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Show AN AID TO PROTECTION i By forcing the eight-hour day and ten-hour 1' pay upon the railroads, with the consequent In crease in rates of fares and freights 'to enable the roads to meet this increased expense, President Wilson has unwittingly furnished the advocates , of a protective tariff with a very potent argu ment. ' The increase in the cost of transportation 1 which is thus entailed will fall upon all raw ma terials and upon all finished products alike. The manufacturer will have to charge more for his product because his raw material will cost him more when he gets it to his mill. The jobber Iwill have to charge the retailer more for the same reason. And likewise the store-keeper will have to get more money out of the consumer. All these items of increased cost will work to the dertiment of American goods if they are compelled to compete with foreign goods in the American market. The foreign goods will bo produced by cheaper labor than ours. They will be laid down in American ports by water rrelghts, 1 which are much lower than railroad freights. To their Initial cost on the dock must be added only the one increased charge for transportation to 1 the point of their ultimate distribution. They 1 will thus have the advantage over American goods at every point. I The only remedp is to keep them out of the ' American marketwhich can be accomplished only by a high and a protective tariff. "When the president said that steps must be taken to prevent the recurrence of another railroad rail-road situation such as wo recently passed through, he srioke words of solemn import upon which ho turned his back as soon as congress proposed to adopt a palliative instead of a real remedy. There is absolutely nothing now to prevent pre-vent a recurrence of the trouble either with the Brotherhoods or with other classes of railroad rail-road employees whenever they see fit to inaugurate inaug-urate it. The Brotherhoods may decide that thep want the time and a half instead of the pro rata pay, tho other employees who do not benefit .by tho present arrangement may decide that they want the eight-hour day. There is nothing t to prevent them from formulating the demand and nothing to prevent them from coming to congress con-gress and fixing a day and hour before which the legislation muBt be enacted. The president went the whole distance in yielding. |