Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1909-04-07
POINTS OF VITAL INTEREST IN
THE NEW TARIFF BILL.

POINTS OF VITAL INTEREST in
THE NEW TARIFF BILL.
The great mercantile firm, Mar.
shall Field G Co., has taken up the
fight against the injustice of some
of the schedules of the Payne tariff
bill now before congress. 1t has
sent out the following article in
phamplet form which clearly exposes
the high tariff imposition on gloves
and hosiery.
A careful study of the tariff bill
reported on March 10th to Congress,
discloses the fact that although the
country at large desired an honest re-
vision, meaning that whever neces-
sary the schedules be lowered, vet
a. few domestic manufacturers have
succeeded in having many rates rad
ically advanced and others maintained
at the present high figures. We de-
sire to draw your attention to two
|
namely, cotton hosiery and womens
leather gloves, believing that public
sentiment should be emphatically
manifested at once against the ad-
vances on these goods
A group of hosiery manufacturers
have received a 90 per cent. increase
over the prevailing 60 per cent, rate,
making a total of so per cent. against
foreign goods. This would exclude al
foreign 25c hosiery. and would enable
domestic manufacturers to raise their
prices proportionately. At 35c and soc
the public would have option of ac.
cepting an inferior Foreign article to
that cold heretofore. or buying do
mestic substitute which is less de-
sirable.
| That the present rate of duty is
high enough to pay liberal wages to
the operatives and a generous profit
to the manufacturers. is shown by
the latest Government Census:
Domestic Output 1900 S22,759,319.
Domestic Output 1905 $43,590,957.
Percent. Increase 100.
During 1908 Domestic Manufacture
ers themselves estimated their out
put at between S5O,OOO,OOO and $780,
100000
To prove how completely they are
getting control of the home market
under the present. tariff, note the
amount of foreign hosiery imported:
1905, 1862, 2,Os5
190O-$4,016
19OS-$6, ,645,57O.
The above official figures show
conclusively that the amount of for
eign hosiery imported from year to
year remains about the same, while
the American supremacy has in
creased 60 per cent. in five years.
The little competition American
manufacturers are getting today is
lcnly q. healthy stimulus, and tends to
keep sl6nfestic prices IN bounds. To-
day nearly 80 per cent of the fashion
ed hosiery made in this country is
sold by one commission house, which
is mainly the interested party in Sc
curing an advance of % per cent
more making the industry practically
hosiery trust
Do you want Congress to tax the
American people 90 per cent more for
their hosiery or to force them to ac-
cept proportionately inferior goods
at the same prices? :.
The superiority of foreign goods in
knitting, dyeing and finishing is the
principal sourse of education to the
| domestic manufacturer The average
| tax levied against these goods today
| is so per cent. The rates asked for
would average. so per cent. Do you
and your customers want these ldesir-
able goods practically excluded from
| the market?
The greatest proportion of hosiery
manufactured here is known as seam
less, of which American manufacture
ers have complete CONTROL on account
of the high duty now prevailing, SO
that none but fashioned goods are
imported.
During the past ten years American
manufacturers of fashioned goods
have made an enormous increase in
their output. Their business is thriv-
| ing to such an extent that they are
constantly buying new machinery and
adding to their plants. Two years
ago million dollar corporation was
formed for making Hosiery and one
of the largest mills in the country
\ was erected Would such an enter
prise be undertaken unless the in
dustry is profitable under the present
rates?
4 We welcome the advance the AmeI-
ican manufacturers are making, and
we welcome the control they are get
ting, but we do not welcome spirit
of avariciousness or greed on their
part Their action must be SO con-
sidered when they ask for 20 per cent
more duty in addition to the already
exceedingly high rate now in effect.
The glove manufacturers have not
been backward in making similar re-
quests, and their demands are no less
mjustifiable and outrageous. They
have secured a tariff that will ex-
clude foreign gloves altogether They
. would put practically the whole in
dustry into the hands of a group of
manufacturers in Fulton County. New
York.
Under the present act gloves not
over IA inches are taxed according to
length, in Schmaschen s1.75 to s2.75
per dozen, in Lamb Suede $3.50 to