The Idaho Springs siftings-news., 1911-06-03
IN TIMELY PROTEST
DEMOCRATIC FREE TRADE POL
ICY Is DENOUNCED.
Head Of Brooklyn Church Sees Ruin
for His and Many Other Parishes II
Contemplated Plans Are
Carried Out.

A0 hSo0otioA odo hCa0AoA6 eoA IA
"busters" OF the Democratic house have
struck snag. They will strike others
In due time, but this one is a particu-
larly bad snag: bad for a political
party which in the northern states
gets big percentage OF its votes from
q great religious denomination. Now
there is no politics in the Roman Cath
olic church. Its priesthood does not
soil its finger In any such way. But
there is a world of practical charity,
of broad humanity and of sterling COM
mon sense in that vast aggregation.
The Catholic church looks after It's
own as perhaps no other church does.
1t is looking after Its own in Brooklyn.
It scents hardship. poverty and wrong
In the Farmers Free List" bill which
the house Democrats have now passed.
That bill takes the tariff from cotton
and jute bagging used in baling raw
cotton. In Brooklyn there Is big
factory whose doors would be shut and
its army Of work people turned out to
starve II that bill becomes law.
There are several hundred other fac
tories In different parts of the coun-
try of which precisely the same thing
would be true. But this Brooklyn
factory claims especial attention be-
cause of an indignant letter Of protest
addressed by Rev. Patrick F. O'Hare.
said to be the most eloquent preacher
Of the Catholic church in Brooklyn. to
Representative Fitzgerald. Democratic
chairman of the ,ASuse committee on
Appropriations. This big bagging fac
tory is In Father O'Hare's parish. and
its work people are very largely his
parishioners. So the good priest takes
his Pen In hand and writes. Congress-
man Fitzgerald as follows:
1T has been brought to my Alteration
that bill jusk9ntroduced into the
house places blgging. for cotton bales
on the free list. .NhaStsns that the
largest establishr5ent mani lfacturing
this product In the United 33tates Is
In my parish. Just three blocks from
the church. ,Th14Sestabiishment has
for more than ten years employed
more people than%any other single
manufacturing enterprise In New
York. The pay. sroll right here is
nFaore than $1.0qo.aQ9 a, year. The
Wages paid are now per individual
twice what they were when the Wilson
bill vas in effect. THE present wages
per yard. Of cloth Sre about six times
~ mee6. .as the wages current in India
In sfInilaE mills there, and are u timss
~ much per Individual here as in In
dia. In addition to this establishment
there Is another belonging to the same
people (American Manufacturing COM
pany) in South = Brooklyn. OF the
Greenpoint people Semployed in this
mill very many belong to my congre-
cation and they are well treated and
satisf1ed.
II particularly urge that you do what
you can to see that the present very
small duty is retained on this bag
ging. It Is worthy of notice that the
duty now existing only amounts to
about 10 per cent. ad valorem on bag
ging, while the average duty on tex
tiles Of other kinds exceeds 40 per
cent Why should an industry in
which and my people are particular
ly interested be singled out for de-
struction!"