The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1918-06-28
Washington Letter.
KING ALBERT'S TIP

Washington, June 25.-(SpeciaI cor.
respondence)-Mr. Samuel Hill, OF
Seattle, famous as an authoritative
writer on trade, in an article written
for the new California monthly, "Pan-
Pacific" quotes King Albert of Bel
gium as saying to him on the battle
front:
MAY it not be that the United
States will have grave questions to
be settled at the close of the war
All the stocks of goods of the war;
ing nations will have become exhaust
ed. The United States will have the
money and the credit. To get that
money we must work ten, twelve and
fourteen hours a day, and your people,
not satisfied with ten hours, now de-
mand eight, and how can the United
States hope to compete in the markets
of the world ?"
Sam Hill was very close in the conf
dence of King Albert which, perhaps
accounts for the Kings kindness in
giving him that tip. Belgium, for in
stance, has always been our chief COM
petitor in window glass. The Demo-
Gratis slashed the tariff rates on that
product in the present tariff law,
which took effect October A, 1918. In
1914 the effect of the cut in duties be-
gan to make it's appearance, and con-
tinued through August of that year,
with the result that during that eight
months period our imports of window
glass increased 120 per cent over the
similar period of 1913, under protec-
tive rates. Imports for July, 1914,
the month just before the war, in
creased 233 per cent over July, 1913,
and then the war put the brake on.
For the past year or so the war has
reduced these imports to neglibility.
Prior to the war common labor in
the Belgian window-glass factories
received 60c per day, compared with
So here. AS the President of the
Johnston Glass Co., Hartford, Ind,
showed, "for every $35 paid by for
eign manufacturers as window-glass
labor we manufacturers in this coun-
try pay 500 for the same service" !"
We were then manufacturing under
$15,000,000 worth of this glass annu-
ally, and the high wages current in
this country had attracted large i'm
migration from Belgium, welcome
addition to our population because
Belgian stock is good stock. But to
develop our home industries with Bel
gium operatives is far different mat
ter from knocking the home market
from under them with the product of
Belgian labor.
In the work of rehabilitating their
country the Belgians will be ready
and willing to toll the hours mentioned
by King Albert, and at wages which,
compared with the wages Of pre-war
days, will show an ever greater dis
parity. If the American window
glass industries and the operatives
therein employed, are quite willing to
yield our home market to the Belgian
manufacturers after the war, as mat
ter of trade altruism, then discussion
of the tariff phase of the situation is
merely academic. If they sympathize
with Belgium, but feel the necessity
of continuing operations here, then we
have got to return to the protective
policy. And what applies to Belgium
and the glass trade applies to nearly
every other manufactured commodity,
in considering European and Oriental
competition. Our workmen can ex-
hibit their sympathy with the war
SCARED nations by agreeing to accept
European wage scales, if they so de-
sire, and under such conditions our
manufacturers may still be able to
meet the higher overhead charges
and compete successfully with the for
eign producers. Will American labor
consent to such program? 1t ought
not.
In his letter to the President, outlin-
ing plan for providing farm homes
for returning soldiers, Secretary Lane
has presented what would seem to be
an indictment Of the efficiency of vari-
Gus Government bureaus. He wants
ga million or two dollars" with which
to gather data on the subject, and
enumerates some of the data desired
as follows: "We should know with de-
finiteness where it is practicable to
begin new irrigation projects, what
the character of the land is, what the
nature of the improvements needed
will be, and what the cost will be. We
should also know, rot in general
way, but with particularly, what def
mite areas of swamp land may be re-
claimed, how they can be drained,
what the cost Of drainage will be,
what crops they will raise. We should
have in mind specific areas of grazing
land, with a knowledge of the cattle
which are best adapted to them, and
the practicability of supporting a
family upon them. So too with our
cut-over lands. We should know
what it would cost to pull out or blow
out stumps and to put the lands into
condition for farm home"
For many years this government
has been appropriating money for the
reclamation service, and projects have
been examined far in advance of actu-
al construction; money has been ap-
propriated for the classification of the
Il L.