According to the statements of importers of wire rope, the customs officials invariably advance the foreign cost price of goods imported, on which ad valorem duties are assessed, although the prices entered are actual purchase prices. Moreover, the United States government sent a detective to England to learn the price paid by American importers. Although this detective had free access to the books of at least one English manufacturer, and found nothing that did not verify the invoice prices, yet the customs officials here continue to advance the invoice prices on goods imported by Americans. In some cases the importers say that they make their invoice prices out higher than the actual prices paid, so that they will not be penalized, as they would be should the customs officials add more than 10% to their invoice prices. Probably one-fourth of the importers' apparent profits are wiped out by the overzealousness of the customs department in serving the Wire Rope Trust. In this unfair way the present Administration is increasing the protection of the Wire Rope Trust and rendering, for the second time, a quid pro quo for the campaign fund of the trust. The Wire Rope Trust appears to be getting a great deal for its money. It made a good investment of its $100,000 in 1896. BULLDOZING TACTICS OF STEEL TRUST. In the next place, it is not easy for the importers to find customers. Wire rope is usually only one of the materials or prodordinary discounts before prices were reduced last spring, we have: PRICES PLOW STEEL WIRE ROPE. (Composed of Six Strands and a Hemp Center, Seven Wires to a (Composed of Six Strands and a Hemp Center, Nineteen Wires Undoubtedly a comparison of the prices of other kinds of American and English wire rope would show the same general results. "Whenever this free competition is evaded or avoided by combination of individuals or corporations, the duty should be reduced and foreign competition promptly invited.”—Hon. John Sherman, in United States Senate, October 15, 1888. ucts, and a minor one, required in some construction job of work. It is important that the contractors obtain, when desired, all of the other and more important products. These they can be certain of obtaining only of very large dealers in all kinds of iron and steel goods, and at present, practically only of the Steel Trust. The extent to which the Steel Trust is now putting the screws on manufacturers, merchants and contractors who consume steel goods is not realized by the general public. If a manufacturer is dependent upon the Steel Trust for any one im portant material he cannot obtain it unless he buys all of his materials of the trust, at least all that the trust can supply. Not only this, but in many instances the trust will prescribe the maximum prices at which, and the territory in which, this dependent manufacturer can sell his finished product, and the railroads over which his materials must be shipped; also, if he does not pay cash the trust will inform him through what bank he must finance his accounts, and give him other similar details of procedure to remind him of the new order of things and of his loss of independence. Similar treatment is accorded to merchants and contractors. Practically, if not actually, the Steel Trust says to its consumers: "Buy of us and only of us if you wish to continue to do business in this country." As the trust is practically the only producer of many important products, like wire, tin plate, etc., nearly alı manufacturers, dealers and contractors are at the mercy of the trust. Even if a contractor could get all of his materials for any one job outside of the trust, he does not dare offend it, for he has other contracts which require Steel Trust products. The result is, that he reluctantly submits to the trust's dictation. As a matter of fact, many manufacturers, dealers and big contrac tors now look only to the trust for materials, and have ceased to obtain quotations from outsiders and foreigners. Thousands of such manufacturers and dealers are cursing the trust in an undertone, while openly submitting to its terms and exactions. It is this state of affairs, due to the bulldozing tactics of the Steel Trust in the business world, that makes it possible for wire rope to sell in this country for two or three times the price in England, and for nearly twice the cost, duty paid, of English wire rope in this country. The Wire Rope Pool, it should be remembered, is now a part of the great Steel Trust, and gets the benefit of the power of the trust to dictate terms and hold up most of the steel-consuming industries. Its power comes largely from the tariff, not on any one article, but on all. If all other steel goods were on the free list the duty on wire rope would undoubtedly limit the power of the wire rope combine to extort from the consumer. But all steel goods being protected by high tariff duties, the Wire Rope Trust can exact from its victims much more than the amount of the duty on wire rope-which illustrates the beauties of high tariffs on goods which we are exporting to all parts of the world. WHY FOREIGNERS SHOULD BUILD OUR CABLES. These differences in prices, for the home market and for export, charged by our highly protected Wire Rope Trust, furnish one of the best arguments in favor of a privately constructed, as against a government-built cable under the Pacific Ocean. The pretended patriots and friends of the government, but who are actually the representatives of the trust, tell us that they "want an American cable, built by American capital in American shops, by American wage-earners, laid by American ships, under the American flag." If these representatives of the trusts would say exactly what they mean, they would tell us that they "want our protected trusts to have no possible competitors in building the Pacific cable, in order that they can charge two or three prices for the cable, the same as they now charge ordinary Americans." It is obvious that if our government is to lay cables and to have them built in American mills, they will cost several times what would have to be paid for them in England by an ordinary company. TRUST LETTERS GIVING EXPORT PRICES ON WIRE. To show the extra cost of making wire rope in America from American wire, the following quotations are made from recent letters of the American Steel and Wire Company. These letters were written from the trust's London office and to an Euglish manufacturer of wire rope: “We have much pleasure in quoting you the following prices on lots of say 40 or 50 tons, our ordinary quality of galvanized plain wire and plain annealed core wire. We give you a full range of extras up to 36 gauge. "Plain annealed coil wire, in catchweight coils, no wrapping, c. i. f. Liverpool, No. 0 to 8 gauge, 7.5.0, with the following extras over base for thinner sizes: Gauge. Extra. Gauge. Extra. Gauge. Extra. Gauge. Extra. Pounds. 