Perth Amboy evening news., 1910-10-08
EDITORIAL

ludb III d SlOIS WluuOW III ms SlbJ
are shown imported stockings adyer-
tised for sale for twenty-s%c cents q
pair. "If imported stockings can be
sold here for twenty-five cents a pail
with the present high tariff on
hosiery" went on this republican
"why, with a lower tariff there would
be SO many stockings imported and
sold at such a small cost that all the
hosiery mills in this country would
be forced to shut down"
This is the old fashioned republi-
can argument. 1t reminds us of the
Harrison and Mckinley campaigns,
The stump speakers used to get on
the platform, cite some such example
as this, draw verbal pictures of soup
houses and all that, and end by tell
ing every man to stand by 'the old
flag and protection" 1t was a great
argument and the democrats were
unable to meet it. The result was
that the manufacturers thrived
nightly under the protection thus
afforded. They got together, com
bined their mills so as to eliminate
competition, formed trusts in their
various trades and, with the tariff
wall built higher and higher, they
easily controlled the market, forcing
the American public to pay big prices
for any kind of an inferior article
that they chose to make, knowing
that the tariff would prevent a better
article being sent here from abroad.
That is just the point that Wood
row Wilson brought out in his refer
ence to socks In his speech at Red
Bank. Here are Mr.. Wilson's W
words:
lone summer when l was abroad
/ got some socks in the town of
Aberdeen, Scotland, and these miser-
able things never yet have worn out.
| am tired of them, the color don't
suit me to begin with, but the Amer
lean socks l have bought within the
time have worn out so fast that the
household is constantly employed in
darning them. Now that is not be-
cause Americans do not know how to
make stockings and have not the
stuff to make them of, but because
they do not have to make that sort
because of the policy of the country.
That is the reason"
In other words, we can make just
as good nose in this country as they
can abroad, but what's the use when
the people can be forced to buy an
inferior article and pay the same
price for it? The trust have control
of this market and the tariff bars out
competition from abroad, With a
lower tariff the local manufacturer
would be forced to put the best
article he could make on the market
so as to compete with the article i'm
ported from Europe, and thus the
people here would have the advan-
tage of that competition.
In no country in the world is it
possible for a man to become a mill
~lionaire more quickly than in the
! United States. This Is largely due
to the fact that under the prohibitive
tariff he is able to place an inferior
article on the market and force the
people to pay a high price for it with
out fear of foreign competition. The
EVENING NEWS believes, and we
think a great majority of people also
believe in a protective tariff-a tariff
that protects the American working
man from the cheap foreign labor.
But we dislike being taken advantage
of. We object to being compelled to
buy inferior goods at a price that
would buy the best if the tariff would
permit honest competition from
abroad.
There are two kinds of protection.
There is protection for the working
man, in which a majority of Ameri-
cans believe. And there is protection
for the trusts which makes million.
aires out of a few and raises the cost
of living for the masses, 1t is the
latter kind of protection that we are
having under the present tariff and II
is this protection that We are oppos-
ing. 1t has been difficult for thu
average mar to e the difference
but with such men as Woodrow
Wilson on the stump. with his plain
simple style and absolute command