Newspaper Page Text
iA. . .I.
Abilene Keflector.
Thursday, Sept. 13, '1883.
B. L. STKOTHEIU
8- K. STKOTHEK.
STKOTHEE, BROTHERS,
EiKtor.i and l'uMtxhem.
TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION.
On Corrr. Onk Yeah. : : : : ?1.50
. .. -r " t
SIX .MONTHS. :
.75
Advertising Rates, Reasonable.
DEMOCRATIC COUNTY TICKET.
FOR TREASURER,
THOMAS KIRBY.
FOR SHERIFF,
J. J. MILLER.
FOR CORONER.
WILLIAM PERKINS.
' . ! u
A Little Peculiar.
It is just a little bit peculiar that re
publican "bosses," in their addresses
to the people, should invariably wish to
bury all feuds and discords in the par
ty, and then draw on the years between
1860 and 1S65 for a record. Hasn't the
party any record since 1S65? Or is it
inconvenient to refer to its record of
later years.
Jack Frost.
The above well known gentleman has
made his appearance in the East and
in Minnesota and Wisconsin. The ef
fect of his visit to the East has been to
drive the merry pleasure seekers home
with chattering teeth; and in the North
west he has left a blightning mark on
the growing crops. Even out here in
sunny, sunflower Kansas "the air bites
shrewdly," and is a stinging reminder
that summer is ended.
A Roland for an Oliver.
It is being claimed by the republi
cans that Ohio will have a republican
majority next month. And she may.
When in a normal condition, Ohio is
republican, and if the republican ma
jority is less than 10,000 the result will
be a democratic gain. But the demo
crats are claiming Iowa! Democratic
Iowa! 'Methinks the words have a sweet
sound, Horatio, my boy, and yonder
cloud looks like a weazel very much
like a weazel."
"TSot Guilty."
After listening to a wearying amount
of evidence and eloquent rhetoric, the
jury in the Prank James case at Galla
tin, Mo., brought in a verdict last
Thursday afternoon at four o'clock of
"not guilty." While the evidence
offered was probably insufficient to con
vict, it would yet have been perfectly
safe for the jury to have hung Frank
on general principles. No one doubts
the outlaw's cruel, bloodthirsty, mur
derous disposition, and the people of
the country would have been better sat
isfied had a different verdict been ren
dered. The Tables Turned.
The labor troubles of recent years in
this country have caused a pretty gen
eral inquiry to be made into the causes
which" produce them. Why should the
laboring classes of protected America
be so discontented and uneasy? Why
should the United States, with its pro
tected industries and comparatively
scant population, be more troubled with
its laboring class than any European
country? These questions have been
asked for years, and they are just being
answered.
Jay Gould appeared before the Sen
ate committee on education and labor
in New York last week, and in the
course of his examination he said, in
answer to a question: "Labor, as well
as everything else, is governed by the
law of supply and demand. In my
opinion, there is a surplus of labor in
this country, caused by immigration."
"Labor, as well as everything 'else, is
governed by the law of supply and de
mand." How does this statement ap
ply to the great protected industries?
Doesn't free labor pay protected prices
for its necessities? Is it, then, on an
equal footing with "everything else?
This everlasting tariff question is
about to prove a veritable boomerang.
The great protected monopolies, the
great monopolists, with Jay Gould at
their head, seemed never to have con
sidered labor worthy of protection, and
now come the labor organizations and
say that labor is as much entitled to
protection as capital; that to foreign
competion is due the low prices prevail
ing in the manufactories, and that
American labor should be protected
from the competition of the foreign ar
ticle. This demand makes the protection
ist's head swim. It reduces all his ar
guments to absurdities and leaves him
helpless. If it is right to protect capi
tal it is right to protect labor, but see
where this leads. If labor be protected
then what is made by protection on the
product will go to the protected artizan
in higher wages, and what goodwill
that do the class for whose benefit pro
tection was designed? The question
does not bother .the advocates of free
trade and free labor, but it is a stunner
to protectionists.
Carlisle Por Speaker.
The withdrawal of Blackburn from
the contest for speakership of the next
House of Representatives simplifies
matters a great deal. It almost as
sures the election of either Cox, of Xew
York, or Carlisle, of Kentucky. Both
of these men are pronounced tariff re
formers, and the election of either
would prove satisfactory to the free
trade democrats of the West. The
democratic party is not wavering- or
hesitating on this great tariff question.
It is declaring openly and aggressively
for a "tariff for revenue only," and
against all monopolies and combina
tions of capital. The choosing of the
speaker of the next national house of
representatives will be determined on
these grounds, and Carlisle is at pres
ent the foremost man for that position.
The election of Randall, a high protec
tionist, would be almost a fatal wound
to the party. He must be defeated,
and a man favoring a tariff for the
needs of the Government must be
placed in the chair. The voice and in
fluence of the great West and the bur
dened operatives of the East will be
heard and felt in the next campaign.
J. J. Miller.
Mr. J. J. Miller is the democratic
nominee for Sheriff of Dickinson county,
but the Reflector does not wish to
introduce him to its readers merely as a
democrat . A man's politics, if not sup
ported by true worth of character, will
avail him nothing in a community of
such intelligent and independent people
as populate Dickinson county. And
although the Reflector is a democrat
ic paper, it will never recommend or
support a democrat for office unless it be
lieves him to be in every respect worthy
of it.
Happily, the Reflector has no hes
itancy whatever in recommending Mr.
Miller to the favorable consideration of
Dickinson county. He has been a resi
dent of this county for eight years, and
his conduct has always been gentle
manly and honorable. As City Marshal
of Abilene he has discharged his duties
faithfully, intelligently and well. He
is possessed of honor, ability and nerve,
and if elected he will make the Coimty
a most excellent and efficient sheriff.
