The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-04-26

Washing on, April 26.-(Special)- Congressman, 0. ". Underwood has is- sued the following statement in an- swer to the interview by G. B. McCor- mack, which appeared in The Age Herald last Saturday:
 "The free list introduced in the House of Representatives puts meat, flour bread and shoes and other neces- saries of life on the free list and it prevents combinations from putting up the prices to the American people. l believe that this reduction will be of great benefit to the people of the coun- try.
 "The farming interests of Alabama will receive the benefit of free bagging and free cotton ties. When the Wilson hilI was passed a number of years ago bagging and cotton ties were placed on the free list. It did not destroy either industry. At the same time that they were placed on the free list for the benefit of the southern farmer, bind ing stwine was placed on the free list for the benefit of the northern farmer. When the republicans came back into power they left binding twine on the free list, but re-established the tax on ties and bagging that are necessary to bale the crop of the southern farmer.
 "Our free list bill has wiped out this injustice and placed the farmers of both sections of the country on an equal basis in preparing their crops for market. The bagging made in this country is very poor article and on account of it's poor quality, the cotton of the south is the poorest baled com modity in the export trade, and the southern farmer loses a portion of the value of his crop by reason of this fact when it is exported to foreign countries. There are no cotton ties made in the Birmingham district, and our people are not directly affected by the reduction of the duty on them"
 "As to fencing wire for the farmers, 1t is not large part of the wire product of the country. There is comparatively little revenue raised from the tax now collected on it at the custom house. The census of 1905 shows that the production of barbed wire and other wires amounted to SIS, 100000 in 1905; that the total ex- portations were that year only $1041, 900, and the revenues derived were only s2e2, 900: that more than six times as much
 
 petition in the market of the world as was imported into this country. The duty Is undoubtedly a prohibitive one, and To duty could be levied that would raise a revenue commensurate with the amount of wire manufactured in this country.
 Any one will recognize the fact that when any great manufacturing interest in this country can export it's products in large amounts to foreign markets, pay the transportation charges and meet the {. foreigner in his own country in free com petition, there can be no serious danger { of exports coming into this country that will destroy the industry.
 "The census of 1905 shows that the pro- duction of cotton ties amounted to $12,- 760,00O,l and the revenue raised was only s2s76 There were practically no importa- tions.N Our exports amounted to s127,000, which, of course, are small, but the pro- duction of the cotton crop is largely con- fined to America.
 "So far as the Birmingham district is concerned, as MT. Mccormack well knows, pig iron has been produced at less than q per ton, and is today being produced by some of our furnaces for as low as $7.50 per ton. l challenge MT. Mccormack or anyone else to show that the cost of production of pig iron by the German or English furnaces is less than the cost of production at Birmingham. Our finishing plants can manufacture our pig iron into the finished product at as low rate by reason of our efficient labor and improved methods of production as