Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1906-09-19
E39aaaaaaaAHH4AHH4EB
q POLITICS aaaa 8
81 ==OF THE DAY -
Observation-Disclosures
Cost of Living.
OF THE DAY

Cost of Living.
II you find the grocery bills have In
creased inordinately don't blame the
grocer, but investigate the tariff tax
and you will find that 1t is the chief
reason for the increase. If your cloth
ing is costing more and most of what
you buy does not wear we'll, don't
blame the dry goods and clothing mer-
chants, for the tariff tax is the cause
of the high prices and shoddy goods.
II your hardware bill is higher and
| the kitchen and other utensils do not
wear as we'll as they used to, don't
blame the hardware merchant, he has
to buy what the trusts sell him and
the. tariff protects those corporations
and allows them to Increase the prices
for their products. If your rent has
been raised don't blame the landlord,
for the tariff has raised the price of
building materials, so that it costs
nearly 80 per cent more to build a
house now than 1t did before the pres
ent tariff law was passed in 1897. If
furniture costs more than 1t did, and
the cheaper kind is made Of green lum-
Der and soon goes to pieces, the tariff
on lumber and nails and yarnish and
all the material that is used In Its con.
struction is the cause of the advance
and the attempt to make cheap furni-
ture with dear materials Is the cause
of Its poor quality.
The average increased cost, Of all the
articles that 1t takes to keep house, is
Al per cent since 1897, the year this
prosperity breeding Dlngley law was
placed upon the statute books by the
Republican leaders.
Housewives who do the marketing
for the family now require nearly half
as much again to provide the food ond
the clothing for themselves and the
children as was needed befor this trust.
fostering tariff law went into effect
That is, If your income was $25 a week
in 1897, 1t must Uow be $3675 to buy
the same necessities on the average
Some few things like tea and coffee
have not Increased In price; in fact
those articles are cheaper, but there
Is no tariff tax on them, and they are
about the only things you can eat, drink
or wear that Is not taxed and that
some trust, or combine does not con.
troll and has not raised the price Of
The important question Is, has your
income increased as fast as your out
go? That must be answered by each
Individual.
II you do not like to keep asking
your husband for more money to run
the house, you had better talk over the
trust and tariff question with him, and
II he investigates lie will see at once
that prices have advanced and that you
need nearly half as much again as you
did In 1897.
Dun's Mercantile Agency, that sup
plies information about business af
fairs to all the wldeawake business
men, keeps n careful account eacl
month Of the rise and fall of prices Of
all articles that go into general con
sumption. The figures Of that great
agency show that on the average prices
have increased AZ per cent from July
1897, to July, 1905. You can INQUIRE
OF Dun's agents In any city and they
will tell you SO, or you can go to the
library In your town and call for Dun's
Review, which is published monthly
and see for yourself. II Dun's Review
Is not on file, ask for the Statistical
Abstract Of the United States for 1905
and on page 54l you will find the ia,
BILE of "Dun's Index Number for the
government has adopted 1t MS entirely
reliable, and not to be questioned, au
thority on that subject. In the las,
column on the page mentioned you vii
see the total for each year, the figure,
given being the average per capita to
tai cost Of all necessary articles Of
daily consumption for the year.
July, 1897, shows $72.455 and Janu
airy, 1906, shows $1O4.4G4. Taking ne
account of the odd decimal this show,
an increase of $33.91, or over 48 ne,
cent increase on the s72.45, which wa,
the cost in 1897. Since January of thi.
year prices have still further advanced
80 that on July the increase was 4,
per cent.
If space permitted, the details of thi.
plundering of the American peopl,
through the protection granted tn,
trusts In the tariff law could be given
But If you are interested to know NOR,
about it ask or write to the Democratic
candidate for Congress in your distric
to send you the three great tariff
speeches Of Hon. John Sharpe Will
Jams, made In the House of. Represent
atives during the last session of Con
gress, and you will be surprised to fint
what a fund Of evidence and informa
tion they contain on this important sub
ject to thu American people. And afte,
you have investigated the tariff anf
trust issue, make up your mind, If 1t i.
to your advantage, to continue thi.
system of protectionism BY taking tn,
advice of the Republicans to "stant
pat and voting to reflect Republican
candidates for Congress who have re
fused to revise the tariff, although
many of them promised their constId
ents to do SO.
What Congress Rejected.
The letter Of President Roosevelt IL
Congressman james Il. Watson of In
diana is an extraordinary illustration
Of his flexibllity and utter disregard
for facts when 1t suits his purpose t,
pervert them. He says that the Fifty
ninth Congress at Its first session eff