Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1916-02-15
THE DYE PROBLEM.


The dyestuff situation has shot into
national prominence. Dyes are con.
spicuous by their absence We are
confronted with the tragic possibilities
of pink overalls and white buttons on
black clothes. A dye shipment had to
be specially arranged for with the
blockading powers to keep our friend
and comforter the dollar bill his fam.
iliar green.
The real significance of the situation
lies deeper than these picturesque de-
tails that have caught the public eye.
The dye shortage affects every one or
two million workmen who manufac-
ture annually products valued at five
billion dollars, as well as all the people
dependent on them, and the immense
amount of capital invested in factories
and plants
One cotton manufacturer in his tes-
timony before committee investigat'
ing the situation stated that If he could
not be assured of an adequate dye sup
ply within six months he would have
to discontinue business and cancel his
order for four million pounds of cotton
yarn. The leather industry, the paper
trade, the manufacturers of paint,
straw work and wood work, shoe
dressing and a long list of similar
articles have all felt the shortage.
Luckily, the chances that the situa-
ton will go to lengths where manufac-
turers have to cancel orders are small
We need dyes. and we cannot import
them. Therefore we must manufacture
them. We have the raw materials, and
while our technical skill in the line
may not be up to that Of Germany
who has specialized in it for decades,
still We are quite efficient enough and
we will learn as We go. Any American
manufacturer of dyes whose plant is
running today can't complain about
business. But after the war comes the
rub.
Before the war our dye industry
could not compete with that of Ger
many. That Is why We haven't any
dye industry to speak of today. The
situation is no reflection on American
manufacturers. 1t is due to policy
of cooperation among the German
manufacturers and between the manu-
facturers and the German government,
which our trade laws make it impos-
sible for, us to duplicate.
When the Germans sold some partic-
ular dye at high price, an American
manufacturer would sometimes try to
compete with them. Then the Germans
lowered the price to cost, and below
and the American factory had to meet
their price and take the whole shock
of the low figure. In Germany 1t was
distributed among all the factories, SO
none of them felt it much. Hence
American capital has been slow to go
into dive works, and now that dyes are
selling at fancy figures, capital is not
much more eager, because after war
the same situation will crop up. dye
works represents heavy investment.
The solution of the dilemma which
seems in a fair way to be adopted is
the protective tariff for dyestuffs.
There is bill before congress now
providing for such tariff. Members
of the house and senate representing
both political parties have come out In
favor of the measure. The textile
manufacturers who opposed similar
tariff in 19O9-it was brought up by the
dye manufacturers at that time-are
flooding congress with letters now,
urging the adoption of the pending
bill
The manufacturers opposed the
measure before because it would have
increased the cost of dyes over what
It is under normal conditions. Nobody
believed seriously in 1909 that the Ger.
man supply would ever be cut on. A