The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-02-13
SOME FACTS FROM THE OTHER


The minority report of the Indus
tial Commission made b. Thomas w.
Philips of New Castle, Pa, is attract
! ing as much. if not more, attention
than the majority report. The fact
that Mr.. Philips is a Republican gives
weight to what he says, in view of
the understanding that the commission
was organized for the purpose of boil
STEERING up the protective system. 1t
is true that the commission in its re-
port insists that the antitrust law
shall be enforced, but it has nothing to
say about the part the tariff plays in
making il possible for trusts to obtain
exorbitant prices for their products
from American consumers.
Mr.. Philips takes up the question of
the trusts and their relation to the
tariff, and points out that on account
Of the protective nature Of the tariff
the prices charged in the home mar
ket for trust products are very much
greater than the prices at which these
products are sold in foreign markets.
He explains why it is that the trusts
on the money invested in them. The
great bulk of the output of the trust
plants is sold in the home market,
at prices which amount almost to rob
berry. If it were not for the protec-
ton which the trusts receive from the
tariff they would not be able to get
the prices they do for their products.
l=
the tariff be taken off of ali steel pro-
ducts and iron ore; also off of wood
pulp, spruce logs, crude petroleum and
other raw materials which are limited
in supply and which, therefore, can be
monopolized.
The commission recommended that
another commission be appointed to
inquire into the question as to whether
articles manufactured by trusts are
sold in foreign markets at lower prices
than are demanded in the home mar
ket, but Mr.. Philips took the ground
that there was no reason for an in
quiry of that kind because the infor-
nation could be obtained without the
expense of a commission-that the in
the protectionists want is a commits
sion that will confuse the public mind
on this subject of selling for lower
prices in the foreign markets than in
the home market, and it would not be
surprising if they should have a coma
mission of that kind appointed. Only
the other day the Ways and Means
IL
Representative Babcock which provid-
ed for just about such a reform of
the tariff as that proposed by MIR.
Philips, except that Mr.. Babcock did
not favor taking the tariff off of raw
materials
Before the people understood the pro-
tective system as well as they do now
the protectionists insisted that a prac-
tically prohibitve tariff was necces-
sary for the protection of American
workmen. Now that it is known that
American workmen need no protection
the great trusts say that if the pro-
tective system were abolished the
small OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES competitors
/ would be ruined. They admit that
! they themselves could get along With
out protective tariff, but they are
very positive that the smaller manu-
featuring concerns. could not. This
sympathy and solicitude of the trusts
for their small competitors is so ludi-
crous that it must make the protec-
tionists on the Ways and Means Com
mittee smile when they are in the Sc
clusion of their committee room.
The fact that Mr.. Philips was al
one time connected with concerns that
were competitors of the Standard Oil
Company, and, it is said, did not pros
per as he expected to do, does not
weaken his report, because the state.
ments on which he based his conclu-
sions can be easily verified.