Gunnison news-champion., 1922-11-03
HOW The TARIFF Is PYRANIDED
On YOUR SUIT OF CLOTHES

By process Of pyranliding charges
and profits, the duty of 81 cents .
secured pound imposed by the Ford
Z nsy- NcCumber profIteers' tariff Law is
beng increased by 200 per cent be-
IReen the time the raw material leaves
the producer and the finished product
reaches the consumer.
An illustration of this multiplying
I Of costs and profits Is furnished in the
case Of wool that goes into the max
b ing OF mans ordinary suit Of clothes
About four pounds- of wool are re-
guIred for suit of medium weight
such as would be appropriate for au-
tumn or spring.
The table subjoined illustrates how
this duty, pyramided along with
charges of the brokers, dealers, spin
n-rs, manufacturers and retailers,
adds heavily TO the cost Of clothing.
I Four pounds Of wool at 81 cents
= pound
. Commission or wool merchant
[ buys and marks UP 10 per cent
on MS selling pEice 70 cover
profit and overhead when he
sells 10 the spinner. This
makes -------------------- 1876
. Spianer's mark up of Is per cent
/ for-sifnilsr charges and profits
/ makes ----s--------- 1912
Cloth manufacturer mark up Of
( 20 per cent makes - 2.oi
Clothing manufacturers markup
Of 22P per cent makes - Sc
Retailers maTkup Of 80 i-3 per
cent makes consumer pay - $40
( IL must be remembered that the
;auff Of 81 cents a pound on raw wool
. Is not the only charge that the nl1lu-
farturerS and the retailers may pyra-
mid. They have the opportunity TO in
C.udc also specific and ad val0rem du-
ties which the Fordney- McCumber
lay places on wooden fabrics Although
mans suit OF clothes or woman's
dress may not have fibre Of imported
wool IN II, the protection" on fabrics
brought into the country furnishes a
pTeteNt Tor raising prices on domestic
woolens, which are made 10 bear the
tariff burden the same as If they were
manufactured abroad and sold here.
Instead Of s3.6s on four yards of cloth
ia . suit of clothes, therefore, the new
tariff viii make the cost of ii some
thing like $3.50 or SIS.
The American WoOlcn company
tthe wool trustD recently advanced
the prices of its manufactures from 10
10 90 cents a yard. This was in aHtici-
patton OF the new duty of 81 cents a
occurred pound on wool. Taking the
average OF these increases-27is cents
a yard-and pyramiding that as is
done IN the case of the duty on raw
wool. the result would be this:
On cloth previously priced at
/ SIPS yard the average in
crease Of 27iz cents would
I make the new price ---------Sl.525
The clothing manufacturers
markup would make this - l945
/ The middleman's markup would
make this -----------------2 2.41
The retailers markup would
make thlS 3.4S
| Thus it will be seen that if this in
crease IN price had not been made by
the Wool Trust, four yards of cloth
that viii now cost the consumer 1882
would have cost him only Sll75. In
turn, had the Republicans not imposed
an excessive duty on wool, the Trust
and all the other profiteers would not
have had so fine an excuse for levying
toll of so or go per cent on every
wcolen garment worn by American
men, women and children.
Z Ruthless advances in the prices of
NooisH ciotniuR rs not the only and
perhaps not the worst evil for which
the new Republican tariff will be re-
sponsible. Along with the higher
prices will go poorer qualities, for
most fabrics will be mixed with shoddy
and sold for wool and at the prices of
wool. II would have been bad enough
TO bear the burden of the new profit
eers' tariff; it will be much worse to
pay higher prices for poorer goods.
There is full justification for saying
that, when the tariff and the charges
represented in the materials and labor
that go to the making of a mans or
dinary suit of clothes are pyramided
in the fashion indicated. q suit that
cost $40 last spring will be selling for
$50 next spring. And the Republican
tariff will be the reason why.