Mr. Miller is a manly man, and de
serves well of our citizens.
Low Tariffs Always Increase Wages.
It is a f.ict that the so called "free
trade" tariff of 1846, which largely re
duced the duties on all classes of man
ufactures, gave the signal for the first
decided increase of wages paid by
American manufacturers. We have
not the means of telling how great the
advance was between 1846 and 1850;
but it was undoubtedly considerable.
Between 1850 and 1860, however, we
have official statistics, which show that
the average yearly wages advanced from
$245 in 1850 to $289 in 1860. In 1861,
the tariff was again raised, and the wa
ges were reduced considerably; but this
was to so large an extent the effect of
the outbreak of war that we lay no
stress upon it. The immense number
of volunteers drawn off for the war
caused a rise in wages dining the fol
lowing year, though not to any higher
point than they had stood at under the
low tariff of 1860. The entire increase
in wages which af terward took place,
and which has been so much boasted
of as the result of a protective tariff,
was due solely to the inflation of the
currency and the demand for manufac
tures caused by the waste of war. But
even with this nominal increase, there
never was a time during which work
men's wages were materially higher in
gold than they had been in 1860. They
were at an extremely high point when
the census was taken in 1S70, and yet
when reduced to gold the average wages
of manufacturing workmen then were
only $302, as compared with $289 in
1S60, a nominal increase of 5 per cent.
Estimated in purchasing power, these
wages were equal only to $242, as com
pared with the price of the necessaries
of life in 1860, being an actual decline,
notwithstanding, an enormous increase
of the tariff, of $47, or about 17 per
cent.; and they were actually less in
purchasing power than they had been
in 1850. A rapid reduction of wages
followed in the years 1874 to 1877. A
gradual rise then took place, which be
came rapid in 1879. The census was
taken for the period including June 1,
1879, to June 1, 1SS0, which was exact
ly the highest point of prices and wa
ges in manufactures generally and es
pecially in iron and steel. It was also
a period of great inflation; all the paper
currency being kept afloat, with the ad
dition of an enormous amount of gold.
Inflation, of course, causes a nominal
increase in wages, but it also causes a
still greater increase hi prices. Nev
ertheless the average wages of manu
facturing workmen hi 1880, irrespective
of their purchasing power, were only
$346, showing a gam of only 20 per
cent, hi 20 years, while there had been
a gain of 20 per cent, hi 10 years of a
low tariff. This high average only lasted
two years, after which wages were cut
down fully 20 per cent., leaving the av
erage wages no higher than they were
20 years ago; while the cost of living
has greatly increased-
Hodge Brothers,
HARDWARE,
CUTLERY, NAILS,
MECHANICS TOOLS,
Acorn Stoves9
BUGGIES, SPRING WAGONS,
PTflES 3feO
Tin Roofing and Spouting a Specialty
Call and get prices before
Have just received an immense stock of
above goods and if you will call we
will convince you that we are
selling at low prices.
Buckeye Avenue,
This space reserved for
T. C. Melnerney's
advertisement next week.
CLOTHING
EMPOBIUM!
A large and magnificent stock of Fall and
Winter Clothing just being opened by
HAZLETT & GO.
Good Goods
?
Endless
jAlT
HAZLETT & CO.'S
buying elsewhere.
ABILENE, KANSAS.
Variety,
Low Prices,
0. G. HAWK,
THIE
HAWK & GLEISSNER,
DEALERS IN
PIXJ1R1E PIRITJIGHB.
TOILET GOODS,
A Full Line of Humphrey's Homeopathic Medicines.
Headquarters For
Painters' Supplies, Glass, Machine Oils, &c, &c.
-:o:
We keep at all times best Head Light Oil,. 175 degrees test.
CALL JISTID SIEIE TJS.
PIONEER.
PIONEER. .
M
DRUG
HAS ALWAYS BEEN
The Pioneer
And now offers better bargains to all.
we can often sell goods cheaper than
the best call and see.
4 3m
J. H. BRADY
THE
E
EAL ESTATE AGENT
-OF-
CENTRAL
Offers JLoxo Q-ood. Baxgraizis
tlaxL exry msun. in lEIsinsas.
Agent for U. P. R. R. Lands,
Lana, Agricultural uoiiege Lands.
If you want to buy a
Correct Abstracts Made For
Money Loaned at Lowest Rates.
Taxes Paid for Non-Residents.
No Charge for Showing Lands.
-
J. H.
TO BREEDERS of CATTLE.
WE HAVE A PEW FINELY BRED
Short-Horn Bull Calves
WHICH WE WISH TO DISPOSE OF THIS FALL.
&& Here is a rare chance to get
tion call on II. II. FLOYD, Abilene,
2m.
Furniture
HEADQUAETEES
AT
xr w m H JL w
CORNER OF FOURTH
Sign of the
BgT Carries the largest stock in the
any other house in Dickinson county.
clerk hife, and I give my customers the
seeing my goods and getting prices. 2fo
JN0. M. GLE1SSNEB.
s
STATIONERY, &c.
-:o:-
PIONEER.
ITH'S
ifOH
in Low Prices.
Having but little money invested in show
more pretentious establishments. We keep
D. G. SMITH.
LEADING
KANSAS.
National Land Company's
Farm, call and see him.
All Lands In Dickinson Co.
Better Bargains now than ever before.
BRADY, Enterprise, Kansas.
good stock cheap. For further informa
Kansas.
FLOYD & BOARDMAN.
Y
AND BROADWAY.
Big Chair,
west. I can and will sell cheaper than
I have no rents to pay, no expensive
advantoge of it. Don't buy without
trouble to show goods.
M. V. UPSHAW,
l-3m
Carpet
9
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