The Logan Republican. [volume] (Logan, Utah) 1902-1924, 1916-01-29
The Tariff and
the Hosiery
Industry

Secretary Redfield, OF the Depart
ment of Commerce who has been
hanging on to the Wilson administra-
ton by an eyelash, has renewed his
efforts to becloud and confuse the
conditions which have resulted from
the existing Free Trade Tariff law.
report Of an Investigation which
Mr.. Redfield says he made Into the
hosiery business lately was transmit
ted to President Wilson as the Sec
ond of a series Issued with reference
to the manufacturing Of clothing In
the United States.
Granting that Mr.. Redfield's fig.
ures are correct, for the sake of ar
gument, his report shows that the
hosiery manufacturers of the United
States are now making a profit of
about 70 per cent. This margin, Mr..
Redfield says, should be increased
through better methods in producing
and selling. Highest profits, he con-
tinues are made on the class of goods
meeting foreign competition. Accord
ing to his figures, imports have drop
ped from $6,4O0,O0O to 100000 in
the last six years. In 1909 imports
formed ~ per cent Of the value of
hosiery sold in the American market;
but now Mr.. Redfeld says, less than
s per cent of the goods on the Am
erican market is Of foreign manufac-
ture.
| AS an evidence Of Mr.. Redfield's
cheap effort to confuse the situation,
his report makes no mention Of the
fact that the reason only 6 per cent
OF the hosiery on the American mar
ket is of foreign manufacture Is be-
cause there has been a complete stop
page of the great imports of hosiery
from Germany. Germany is the chief
competitor of the United States In
the manufacture Of hosiery. Germany
under the Underwood law before the
war began was flooding the American
market with hosiery. II the war had
not interviewed, the number OF hos
iery mills which had been put out Of
business by the Free Trade Tariff
would have doubled. Soon 1t would
have been Improbable to manufac
ture hosiery in the United States.
! The war alone kept Germany from
destroying the American hosiery In
dustry. The other European compel
: itors of the United States likewise
were hindered somewhat from i'm
, porting hosiery into this country, al
. though they are still sending ir
) great quantities OF textiles.
a Mr.. Redfield's report is designed tc
a confuse the public mind with refer
: ence to what has happened in the no
!. siery industry. He must have real
}. lied. however that It would not con
o fuse hosiery manufacturers. The Tn
d derwood Tariff law has been in effec
d since October, 1914 little over TIVE
n years. Mr.. Redfield APPARENT.
!. makes his estimate along genera
a lines, so that 1t may seem that i'm
T. ports have been decreasing steadil!
@ without reference to the Tariff. ]
he had wanted to be fair, he woul'
have said that the decrease In i'm
= ports had been continuous under thu
Protective law, and would have ad
. mitted that there had been de
crease in the imports up until tn,
very time the Underwood law wen
into effect and after the low dutie
e. OF that law went into effect, Their,
1T was sharp and sudden increase il
h importations.
At The conditions OF the hosiery IN
At dustry at the present time may b.
le summarized as follows:
The fact that there has been
n. decrease in importations in this pal
ticular industry is due to the block
ade OF German ports, which prevent
any exports Of hosiery from Germany
s. While 1t may be true that the impoI
tations at the present time amount
only to 6 per cent in the highe
70 grades mentioned by Mr.. Redheld
the fact remains that the hosiery IN
terests have been seriously injure
by the stoppage OF dyestuff importa
g. lions. Mr.. Redfield might have OF