiiched ont of thu
pockets of the people under the tariff.
We hear a great deal Of talk abou
laws against trusts. They ought TO b
controlled. no doubt. When they vic
late laws they should he fined. As pre-
yded in statutes. When they brib
senator's. judges or juries the guilt
officials should be sent TO the peniter
tiary. But these remedies are hardl
worth bothering with as long as tn
great bulwark behind which the trust
carry on their robbery is untouched
.he protection accorded them by tn
tariff. Men viii be elected TO congress
some Of these days. and not 50 very dis
iant either. who will vote TO Withdraw
protection from every one OF these co
lossal trusts. The republican party cal
10 THE or n can stand aside for hos
who will-Portlaud Oregonian.