The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1904-10-30
SOME REPUBLICAN FIGURES.

SOME REPUBLICAN FIGURES.
Republican campaign orators are
fond Of quoting figures alleged to show
how highly prosperous the country is
under the present administration. Con-
nected with the Treasury Department.
and therefore under the direction of
| the Hon. Leslie NJ. Shaw, Secretary of
| the Treasury, there is a bureau of
statistics, which has apparently re-
ceived orders to furnish all of the
figures that may be required to uphold
| the Republican contention. At any
| rate, the bureau has lately been pour
! ing out statistics as grist from a hop
| per, all going to show that everybody
is getting rich under the influence Of
a benign Republican administration.
1t was this bureau that demonstrated,
with figures, some weeks back that
while the cost of living had advanced,
the wages Of workingmen had in
creased in still greater proportion!
But how valuable are the figures so
glibly quoted by the Republican ora
tors? What basis of fact is there be-
hind them? 1t will not do to say they
are official" inasmuch as they come
from the bureau of statistics, and
therefore decline to further discuss
their correctness. The old adage that
figures cannot prevaricate may be
true, but there is another old saying
to the effect that there are three
means of misleading the people, name
ly with lies. d lies and statistics"
Hon. Leslie NJ. Shaw, Secretary of
the Treasury, and therefore in author
ity over and in close touch with the
bureau of statistics, made a speech in
New York the other evening. While
singing the praises of the glorious
Dingley tariff he instanced the bene-
fits that had been derived by working
people specifically and the whole coun-
try generally through the tariff on cut
diamonds. why" he said, the dia-
mond cutters of this country are now
earning s12000,000 a year. which other
wise would not be paid out in wages!"
Mr.. Shaw emphasized the point, and
beamed genially when he had driven
it home. million dollars a month
added to the incomes of workingmen!
Wasn't that something to be proud
off? And the benevolent tariff did it!
There were several manufacturing
jewellers and diamond merchants in
Mr.. Shaw's audience They were
amazed at his figures. They hadn't
any idea that so great a business in
diamond cutting could have grown up,
under their very noses, without their
knowing anything about it. They got
together and talked the matter over,
and finally started little investiga-
ton on their own hook. They had
the means of locating every diamond
cutting establishment in the country
and ascertaining how many men
were employed. The Evening Post
says what they learned was that
there were approximately 400 diamond
cutters in New York city and, at
liberal estimate, about 100 in all the
rest of the country, making 500 in the
United States. The average wages of
a diamond cutter is approximately
$50 a week, out the gentlemen lnNeSJl-
eating agreed to call the average wage
$40 a week so as to make a calculation
on outside figures. Taking these
figures-and they were made by men
whose business it is to know every
thing about the diamond trade--it will
be seen that the total annual wages
paid to American diamond cutters is
only a little more than 100000 From
this it would appear that Secretary
Shaw was just about 100000 a year
off in his calculation with respect to
the benefits conferred by the tariff
on cut diamonds.
Is this a fair sample of the accuracy
of the statistics of the Republican
spellbinders?