Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1903-07-03
NEAR TO COLLAPSE
HOLLOWNESS OF SO-CALlED
PROSPERITY SHOWN.
Manufacturers Fear to Be Caught
With Large Stocks of Goods on
Hand-Protected Trusts Have Been
the Only Real Gamers.

The hollowness and fickleness of
our present so-called prosperity is be-
coming apparent. Its delicacy and
unsoundness Is now being admitted by
thu many textile manufacturers In
Philadelphia. Nearly 100000 of their
employees struck for shorter hours and
some of them also for higher wages.
The textile workers thought it only
fair that they should get small share
of the great prosperity which they
have been hearing and reading about
for so many years. They were told
that it was too late and that not only
are the manufacturers not making
the profits they made few years
ago, but that the outlook for the
future is bad. The following is from
an editorial on the Philadelphia strike
in the Wool and Cotton Reporter of
June 4:
THE margin of profit per unit is
smaller in about every line of indus
try than was a couple of years ago
it Is not nearly as easy as 1t was
to secure an adequate return on capt.
tai devoted to productive purposes.
The manufacturers are also confront
ed by the fact that the general finan-
cial and industrial outlook is at pres
ent far from reassuring. There is In
,creasing evidence that retailers
throughout the country are overstocked
and the fear naturally exists that this
r,aopo Ioccopad oDpOrtupitioc FOR dis
posing of the products of the mills.
For instance, 1t was reported this
week that Marshall Field had instruct
led his purchasing agents to buy no
more goods of any sort, until his pres
ent stock was considerably reduced,
and he is said to have told O. bust
ness associate that he did not care
to stock ahead until the future was
clearer. The Philadelphia textile
operatives are probably not convers-
ant enough with the general financial
and industrial situation Of the country
to appreciate the manufacturers point
of view. The manufacturers cannot
be governed entirely by the factors OF
the immediate present. If the signs
of the times point to probable les
SEEMING of their profits in the not very
remote future through falling prices
for their products and lessened de-
mand, they could hardly be expected
to advance wages at this time, even
if their momentary profits were as
large as the operatives seem to be-
lieve."
We have had six years Of fine crops
which have been sold at high prices;
our tariff has not been touched and
probably will not be touched for
years to come; the crop prospects this
year are good and the outlook for
high prices is excellent. Why, then,
are there clouds in the industrial sky?
If our prosperity were real prosper.
ity for all and not simply prosperity
for the trusts and monopolies and high
cost of living to the masses. 1t would
not 60 all to pieces, as it now appears
to be doing, at the slightest suspicion
of anything but excellent crops. We
should be able to weather one year of
poor crops after five or six excellent
ones. We are not, because the pro-
tected trusts have Slapped the earnings
of the masses and exhausted their
buying powers.
Thus it is evident that there are
more reasons than one why we should
take Hanna's advice LET well enough
alone and keep on letting it alone;
hands off," Our thin-shelled, unsub-
stantial and unsound prosperity will
not stand handling, not even with
care" "Workingmen, beware; touch
it at your PERIL is the advice both of
the Republican politicians and pro
tected manufacturers. Stand pat,
don't bulge or look sidewise or the
whole protection-prosperity structure
will collapse.