| Show THE TAX ON TIN Mr C B COOPEU president of the National tional Sheet Roofing company is a manufacturer manu-facturer who has tobuy large quantities of tin He says that for the year ending Janu ary i 1890 there were imported into the city of New York 2525101 boxes of tinplates tin-plates nearly onehalf of this amount or about one and onequarter million boxes was roofing tin such as is exclusively used for house covering As New York imports about onethird of all the tin plate that comes to this country it follows that tho amount of roofing tin consumed con-sumed is at least three million boxes > which before the agitation of the tariff question sold in Great Britain for 232 per box of 112 14x20 inch sheets laid down on our wharves With the present duty oJ 510S paid this same rooting tinplate tin-plate was sold by importers in January 1809 for 5415 per box Although the new tax which will be 236 per box of same quality and quantity after tho 1st of July has not yet gone into effect the present price April 25 is to tho metal roofer from 510 to 525 per box The Metal IToihcr a protection trade journal of April 25 quotes 14x20 roofing tin at 550 per box It is true says Mr Cooi U that roofing tin plate can be and is made in this country And it is equally true that cotton and wheat can be raised in Europe but we can find no one who is prepared to furnish American roofing tin plate even at their own prices for immediate delivery in quantities sufficient to keep our machinery moving one day in ten We know of no one prepared to furnish at importers prices Tho effect of tho increase of the tax on roofing tin plates is to make the consumer sumer pay a higher price for our goods the difference between tho present prices and the price before the tax agitation began goes to the speculators who have been and are still hoarding the product of the En gush Welsh mills The tariff agitation invited speculation which when the Mc KIXLEY bill was passed became safe and that increased the demand and the English dealer naturally took advantage of our wants The increased price like all taxes is a drain on the labor of this country As for the Welsh tin men offering tin in i the American market at prices as low as those that prevailed before the McKtXLET I bill was passed that is true but tin is not tin plate Tin has been on the free list for years and is still The amount of tin imported is very small compared to that of I tin plate |
