The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1922-08-03
DON'T CHEAPEN AMERICAN
LABOR

"
enactment OF an American protec-
tive tariff Is the brazen admission
OF the Democratic press and the i'm
porting interests that they count up
on successfully deceiving the wo-
men and the retail interets OF the
country into the belief that the pro-
posed tariff is inimical TO the retail
interests and TO the ultimate wo-
man consumer.
n the women and the retailers
would stop for a moment to con
slider the situation they could not
escape the conclusion that the cam
paign OF the importing interests is
inherently deceptive. These iLter-
ests are openly spending hundreds
OF thousands of dollars TO defeat the
enactment OF the proposed tariff
They are keeping a corps Of
| speakers travelling throughout the
country addressing merchant as
sOciations conventions chambers Of
commerce. etc, in opposition 10 the
proposed tariff They are sending
out tons OF literature to the local
retail interests and to membership
Of clubs, etc, against the proposed
tariff. They are sending out let
ters under first class postage to
! hundreds OF thousands of people
protesting against the enactment of
the proposed tariff They are EN-
ploying writer's TO produce feature
articles against the proposed tariff.
Even the merest amateur knows
that this sort OF a campaign Is cost
ing tremendous sums OF money.
Those back of IL claim they are
animated only by the unselfish de-
sire to save the woman consumer
money by the high purpose OF pre-
venting her being robbed by the
American manufacturer. That the
importing interests OF this country
should eKpend such enormous sums
for the wholly disinterested and al
truistic purpose of saving money to
the American woman and the
American retailer is too silly a prop
osition to be considered seriously
by anyone giving it second
thought.
The conclusion is logical and un-
escapble that importing interests
which are spending these enormous
sums of money to defeat a protec-
tive tariff must be profitlng many
times those sums of money by the
free trade law which we now have.
They are financing the tremendous
campaign against the pending tariff
bill not out of a desire to save the
American woman any money but
out of a desire 10 continue condi-
| tions that enable them to rob the
American consumers by buying
cheaply made goods abroad and sell
ing them in this country at profits
amounting from 200 to several thou
sand per cent.
The retailer outside of the metro
politan cities has cause for grave
alarm at this campaign. The large
importing interests, who also con
duct mail order business. are buy
ing abroad in shop load lots. The
ultimate destination of a great per-
centage of these goods is the trade
territory of the local merchant in
the average American city and the
smaller towns. There Is not the
least doubt bat that the local trade
territory of the home merchant will
soon be flooded with these cheap
goods purchased abroad, flooded by
the large department stores and i'm
porting interests that are now try
ing to enlist the support of the
home merchant to defeat the pend
ing protective tariff.
The successful elimination OF this
program of the importing interests
and large department stores which
have mail order business means
not only the invasion of the trade
territory of the home merchant,
which in itself would be disastrous,
but II means the throwing out of
employment of American working
people who cannot produce articles
in competition with the articles
bought abroad This will deprive
the local merchants of the patron
age of the working people who will
be without job and therefore with
out the means wherewith to buy.
There never has been a policy
before the country that was more
deserving of the support OF the local
home merchant and the American
consumer, not only from the stand
point of patriotism, but from the
coldblooded standpoint of dollars
and cents and self-preservation than
the policy of a protective tariff de-
signed TO stop the flooding OF this
country by goods made in Europe
and paid for in deprecated cur
rency
The importing interests have al
ways OPPOSED a protective tariff be-
cause il interfered with their prof
its They have always aligned
themselves against American indus
try because they could make a
greater margin of profit by patro-
nizing foreign factories. But thel
interests have never
waged anything like the fight |
against a protective tariff that they |
are waBing against the one now
pending. because never before have !
the margins of profit In handling |
imported goods been so enormous as |
they are now.