Arizona daily citizen., 1901-11-07
HIGH WAGES CHEAPEST.

The doctrine that high priced labor
is the cheapest received strong support
before the industrial commission a few
days ago from two sources. One of the
witnesses to that fact was Herman B.
Butler, Il Chicago iron merchant, who
believes in combinations and trade
agreements" and also considers their
effect on wages beneficial Those con-
Germs were the most successful. he
thought. which paid the highest wages.
Wage -earners could always secure
better terms from concerns which were
making money than from those which
were not. and the more profit made by
the combination the greater would be
the wages OF its employees. The publ
cation OF the profits of a corporation
would enable it's employees to keep an
eye on this feature of the business.
where they would have no such ad-
vantage in the case OF an individual
owner. He thought. for these reasons
organized labor welcomed the develop
ment OF the trust system 1t is quite
out Of the ordinary that man of such
views should hold to the benefit of
high wages in securing cheap products
cessful without producing cheaply A
more convincing argument of the ques-
tion was brought forward by Mr. Ed
ward l.. Atkinson, who called the at
tention of the commission to the sta
tiStics of our foreign commerce. and
said.
We are now exporting crude. partly
manufactured and finished goods of
every type to every part of the world
except those products which are bur
dened with heavy taxes on necessary
materials of foreign origin. We are
exporting cotton and cotton fabrics,
corn rordage wheat and flower. pro-
visions machinery and metallic pro-
ducts OF every kind, clocks watches
and miscellaneous articles. II the rate
OF wages governed the cost of labor in
the product not one dollars worth of
any of these goods could leave our
shores, The earnings of the fellaheen
of Egypt and the ryots of India are
not one-fourth the earnings of the la
horers in our cotton fields, hardly one
tenth. including Russia, those of the
laborers in our wheat fields. yet ouT
cotton and our wheat constitute the
chief supply of the world The cotton
of Egypt. limited in quantity by the
area of available lands. Ills a tempo
rafy place in competition with ours be-
cause il is ginned, prepared, baled and
sent to market in a condition that
puts our former methods to shame
Here is an argument that is unan-
swerablc. That we have the higher
priced labor is conceded by everybody
That we are exporting the goods can
not be questioned We can sell goods
in competition only by selling cheap
er, or by selling better goods for the
same money, which is practically the
same thing And we are not only sell
ing where foreign goods are met In
foreign markets on equaI terms. but
also are selling in many cases in the
-
under the handicap of tariff
duty, And MIR Atkinson cIinched his
argument by reference to the recent
agitation in continental Europe for
protection against our competition as
follows
The continental states of Europe are
trying to find out how to defend them
selves against the cheap but high prize
ed labor OF Great Britain. yet more
against tne cheaper and high priced
labor OF the United States. II the pre-
judiees of race and creed and difference
in language permitted, there is scarce
ly doubt that all of the Europears
States except Russia might combine to
boycott the products of Great Britain
and the United States; that was the
great object of Napoleon In his effort
to destroy British commerce and
manufactures. He failed so utterly thar
his own contractors were obliged to
buy the forbidden goods OF Great
Britain in order to equip his armies
for the Russian campaign. Germany
Is now trying to defend the agrarians
or great landowners against the inter
est OF the masses by heavy duties on
corn and provisions, repeating the /
blunder of the British tories in their |
efforts to maintain the corn law The |
more the continental States of Europe |
shut out the food, metals. fibers and ia |
Dries of this country. the higher will |
be the cost OF their own manufactures, |
the less the margin left to pay for
wages and the more they will give to |
Great Britain and the United States |
absolute control of the commerce OF |
the world.
The truth that country Injuries it. !
self by shutting out or increasing the |
price of raw material Is almost self
evident, and it is equally clear that
with higher-priced materials the only /
chance to reduce price for competitive |
purposes must come through cutting
wages The United States has had the
advantage of producing most of its
own raw material. and In SO far as it
has increased the cost of raw material
by tariffs 1t has necessarily either in
creased the price of products or cans-
ed a reduction of wages.
pARTisANshiP AND ANARCHIsN.
nj bsst Lad trxKs