The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1908-10-29

Tin, Manufacture Of lumber is one
col th. most important industries in
..,.rtu Carolina. The almost com =
,.|.t, puraly sis Of this business for the
/ '..-t eighteen months has contributed
more than any other one thlns 10
make North Carolina feel the depress-
"a, fleets of the Roosevelt panic.
which really hit the lumber business
TX months before it broke in fun
force in Wall street. The manutac-
turc OF lumber is one of the great IN
dustries of the South. and one which
would for this reason appeal with
,.sueciaI force 10 the best wishes and
protection Ofthe Democratic party. 1t
Is true that the Democratic party, IN
responding to the universal demand
4 from the whole country for relief from
th,. cxactiOns of the wood pulp paper
manufacturers included lumber in
with it's demand that wood pulp
timber and logs be placed on the free
list, and the Republicans of North
carolina have seized upon TINS TO Try
I, persuade she lumber people away
from the Democratic national ticket
Du the face of it there may appear to
L. some force in the appeal when
i th,v make But the lumber manu-
1arturrrs are people who are &C
rustumed to go beyond the mere sur
4 1.c,. of questions and get at the essen
fi;I facts. and when they do this they
VIII ma no itdSOIl lol ouppOA NihS Iiio
administration which has brought
uuon them the most disastrous eriOd
ul their business, or for experimenting
any danger from the Democratic posi-
ton.
ROOSEVELT for Free Lumber and Wood
Pulp.
AS far as this question may be pre-
Sumed to give the Republican party
any advantage is concerned, it is quite
fi,i. tn
fact which may be taken as fact,
that the tariff is going to be taken OFT
If lumber, whichever party may be
successful at the polls on November
&rd. The Republican party as we'll
as the Democratic party, stands ire
vocabIy committed in its platform, and
i'm the speeches of all its leaders to
am immediate revision of the tariff,
ii they are successful at the polls. and
the Republican President, to the car
r>ing out of whose policies Mr. Ta1t
and his party are thoroughly COM
mitted has said in two of his last
messages to Congress that the tariff
must he taken off "of all products of
the forests" The only reason this
WAS not done by the last Congress was
that the Republicans feared to make
any change whatever in the tariff
schedules, while admitting the absO-
/ lutte necessity for changes and correc-
tons, Just in advance of general
election. knowing that if the question
We're once opened they would have to
20 into general revision. 1t cannot
lr doubted that if a Republican Con-
..r"ss should be elected one of the
yrry first things it would do would be
To- carry out this demand of it's Press
d"ut in carrying out its platform
pledge for a revision of the tariff.
difference in Position of the Two
Parties.
III. linn bpr-
mon may expect from the two partie5
na This question is that the Republicans
would put lumber on the free list as
a,uLnded by it's President. but that
The lumbcrmcn could expect little re-
lift at the hands of the Republicans
from the exactions of the trusts OF
the country which go to make the
uaUufIcture of lumber so expensive.
while they may rest assured that the
Democrats would not put lumber on
the tree list, il being Southern
product. unless there should be coupled
with il the placing upon the free list
al all articles entering into ccmpeti-
ton with trust controlled articles as
their platform demands. and which
Would tend to largely cheaper the cx-
Pru~"> of the manufacture OF IlmDer.
.H.- arGumcnt should appeal with
-r.at force to the producers of lumber.
tar there i no other line of manufac-
turC in the country more heavily taxed
hN III" trusts. They are extensive
users of steel rails. which the head o.
IN" steel trust testified could be made
1T a profit at SIS per ton, and Tor
which they have paid during the last
tHr"c Years from $50 to $40 per ton.
And thus il is with practically all the
materials which go into the manufac-
..r" of lumber. including the in
..ased cost of labor which the in
'rcaNc of 40 per cent in living ex-
nv nt
lection. has made necessary. The
"JChinery and equipment which they
lave for the manufacture of lumber
mot be considered as a permanent
Investment. but by reason or the marc
sage to which it is subjected has tc
frequently replaced with new
uipment and frequent repair. anc
Try Iumberman knows from hare
.avrience how the cost of all such
t,rials which go into the manufac.
j in some instances actually doubled
the last few years under the com
red robbery of protection and trusts
lIrin no Benefit TO Southern Lumber
SUIT back to the original point. l:
small tariff of 81 per thousand or
Oh boards any real protection tC
manufacturers of pine lumber II
South? This writer, after seri
consideration of the question
uks not Certainly it has beer
ffeCtual to save their business from
.. most disastrous fall in prices dur.
Zig the last eighteen months. The
Ivy price of lumber. as every manu-
.rturer must know, has been due t.
mpetition among themselves, anC
..t to competition with foreign lum
..r-
Lumber Business Not a Trust.
II must be borne in mind that the
#mber business is not owned by s
manopOly or controlled by a trust
y il was then the business could b.
.a.ding up the home buyer, add thu
'.N amount of the tariff to the prize
which he could otherwise get for hi