Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1899-08-10
BRYAN'S DILEMMA.
Many Workers Becoming Convinced
of the Benefits of Pro-
tcctive TartiT.

]
ever received before, and higher than
have ever been paid IN the tinplate
manufacture anywhere else. Most of
| them are men of more than ordinary
| intelligence. and are likely to have con-
| siderab BILE influence where they live.
They are certain TO be assured that
the payment of such wages would not
be possible had not the many tinpIate
concerns been united by the formation
of one great company, and in view of
the intense competition which did pre-
vail in that business last October and
earlier, resulting in some reduction of
wages and the closing of some works.
they are likely to believe il. When
! Mr.. Bryan comes before them and de-
mands the destruction of all these
trusts" as enemies of the people and
cruel nonopolies, the $4,000 tinplate
workers will consider among them
selves whether they would prefer no
combinations and lower wages. They
will be likely to present the question
in that form to other workingmen
wherever they live. and Mr.. Bryan's de-
nunciation may have a kind of influence
which he does not expect or desire.
But this is only sample. There are
over a hundred of these large corpora
tions recently formed, which employ "A
great number of men. Though not one
of them-not even the tinplate concern
itself-has a complete monopoly, they
all have so far checked competition be-
TWEEN different works, and cut off eX
penses of management and distribu-
ton, that they are able to pay higher
wages than We're paid a year ago. But
the wages of several hundred thousand
men, not in these industries only, were
raised within few weeks last spring,
and similar changes have been made
at all sorts of works throughout the
| year They have not been confined to
works controlled by new corporations,
but il will be easily claimed that the
restriction of competition among those
which have been united has materially
affected the market for others also.
and to some extend influenced the
wages they are able to pay. 1t is also
| the plain truth that this tremendous
change in the condition OF industries
and in the wages of labor has not been
due to new corporations, either wholly
or in the main, but was in progress be-
fore they were formed. and would
have gone far if they had never been
formed. The question for Mr. Bryan,
however, is whether he can charge pros
perity to the tariff or to 1.-THE trusts
1t is becoming clear that great
many of the workers. who have not
beer educated to compre hend the bene
ticent work of the protective tariff,
will be inclined to give credit largely
TO the consultations which appear on
the surface of things most useful TO
the men they employ. While a vast
number of republicans. who know what
came TO pass under Cleveland and
Wilson tariff and what followed under
Mckinley and a Dingley tariff, will un-
derstand that the prosperity of all in
dustries has been restored, and not of
those only in which consultations have
been effected. the other multitudes with
which Mr.. Bryan has to deal have been
educated in democratic notions about
the tariff. 1t will be easier for many of
them to refuse credit for wonderful
sperity to a republican tariff, ana TO
conclude that the curbing of competi-
tion by industrial organizations has
been TO them IL source of direct and i'm
portant gain.
The trouble for Mr.. Bryan and for all
democratic demagogues in the cam
paign they are planning for next yeaI
is that they will have to deal with great
corporations which have been advaEc-
ing the wages Of many thousand dem
ocratic workingmen. If they go up
and down in the land declaring tllat
the corporations have been robbing the
public "A great many people will have
doubts about that. because they find in
their own experience that wages have
been advanced. If others pay little
more for this or that article. there is
always the question how far the higher
cost of materials made that necessary.
and the argument on that point is too
complicated for ready popular appre-
citation. but the thing which every man
can understand is that his wages have
been raised. Since Mr.. Bryan will not
admit that any credit is due to the
tariff on thar score. what luck is he
likely to have in denouucing the indus
trial corporations IN. y. Tribune.
EJThe meeting Of the democratic
national committee at Chicago and the
various side shows connected with it
indicate pretty conclusively that Mr.,
Bryan. is to be the next nominee OF his
party for PRESIDENT and also that when
the time comes for making a platform
lie can make it to suit himself.-N. \.
Post (Dcm.).
GA curious felicity of pleasure is
given to Col Bryan. \ few weeks age
he was taken to the Dismal Swamp.
Then he compared himself with the
Mammoth cave. Young Carter Har
rison took him on an excursion along
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