12.15.0 14.5. 15.10.0 33 17.10.0 34 20. 0.0 22. 5.0 27. 0.0 "On our ordinary quality of plain galvanized wire, we quote you a base price of from 5 to 8-gauge of 8.5.0, catchweight coils, no wrapping, c. i. f. Liverpool, with the following extras for thinner gauges: Gauge. Extra. Gauge. Extra. Gauge. Extra. Gauge. Extra. "Of course, on any sizes thinner than, say, 16-gauge, we would recommend some to be packed in paper and canvas, our extra. charge for same being 14s. per ton, or if wrapped only in paper, our extra charge is 5s. per ton. "We are in the habit of supplying both these qualities of wire to the decimal of an inch, and we have quite a reputation for supplying this material true to gauge. "We favor such amendment of the interstate commerce act as will more fully carry out its prohibition of discriminations in rate-making."-Iowa Republican Platform of 1901. "Our prices are on standard wire gauges-14-gauges to take the price of the next thinner gauge. "Terms: Two and one-half per cent. discount, 30 days sight draft, with documents attached, on a London bank. "We make you these quotations for prompt shipment and subject to your prompt reply, and hope to be favored with your valued order. "For heavy galvanized wire we should require an extra of £1.1.10 per ton-therefore, this would make our base price, 5 to 8gauge, £9.5.0 per ton, and the extras for finer gauges would be the same as quoted you on the 1st inst. "Yours faithfully, "AMERICAN STEEL AND WIRE COMPANY, "THOS. J. FARRALL, Manager." Reducing these prices to American money, we get the follow ing prices: PRICE AMERICAN WIRE C. I. F. LIVERPOOL. Gauge Price, PLAIN ANNEALED CORE WIRE. Gauge Price, Gauge Price, of Wire. 100 Lbs. of Wire. 100 Lbs. of Wire. 100 Lbs. Gauge Price, Gauge Price, Gauge Price, Gauge of Wire. 100 Lbs. of Wire. 100 Lbs. of Wire. 100 Lbs. of Wire. Price, 100 Lbs. These prices do not include the discount of 22% for cash. Deducting 25 cents per 100 pounds from the Liverpool price, as the cost of delivering the goods in Liverpool, and taking the prices to domestic consumers on these same goods at the same date, we have the following prices on plain galvanized wire: Thus the domestic prices exceed the export price by from 64 to 86 per cent. This is the handicap placed upon the American manufacturers of wire rope who do not supply their own raw materials-wire. It is also the handicap placed by our tariff protected trusts upon our consumers of wire and wire rope as against foreign consumers of these same goods. THE WINDOW GLASS TRUST. ONLY BAD RESULTS FROM THE TAX ON SUNLIGHT The history of our glass indutsries for the last twenty years has been a succession of combinations, pools, lockouts, price-list committees, and agreements fixing prices and wages and limiting production. Wages and prices change often and radically, and nearly all of these tariff-nursed industries are always in an unsettled, unstable and unhealthy condition. The result is that we usually pay double price for our glass; and the industry is in a backward state of development. Instead of making the best and cheapest glass and of dominating the world's markets, as our unrivalled opportunities for production would warrant-cheapest and best silica, coal, gas, and lumber-we are, thanks to our tariff system, only partially supplying our own market, and even that with inferior goods which sell at double the price of better goods in Europe. The glass trusts, with their tariff clubs, hold up the American consumer, and make him pay $2 for one dollar's worth of glass. The evils of such methods are not only apparent throughout the glass industry and in the glass-consuming industries, but they extend into State and national politics, and form a part of the "boss" system of government. Under such conditions and circumstances, it is a national sin to continue this tax on sunlight. Some of the leading manufacturers do not hesitate to say that, if there had never been any tariff on glass, our glass industry would now be twice as large as it is, and would be employing twice as many men and using twice as much coal, gas, lumber, etc. EARLY TRUSTS. As in most other branches of the glass industry, trusts in some form have existed in window glass for twenty years. The American Window Glass Manufacturers' Association, with its "Price List Committee," its "Board of Control," its "District” and “National Wage” Committees, and its “Tariff Committee," was running full blast from about 1880 to 1888, and was deciding how many and what works should be closed and what wages should be paid and prices charged. It worked hard to prevent the passage of the Mills Bill in 1888. In 1884, when there was a shortage of glass caused by a lockout and a long fight over wage scales, the manufacturers themselves became importers to supply the trade. There have been since 1880 periods of comparative competition and low prices, but during such periods the "trust" people have been playing for a new deal and a new grip on the industry. Since 1890 the United Glass Company, a corporation owning 17 of the 108 plants then in existence, has formed the backbone of the Window Glass Trust. From 1893 to 1895 the trust was not in good working order, and prices were comparatively low. THE PRESENT TRUST. In 1895 the American Glass Company, selling pool for 85 per cent. of the factories, was formed. This pool soon had prices up |