The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1912-10-29
Franklin Fierce Shows That la.
Dor Is Not Benefited by
Unjust Tax.
MANUFACTURER KEEPS PROFIT
Proof Of Democratic Platforms Sound.
ness Cited In Reports Of Wage In
vestigations.
By FRANKLIN PIERCE.

'~'e P'0'cA'S III iHpoSih6 iuCIeoSoo
prices upon the necessaries OF lie. Al
nrst tney SAID that Industry IN cur
country was in Its infancy and needed
protection. When those Industries had
become strong and needed no aid the
manufacturers invented the theory
mat the foreigner paid the duty. This
'heory was exploited. and they declar
ca mat cheap tie'hng meant cheap
NE ana was Ne, bless i..
bFNeh ifoA ever! Vhe c. '51ac inGe'
leHS''1'" Nas''l9i th@'' ia"i mo OIL"
argument leit i4g' tariff
Is imposed upon i,tv!an imports 10 en-
aOle the manufacturers 10 increase his
lFV!.'S ara Pay hl22'r "..st@
me Democratic platform declares
that
~ the most hlghly projected indus
tries. such as co.;cn and wool. steel
ana iron. the vases Of The i! borers are
the lowest paid in an! of our indus
tries.
Proof OF this statement is found in
reports Of many recent Official iiNesti
cations Of wages in The Emitted States.
Wages In Cotton Industry.
Under the cXiSti.s Payne Aldrich
tariff law actual iMpcrts ri cotton
cloth paid in 1871" average duties Of
bGi per cent.
In 1904. when work and wage sondi,
lions in the cotton industry were OK
ceptionally good. the wages of 2o2.2l1
cotton mill operatives in the United
States mon, women and children az.
oraE 4 otly $Gi1 Il week The average
WAGE fer mon was hut Sal week,
for Women - - and for children. sa.2l.
AS to the profits, seventeen leading
cotton mills, with total capitalization
OF So, 10000 and total surplus Of ST.
3G3,5ol. paid in min" years dividends
av'racin; a2 per c.n,
The cotton manufacturer, lurrrd out
n l"o1 sli2i5l,elS worth Of goods and
pad IN wages therefore $9i SO ,G?o. or
- per cent of the value Of he fni shed
produrl
Extortion OF Wool Tariff.
Outside of the ,ln'ies IN two or three
commodities OF comparatively little I'M
portance. the duties on wooden cloth
are the highest Of any in tbe tariff
schedules According 10 Senator Reed
Smoot. owner OF woolcn mill at
Provost. Utah. and chairman Of the
finance committee In charge Of tariR
legislation in the senate, wearing ap-
parel valued at 80 cents a pound now
pays 2h6 % per cent. duty
This and other correspOndingly high
duties OIL the manufactures OF wool
are made to enable the manufacturer
TO pay his labor an Increased wage
over those OF foreign countries. But
the duty on WOODEN goods IL nearly five
times the entire labor cost, while the
American manufacturers In 1905 paid
ia wages only IS per cent, of The total
value OF heir production.
At Lawrence in this most highly pro
tectcd Industry the labOrcrs werc
obliged TO strike even for living
wage Thousands Of adult males were
receiving only from Sc to 50 a week
and many only 81 to 81 week. Ms a
result OF the strike the American
Woolen company gave us employees
slight increases in wages.
The wool tariff bill vetoed by Prcsi-
dent Taft reduced the duties on raw
wool from 1920 to % per cent and on
manufactures of wool from $3.50 to
1876 per cent, Mr. Taft said he We
t.ed il because the proposed rates did
not comply with the findings of tn"
tariff board senator La Toilette con
tradicted the president. saying that
the proposed rates varied from per
cent lower to l16 higher than tho
tariff boards findings justiiled
Low Wages In Steel.
Manufacturers OF iron and steel In
1905 paid In wages only Is per cent.
Of the total value OF their production
while the duty then would average
abou, 4, to AZ per cent. ami on ali
metals il now averages 3i.5l per cent
American wages are really the
cheapest wages In the world when you
ta:e into account the amount o' pro
auction per man.
An illustration of this APPEARS IL
the Stanley report. invf 7tiga'ihg 20
etoal .v,,sf az follows.