The Massachusetts spy, and Worcester County advertiser. [volume] ([Worcester, Mass.]) 1825-1831, 1828-04-16

him but half as much, or fiftyscents, and the
/ yard Gall other things being equal) will cost but
81 80. The difference, therefore, in the cost of
the wool alone, is equal to 331 per centum, or
precisely the nominal duty given by law Lut
as the actual duty amounts to 36a per centum,
it leaves protection of 81 per centum This
is all the advantage the American manufacturer
has over the English, by the operation of that
law, so long as wool is worth twice as much in
our market as it is in England and this fails
much below the protection which would be
! Afforded by duty or woollens, for revenue pur-
poses, if wool were let in free of duty. There
are other heavy duties on raw materials, which
enter into the manufacture of cloths, which
would nearly balance this pittance.
1t may be said, and perhaps with truth, that
the importer afford wool in this market at
a less profit than he realizes when he sells at
ooubiv what Ire gave Profit trade is a thing
SO 1uctuating that it is difficult to fix it at any
stationary point, though the gentleman from
New York Mr. Wright has estimated that
wool may be afforded at % per centum more
here than it costs in Europe. will, therefore.
take his estimate, and ascertain how much more
yard of cloth costs the manufacturer here. bv
reason of the duty on the wool, exclusive of all
other charges of importation. If the wool in
England, on this superstition, costs ST. it will
cost 81 ,65 here, and yard of cloth here will
duty paid on the wool will be "a cents, or 10
per centum on the value of the CLOTH throw
out fractions This is so much lost to The man
utacturer, by reason of the duty on the wool,
or his cloth costs him so much more in conse-
quence of the duty alone. Now, at the time
the act of 1924 was under the consideration of
Congress, it was passed with reference to the
then state of things in England, and with refer
ence to her manufactures for it was we'll
Gr1aNr L. H. IL
to contend with. The object was to place our
industry on a footing that would enable it to
pursue its business successfully against the in
dustry of that nation. At this time, law was
IN force In that country, imposing duty of 3D.
sterling on every pound of wool imported the
value of which was over one shilling This
law was so modified, by an act almost simulta-
neous with our act, that the duty was reduced
to penny pound, and it was computed, by
the members of Parliament, that the manufac-
turer would obtain his wool at from 90 to 80
per centum cheaper in consequence of this
modification The evidence seems to favor the
supposition, that it would be about 26 or 81 per
centum. Now, if we assume the same premises
as before, that there is G5 per centum differ
ence between the value of the wool here and
in England, we shall find that the English
manufacturer makes his yard of cloth 10 per
centum cheaper than before the modification of
this act. So that, while our manufacturers
were subjected to an expense of 10 per centum
on their goods, by duty on the raw material,
the English manufacturer was relieved from
Tx tie %oSf aB hEn9 20 sent thaE zar
anceu at UIICe, So much of the protecting duty,
as it is called, upon imported cloths. The
American manufacturer has been brought into
this condition by failure of our market to afford
wool as cheap as that of England. This is the
effect of duties alone, unconnected with tho
charges of importation and the profit to the inn
porter These heavy burdens upon the Amer
lean manufacturer / shall leave out of sight,
and proceed to show that these revenue laws,
operating in the way have mentioned, and ia
voring, as viii attempt to show, evasions of
the duty on cloths, leave the American manu-
facturer to contend, single handed, against the
English, without any actual efficient protection.
/ have, on formev occasion, stated my views
at large on this topic, and shall, therefore, adj
vert to them with as mach brevity as possible.
The duty is assessed on Tue cost of the fabric
in the foreign market, and not upon the market
value and, hence, the market value is no EVIL
dence of the cost of the goods: for they may
be bought for much less, and the price given is
the cost though it be not half the market value.
There is, therefore, no standard, by which TO
ascertain the cost of fabric, except from the
invoice of the importer himself. On this point,
the appraisers of the port of New York say, IN
letter to the Secretary of the Treasury, dat
ed January, 1927, f" the difference, between pos.
siJie purchases Of cash, and actual purchases on
long payments, by persons of questionable cred
it, under the present commercial and manufac-
turing distresses IN the foreign market, enables
the latter class of purchasers to misrepresent
prices in their invoices, and state them nlucE
below actual cost, aoithOut any means of detec7
ton by the custom houses here" ] quote this
expression of opinion for no other purpose than
to show that the provisions OF the law are such
as to enable those, who are so disposed, to per-
petrate frauds without the possibility of detec-
ton for there is a wide range between the
Ioaoest possible prices for cash, in a time OF
great pecuniary distress, and purchases upon
long credit The construction given to the act
is, that goods may pass the custom use at
cost, if it be not tenth of the actual value. II
it be easy for those who buy to evade the law,
how mnch more easy is it for those who do not
buy, but manufacture and ship their goods to
this market They have every motive which
can address itself to one embarrassed, or to av-
aricious passions, to set the goods in the invoice
as low as they can be made to pass at the Gus
tom house for the invoice is mere matter Of
form, where the supporter is the manufacturer,
and represents not the market value, but his
opinion of the cost, when he knows upon that
opinion he is to be taxed more or less in dutiest
as he may set them higher or lower. l am in
formed, from authority cannot doubt, that in
voices, under these circumstances, have been
made out, to what.extent know not, in which
the labor Of manufacturing, and the cost Of the
raw materials, was set down as the cost of the
fabric, without any allowance for mill power
machinery, capital, other incidental expenses,
and profits, which make about one-third of the
value in the market The law affords opportu-
uitv 10 do this Ii has been DONE and how ex-
tensively will leave the Committee TO Judge
from another fact which derive from the
American merchants. The importing trade in
woolens is enjoyed almost exclusively by Brit
ish manufacturers. Instead of selling their
goods in their own market, they ship them to
this country and sell them at auction. This is
not the usual nor the natural course Of business