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To: rustbucket
rustbucket: "As I said above, in constant 1860 dollars, tariff revenue decreased during the war.
Wartime inflation and the Morrill Tariff actually reduced real tariff revenue to well below what it had been in 1860."

Rusty, that is a testable hypothesis and here is the link to begin testing.

It tells us that in terms of average worker compensation, $100 in 1860 was worth roughly $150 in 1866, but nearly $200 in terms of consumer price index.

What does that mean?

  1. In those years worker pay rose roughly 50%.
  2. At the same time, average prices roughly doubled.

Now, check out this source and you'll see that tariff revenues doubled during this time period.

So, Morrill tariff revenues in 1866 were double those of 1860, but because of inflation could buy nor more stuff than could 1860's lower amounts.
Those revenues could in 1866, however, hire twice as many workers as in 1860.

For comparison consider: from 1866 to 1900 average wages rose about 20% while consumer prices fell 50% meaning workers could buy, on average, more than double in 1900 what they could in 1866.

By 1900 US tariff receipts had more than doubled again, but with consumer prices cut in half they could purchase four times the stuff as tariff revenues could in 1866.

1,482 posted on 10/14/2016 8:48:59 AM PDT by BroJoeK (a little historical perspective...)
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To: BroJoeK
It tells us that in terms of average worker compensation, $100 in 1860 was worth roughly $150 in 1866, but nearly $200 in terms of consumer price index.

What does that mean?

1.In those years worker pay rose roughly 50%.

2.At the same time, average prices roughly doubled

It means that maybe one day you will understand inflation, but I won't hold my breath.

Using your figures it means that in 1866 the $150 average worker could buy 75% of what he/she could buy in 1860. 100 x 150/200 = 75%. That is not all that different from the "real wage" percentages of 77% of the 1860 real wage in 1864 and 82% in 1865 that were listed in Thornton and Ekelund's book "Tariff, Blockades, and Inflation" that I cited above.

In other words, during the war the price of consumer goods went up faster than wages. Even though a worker was paid more at the end of the war, he/she couldn't buy as much as he could in 1860 because the prices had gone up even more than his wages. The worker's real wages declined during the war. He/she got more dollars, but they were worth less.

Our youngest son is considering a move to San Francisco from here in Texas. In San Francisco he could earn more money, but he couldn't afford a house in the San Francisco area unless maybe he commuted 2 hours each way. But, but .. you say ... he is getting paid more. Yeah, but he couldn't afford in California what he can afford in Texas. Your 1866 worker was getting paid more, but he couldn't afford what he could in 1860. "Real Wages" matter.

1,483 posted on 10/14/2016 11:17:54 AM PDT by rustbucket
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