Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1907-10-10
METHOD In SCHEME
5ACO5 SCHlFF, FINANCIER, FA-
VORS TARIFF REDUCTION.
This Would Stop the Building Up of
Great Monopoies and the Accumu-
Iaton of Vast Fortunes, and Make
MIR. Schit's Money Worth More.

Iatlon or vast fortunes, and wake
MIR. Schin's Money Worth More.
Money talks, but not always reason
ably or intclligently. For example, Mr..
Jacob II. Schiff, member of one of the
worlds largest banking houses and di-
rector in u dozen or 50 Of lesser bank
ing and loan concerns, has lately
broken into print with the following:
Nothing Will so thoroughly prevent
the building up of great monopolies
and the accumulation of the vast for
tunes. the existence of which is at the
bottom of the prevaiIing social unrest
as sound and sensible revision of
the tariff 1t is right that Amer
lean industry and the American work
ingman be protected against undue
foreign competition, but it cannot be
right to compel the American consum-
or to pay a vast profit to the manufac-
turcr where the latter under a much
lower tariff would be able to maintain
himself, Herein lies the principal rem
edy which needs to be applied if the
causes which have brought about pres
ent conditions are to be permanently
eradiCatcd."
1t will be noticed that Banker
SchiTs sole concern is for the con-
eumer Most consumers arc also pro.
ducers, but we are not aware that
Banker Schiff is producer. Breed
er, perhaps, but nos producer. He
mGrries coin and currency together
and takes the increase He profits
by the merger o. corporate properties,
but we have not heard that by so
much as a dollars worth he has ever
advanced raw or partly finished mate
rial in value by manufacturing proc.
ess. Mr.. Schiff is said TO control a
larger quantity of spot cash than any
other one person in the United States.
Naturally he is interested in enlarging
to the utmost extent the purchas,ne
power of his cash Not being the pro
Queer Of any commodity advanced in
value by human labor. he would like
to buy more of the products of labor
with his dollars. A dear dollar and
cheap man would suit Mr., Schitf BET
ter than a cheap dollar and d dear
man.
An able financier may not be an
able industrialist The man who
knows how to make two coins grow
where one coin grew before is not
necessarily high authority on any
thing but his finance. 1t is more than
possible that he knows very little Of
the relation of labor cost to production
cost in manufacturing and the relation
OF tariff TO both. Quite certain it is
that Mr.. Schiff does not speak where
Of he personally knows when he as.
serts that American manufacturers,
paying double the European rate OF
wages and ten times the oriental rate,
could maintain themselves under a
much lower tariff Ninety-live per
cent. OF the business men engaged in
manufacturing, TO say nothing of the
10,OOO,OOO men who work for wages, do
not agree with Banker Schiff in this
matter. They do not think that Amer
lean labor and production would under
much lower tariff remain as pros
porous as they now are. To prove
this they have an argument that even
money lenders should be able to see
the force of. They point to the fact
that this country is now importing
each year more than 100000, 600
worth of competitive products. Gen.
orally speaking, this does not Indicate
that the tariff is much too high.
If Mr.. Schiff could spare a moment
from his tariff ripping lucubrations he
might discover something of direct
fiscal significance in the latest trade
returns. The official statistics for the
seven months ending with July, 1907,
show that our imports had increased.
over the same period in 1906. Sl36..
158,370, while our exports show an
increase of $99,469,605. The net in
crease of imports for the seven
months has been $36 ,756, or at
the rate OF $63, 100000 a year. But
the showing for the month of .Jl1fy,
1897, is still more significant I'M
ports show an increase over the same
month in 1906 of $22.238,517. or at the
rate Of nearly 1861 900 600 a year;
while exports for July, 1907, increased
Sl6.S6l ,96l, or at the rate of little
over $2OO,O0O,00O a year.
This marked rate of increase of i'm.
ports as compared with exports has
occurred under the tariff as it is-or
as 1t IS supposed to be. When the
tariff should be reduced to suit Mr.
Schiff the flood of imports would enor.
mousiy increase. that being the main
object sought by tariff reduction. Then
we should be sending gold abroad OUT
OF our banks to balance trade. Al
the rate imports are even now gaining
upon exports our trade balance is
being greatly reduced. Any further
increase of the rate of gain of imports
would be likely to bring on gold ex.
portation panic. Tariff reduction
would hasten the advent of that sill
uation.
FOOLISH TO Force 1t.