The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-08-09
VALUE OF PROTECTION"

The standpatters are raising a howl
throughout the country about what they
call the "valuc of protection - Here
the Smoot tin whistle Joins the cry, with
the same indefnitencss that the note is
plped elsewhere throughout the United
States. In no instance does the piper of
this lumbled music say or make clear
TO the public what he means by the
''value of protection or to whom
that value accrues.
Now, the value of protection is to
the original protectionist the value that
should go to the labor in the produc.
ton OF articles of commerce and of
need between the high wages paid in
tins country and the low wages paid
elsewhere, the difference in the cost of
production. For instance, illustrating
by the cost of production of lead, the
argument has always been that the
miners in the metal mining regions of
| the United States receive from three
to four dollars per day, whereas the
peon laborers in the mines of Mexico
receive at most about fifty
cents per day; and the cost of
production should be equalized as
between this country and Mex.
leo by the imposition of a duty on lead
which will amount to the difference in
wages. This difference has been reck-
oned to be one and one-half cents per
pound, and that is the duty placed on
the importations of lead or of lead in
ores.
That, we say, was the original pro-
tectionist idea. IL as still the governing
idea of honest protectionists, and when
the difference in production measured
by the scale of labor prices is found
to be at an ascertained figure, then
the duty should be fixed at that figure.
But this is precisely what the stand
patters in Congress objected to, They
vehemently decried the idea of fixing
the tariff schedules on any such basis.
They objected to tariff commission or
tariff board and protest was made by
them against the construction that
President Taft put upon the tariff law
that enabled him to appoint such a
board, and President Taft was abused
by the high. tariffites, and especially by
the organ of the American Protective
Tariff League, for stealing march
upon Congress and insisting that he has
authority for tariff board and that he
was going to appoint one under the
law which the stand .patters claimed
did not empower him to do so.
1t is clear, therefore, that the stand
patters have departed from the origi-
nal prime idea of protection. They do
not want the tariff schedules fixed on
the original protective idea of the diff
ference in the cost Of production chief
ly as measured by labor wage; but they
want those schedules fixed to suit "the
interests and the monopolistic com
bines.
And right there is where the stand.
pat propaganda at TINS time fails to
reach the point, Those who are urg"
ing this propaganda fail to point out
wherein the value of protection as they
for protection is the value of the pro-
tective tariff for the laboring man in
the United States, AS applied by the
stand'patter the value of protection is
to the monopolists who have their lob
bies in such vigorous action In Con-
gross, not to the laborers.
This difference is vital. 1t amounts
to a suhversion in the stand pat argu.
ment of the whole idea, purpose and de-
fense of the protectionist theory. If pro
lection is not for the American work
man then it is not protection in the puy.
view Of the genuine protectionist idea.
If protection means the guarding of the
interests of monopolies, combines and
trusts, AS the stand -patters have
twisted ut TO turn, then the original
protectionists are betrayed by those
who sound their shibboleth. For il is
idle TO say that protection for monopo.
lists, trusts and combines is the same
thing as protection for American la
Dor. 1t is for the most part precisely
opposite, and is complete misnonler,
being in reality an oppression to labor,
in giving combines the control Of the
markets. Protection to monopolists is
oppression of the people, and that is
precisely what the stand -patters in
Congress are guilty Of Under the fair /
name of protection they are depressing
the people by catering to the interests
of mouopolies, and combines, and leav.
ing out of the question the interests
of the laborers and the protection of la.
Dor, and SO are misapplying the real
purpose and object Of protection.
We mentioned above the matter of
lead. We now mention in the same
connection the protection of the wool
grower. This also is sadly perverted
by the standpatters, who in their en-
actments looked out for the wool man
ufacturers and let the wool growers
look out for themselves. The result is
that the wool manufacturers promptly
formed combine and assumed control
of the American wool market, where
oI~ H.