Wages Low, Prices High

The senate committee on ñnance has just published a part of its report on prices and wages to show the effect of the McKinley tariiï act upon industry. Senator Carlislé was on this committee and took occasion during his speech of July 29 to draw some conclusions frpm the Btatistics obtained. He showed that the tariff act of 1S90 had interfered with the natural tendency to a decline in the prices of eommodities and to a rise in the ratea of wages, and that it made it harder and more expensive for the masses of the people of the United States to live. He showed that the prices of eommodities in the United Statea (whether by wholesale or retail) had been enonnously increased by the passage of the McKinley act, and by the agitation which had preceded it, and that the cost of living in the United States had increased during the period covered by the investigation more than $285,000,000. He showed in the second place that the rates of wages in fif teen unprotected industries in the United States had irtcreased during the period covered by the investigation, while the rates of wages in fifteen of the highly protected industries in the United States had fallen since the passage of the McKinley act. The fifteen general oceupations in the unprotected industries were bakers, blacksmiths, bricklayers, cabinet makers, carpenters, common laborers, farm laborers, machinists, masons, iron molders, painters, plumbers, stonecutters, tailors and tinsmiths. The average increase of wages in these occupations had been 75-100 of 1 per cent. The fifteen highly protected occupations were bar iron, boots and shoes, cotton goods, cotton and wooien goods, crucible steel, flint glass, green glass, lumber, machinery , pig iron, steel ingots, steel blooms, steel rails, window glaSs and wooien goods. In these occupations the rates of wages had fallen (since the McKinley act) an average of 89-100 of 1 per cent., as against a rise of 75-100 of 1 per cent. in the tifteen unprotected industries. Mr. Carlisle theft went into a detailed 6tatement as to the cost of imported goods and as to tin plate. On the latter point he quoted Mr. Aldrich as saying that the people of the United States had paid to the Welsh tin plate manufacturers in 1891 75 cents per box more than they had been paying before that time. That was undoubtedly too true. The McKinley act liad been a bonanza to the Welsh tin plate manufacturera. It had enabled them to take f rom the people of the United States many millions over and above their normal profits. The McKinley act had paid, not to the importer, not to the government, not to the dealers, but directly to the Welsh tin plate manufactupers $4,629,750, or more than half the value of the plant of the 508 tin plate works of Wales. The McKinley act as to tin plate had proved K be, not for the benefit of the American consumer, but of the Welsh manfacturers. In his closing remarks he eihibited two samples of wooien gooJ3 exactly alike, except as to color, nurtiufactured in Canada. Canada, he saïi was a protected country, but admted wool freë of duty. These specimens sold in Canada for 22 cents a píúnd, but could not be made i:i the Bnited States for less than 40 cents. Tuis showcd wliat our manufacturers ould do if they were given free woc" to work with.