Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1911-07-25
A Ma tfouaI Issue.

mated as the Democratic candidate
for president, he declared in his
speech of acceptance that the tariff
was a local issue. So it was at that
time, and so, in a certain sense, it is
yet, as shown by the fact that certain
southern democratic members of the
national legislature are high tariff
advocates. Thus Senator Bailey of
Texas favors a high tariff OH raw
wool, cotton and lumber, because
Texas leads most other states in pro-
duction of these commodities. So
with other southern politicians whose
states are interested largely in lum-
Der, sugar, cotton, or rice.
Other statesmen, both south and
north, including many leading repub-
licans, have come to the conclusion
that since Hancock made his famous
declaration the aspect of the tariff
issue has grown much larger, that it
has become in the trueSt sense a
national question, because, now it
has become the ''mother of trusts"
and trusts, left to pursue their selfish
ways, unhampered and unrestrained,
are robbing the consumers Of the
country in many ways. They are al
so robbing the producers of raw
materials, because they control manu-
facture, consequently the market and,
consequently the prices Of raw ma
terial sugar, coffee, tobacco, meat
on the noof, wheat, lumber stumpage,
iron, cotton, WOOL etc.
The consumer is cheated in more
ways than one. The fact obvious to
everyone is that he pays the price
fixed by the trust, because there is no
competitor, or, at any rate, no real
competitor of the trust. If it does
not produce all the output of it's own
speciality it produces so nearly all
that the few and weak concerns who
might compete do not dare to for
fear of being mercilessly crushed out
of existence. Their only means OF
self preservation is to adopt the prices
fixed by the trusts.
Then, again, the profits of a bust
ness depend upon the demand for 1T,
and the trusts, because they enjoy
practical monopolies of their special
ties can create a demand. One OBJ
viOus mode by which they do this is
by limiting the output, so as tOcreate
an artificial scarcity and make that
scarcity chronic or normal condition.
But there is another way, which,
through fiendish, is adopted, or at
least is a natural result of monopoly,
and that is by producing goods that
are not well made, and are made from
shoddy materials, so that they wear
out soon, making it necessary for the
consumer to buy others in short
time. Our older citizens, for instance,
can remember the time when the
stitching of ready made clothing, and
shoes, outlasted the material in them,
and when the material was better
than now.
The time is not so long ago when a
person whose vocation was manu-
featuring made it his highest ambi-
ton, and strongest effort, to produce
articles that were honestly made;
when a workman who Sighted his
work could not hold his job. Such
an ideal was necessary to success in
those days because there was cOmpe-
tition and the manufacturer who
produced the most durable goods got
the largest number of customers.
Competition was obviously the cause
of this, but now, competition no long
er exists, hence honesty no longer is
the best policy in dealing with our own
citizens, because they are compelled
to buy from the trusts or go without
neceSsaries of life. The trusts can
make honest goods, and they do so
for the foreign markets now, because
competition compels them to; also
they sell for honest prices in foreign
countries. 1t is not even denied now,
though it was denied until proved be-
yond a doubt, that American trust
made articles are sold in foreign
lands much cheaper than here. Pro-
hibitive tariffs which are misnamed
protective" are the sole and sufficient
causes which enable the trusts to
rob the American consumers.