Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1908-10-07


cur manufactured articles. For the
most part We are only artificial com
petitors. and would have 10 withdraw
from the fore 81 field if we were OBJ
aged 70 depend upon our own indus
trial merits. Our factories could not
exist and pay the current scale OF
wages if they received Tor heir total
product the prices now charged the
foreign purchaser. The American
manufacturer markets his surplus
abroad Tor what he can get, and re
coups himself by the large profit
which a high tarif per3li him 10
charge the home consumer. I do no
intend 10 touch here at all upon the
merits or dement's OF the tariff as an
economis proposition. But I state a
mere business fact when I say hat
the profits secured to the manufac-
tureF in the home market through
prices kept high by protection alone
enable him to SCI even his sma2. snr.
plus of goods in the foreign market
Remove that, and our exports If man.
utactured articles would cease. Al
ready Canada has a law against our
dumping surplus manufactures in their
markets. On an equal basis we could
sell abroad only that small line of ma
chinery which We make better than
any other people And the initiative
Chinese and Japanese, as well as the
workmen Of Germany who are now
educated in their technical schools.
are constantly reducing the demand
for our goods. We should never be
able to make a much better showing
than the figure We now cut in interna-
tional commerce. Rather we will be
more than fortunate to hold our own
A Tariff View.
The relative advantage enjoyed in
the past by reason of our possession
of vast stores of unused raw material
is disappearing The time is APP
preaching when we VIII be still less
able to manufacture in competition
with other peoples; when tariff walls
could not be built high enough to
keep out the intruder without crush.
ing the life out of our own people 1t
is a matter of fact familiar to all OF
you that the progressive exhaustion of
our forests has multiplied the prices
of lumber within the past few years
Every farmer who has built house
or barn or even fence. unless he had
timber for it upon his own holding
has felt the heavy tax Now wood is
an important item in manufacture,
and the cost of production rises with
its scarcity Quite as disturbing is
the situation with reference to those
other prime necessaries OF cheap man
ufacturing and competition In the
worlds markets-coal and iron We
are using now nearly 500,000,000 tons
OF coal annually At that rate the
estimated total supply of the United
States would last 1000 years, and we
need not disturb ourselves. But ex,
perience has shown that our consump.
ton of coal doubles every ten years
That is the statistical record of the
past. If it holds good in the future
and there is no reason why it may not,
we shall be short of good coal at rea-
sonable prices where it is most wanted
before the end of the present cen
fury. This is the pinch that Great
Britain now feels. in being obliged to
resort to lower levels in her coal mines
TO obtain fuel for her industries at an
enhanced cost. So serious is the sit.
uation that she Is already considering
the propriety of an export duty on
|coal. The same problem will face u
in the future of which l am speaking.
Question of lro Supply
Much more pressing is the CUES
tion of iron supply. This metal is
the foundation of the worlds indus.
trial life Our possession of great
quantities of rich ore in the most
available localities is a great factor IA
our development. But last year we
consumed 50O00,0O0 tons of iron ore
and at that rate the principal supplies,
thosc in the Lake Superior region
must be exhausted in about forty
years. There are nowhere else such
large deposits known, and the country
has beea prospected carefully, Per
haps the largest quantity anywhere
outside OF the Appalachian country
and The great deposits in Minnesota.
Wisconsin and Michigan is in southern
Utah. 1t is believed TO amount to
about 100000 tons all told Il
would last us, at our present rate OF
consumption, for eighteen months;
and consumption OF iron is increasing
as steadily as that of coal In 1897
our pig iron product was $685.
tons in 1907 it was 25,7S1 ,361 tons
1t costs now about 81 to transform "A
ton Of Lake Superior iron ore into pig
iron, including the cost of mining,
transportation ana manufacture With
so per cent ore. where five tons go to
the making Of three tons of pig. this
makes the actual cost of the iron
81 &c per ton. Fifty per cent ore makes
iron cisting $14 per ton. Forty per
cent ore makes iron costing $3.50
per ton. Low grade ores like those
Of the southern states. can be used
commercially because the ore, lime
stone and coal are found in close
proximity. thus redu ing the cost Of
manufacture.