The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1938-06-30

an agency of the State Department,
that | wanted them to know that the
workers in the American Flint Glass
Industry, who know the actualities of
f1int-glass production, resent the false
and apparently malicious misrepre-
sentation contained in the analysis of
the Czechoslovakia Trade Treaty in
an attempt to justify their action. This
reduction in tariff duties by the State
Department will deprive hundreds, if
not thousands, of American glass
workers of their jobs, in our opinion.
| told this Committee, that any per-
son conversant with the facts, knew
that gobets, tumblers, vases, bowls,
shades and blown glass articles, pro-
duced in the United States are wholly
competitive with products of foreign
countries, rather than with machine
made glassware, as the State Depart
ment alleged.
Having spent my entire adult life
in the American glassware industry,
can speak from first hand knowledge,
rather than be dependent upon some
bookworm, who, although having re-
ceived some college degree, yet is un-
able to produce anything, but receives
a salary far in excess of that which
he earns.
"Our interest in the question of
whether you BUY AMERICAN or
whether you buy the sweated labor
products of European and Asiatic
workers, is the question Of bread and
butter, earned at their trade, for
thousands of American Glassware
workers.
NATURALLY, the American glassware
workers cannot and will not try to
live on the wages paid to workers in
European or Asiatic countries. Our
workers do not want charity, they
want WORK. We know that the en-
ployer cannot and will not very long
provide employment for our workers
unless he can dispose of the products
of our labor at profit. We know, and
he knows, that when the New York
representatives of Japanese glass fac
merchants the products of Japanese
workers, which are comparable to the
products of our members, at price
from twenty to forty per cent less than
our costs of production, that it is only
question of a short time when our
workers are forced to seek relief.
"We know the effect of these i'm
portations, not always by the size or
value of any one group of imports,
and not on the fictitious valuation
figures issued by our Department of
Commerce, based as they are on for
eign valuation, but through the closing
of plants and our workers being forced
to continue to accept wages which are
lower than they should have for the
skill and energy put forth.
zone of the amusing Incidents
have run into Arsmy fruitless efforts
to convince some of the theoretical col
lege professors who have so much to
say about our entry into these recipro-
cal trade treaties, that America s
workers hesitate to accept lower
wages, and yet, why they should be
even asked to consider a reduction of
the fifty per cent or more in wages
which prevail in the same foreign
countries, for persons of their own
rank
"The American workers, dependent
for their employment opportunities on
the American market, have but one
safeguard, and that it to convince
themselves, their families, their
friends, and then the American people
to BUY AMERICAN, and ONLY
AMERICAN.
an closing, want you to know that
presumably we still live under a rep
resentative form of government. That
is, we elect representatives in Con-
greSs to represent the views of the
people Of their district and not the
views Of importers, international bank
ers or college professors who do not
live in the district.
"a few months ago, while | was
in Washington, seeking to protect the
Job-opportunities of our workers, one
OF the higher-up government officials
asked if our members in West Vir-
glnla were not satisfied with the re-
duction in tariff rates, why did they
continue to send to Congress men who
openly endorsed that policy and insist,
ed that our present tariff rates are toe
high?
Representative Government
81 was rather mystified by this
statement. | had no hesitancy il
stating that believed that the Amer.
lean people would insist on the pres
ent type Of representative government
| inquired who in Congress from West
Virginia had the temerity to endorse
the present Reciprocal Trade Treaty
policy and to advocate more reductions
IN the present inadequate tariff rates
was rather surprised to learn thai
the Congressman from this distric
was referred to. 1t is not my inten
ton TO interfere with your politics
This is not a partisan meeting. Thi!
meeting is held to support the move
ment to have the American people
BUY AMERICAN MADE GOODS
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