The Washington herald., 1909-04-02
AMERICAN TARIFF LAWS.
XX-STEEL AND THE TARIFF.
By FREDERIC ]. HASKEN.
By FREDERIC ]. HASKIN.

When Representative Clymer, of Phila-
deIphia arose in the first Congress and
told his colleagues OF a furnace in his
city With an output OF $50 tons OF iron a
year. which by a little protection en-
eouragement could be made to supply all
the iron needed in the United States. they
marveled. None Of them dreamed that
within 100 years there would be a cor
poration making iron and steel on such
great scale as 10 require as many en-
ployes as there were then people in the
State OF Connecticut The Philadelphia
plant cost a few thousand dollars. A
modern blast furnace OF the largest type
costs a million. The Philadelphia plant
produced 80 tons a year. The blast fur
mace of to-day can turn out a thousand
times as much in twelve months. And
yet Il has nearly all come about in a
generation The civil war started steel
and iron on their triumphant career.
It seems hard TO believe, but in colonial
times the shoe OF protection wes on the
other foot English ironmasters were de-
manding that they be protected against
American iron. Some one has said that
the first blow OF the Revolution was
struck not BY the swords ats Bunker
Hnl, but by the tilting-hammers OF the
colonial ironmongers. Before George
Washington was born these captains OF
industry had hammered out an iron dec
laration Of Independence OF the mother
country. In ITl9 the Ominous news
reached England that there we're six fur
naces and nieteen forges in operation in
the colonies, and this resulted in an un-
relentirg demand by the British IRON
masters that this dangerous Industry
across the sea be stihed. The result was
that an act OF outlawry and cOnhscatiOn
was passed against every skilled work
man in the colonies.
Then England felt secure for a while.
BY and by an American merchant went
to Liverpool TO replenish his stock He
tried TO buy some nails, and when told
their price, replied that he could buy
better nails for less money Of John Tay-
lor. a Pennsylvania iron maker. That
remark echoed and re-echOed throughout
the Kingdom, and was finally heard by
Parliament itself. when Lord Chatham de-
clared he would not allow the colOnlsts
10 make even the hobneils for their boots.
England thereafter protected" herself
against American iron by fOCbidd!ng the
further construction OF rolling mills, slit
ting mills, steel furnaces, or tilt-hammer
FORCES in the colonies And the American
iron works became the center OF the pre-
revolutionary discomfort. IN the war with
| the mother country the american iron
makers took most prominent part. Ma
thaniel Greene was but one Of dozens Of
them who rose 10 high positions under
I NJ -frF ar.~~fe
father was a large stOckhOlder - a big
furnace. and from it's product received
S a ton, besides the company dividends.
The next time Eigland had 70 60 against
American iron, aside from that which the
patriots hurled at her, was at West Point
A massive chain was placed across the
Hudson al this place. 10 prevent the Brit
ish from ascending the river 20 attack
Albany and Kingston a second time. It
Was nearly a mile long, weighed some 90
| tons. many Of the links being OF 900
pounds weight. It's manufacture required
| six weeks. with a force Of sixty men
working AT seventeen FORCES night and
day The English never got past that
chsin-a mute prophecy OF the time when
the American manufacturer would put up
| barrier of competition in the CONNER
cial world past which the British iron
master could not go.
Up to the civil war the iron and steel
business OF the United States did not
amount to q great deal. Our civilization
was then OF wood, and not OF steel. and
tho demand was never great. Mrs. Re
becca Lukens was one OF the first iron
manufacturers after the Revolution. and
was the first American to roll boiler
plates successfully. Her work became so
famous that her boiler plates took the
place Of those in England in the manu-
facture Of George StevensoB's first loco
motives.
| The protection that was given 10 iron
and steel after the Revolution and Up 70
the War Of 1872. was intended 10 encour-
age their production as a means OF pre-
paredness for war, yet such authorities
as Swank declare that the duties Of that
period were not high enough to amount
TO real protection. u is interesting 70
note that during that period no one seems
TO have thought that protection on pig
\ iron or bar iron was necessary or advis-
able But about this time England be-
gan TO substitute coal and coke for char
coal IN the making OF iron, and the pro-
| cess was very much cheapened Mean
I while charcoal timber was getting scarce
/ in the iron-producing centers here: an
/ thracite coal was out OF the question
and bitumious was too far away with the
then limited transportation facilities. The
result was that America began to lag
and Great Britain to go forward in the
production Of iron and steel
| Il Is a rather remarkable fact that un-
der the two lowest tariff measures Of the
nineteenth century the iron and steel in
dustry OF the United States EXPANDED
more in proportion than during almost
any other like period in American history.
/ But no one sUpposes that this was due
to a low tariff The American had
learned TO produce iron and steel with
anthracite coal, and thereafter the in
dustry grew rapidly. The United States
had its eighth President before It had
its first steel plow. Yet from that time
there was to be a growing use OF steel
and iron that was unprecedented.
AS before stated. the civil war was the
I real making Of the iron and steel in
dustry. The high duties then necessary
| for revenue purposes. the high ocean
| freight rates because Of the war perils
Of navigation. and the vast demand fol
/ prices up TO a point they had never be-
fore reached. The profits were vast. The
output was nearly doubled, and the price
Of iron jumped from less than SIG tc
more than S7S per ton. To meet this
| demand all furnaces ran at full capacity
| all the time and many a new one sprane