Alabama state intelligencer., 1831-02-16
Frnm thn New.York Courier.

| Sugar Trade.-A great and increasing n-
 terest see ns to prevail n several large cltles
 in favour of reducing the duty on Sugar; and journals known to be devotedto the Tariff, frankly admit. u at the tax upon this article
 should be reduced or repealed. We are n3t
 surprised at this. The people begin to loola
 nto the necessity which imposes those bur dens falling so occult rly heavy uponan artl. le | of necessity, and they are met at once, not only | by a full treasury, but by questions as to the distribution of the surplus revenue upon the payment of the national debt. No people on | earth are mo;e willing to sustain the govern
 ment in times of exigency than the citzcns or
 this country. They cheerfully paid every di-
 rect tax required to carry on the late war, and
 ill the same ratio that this patriotic spirit pre- | vails should the measures of Congress be di- rected to relieve them from unnecessary lm-
 posts or extravagant taxation because, where reliefcan be aff 1rded withoutinjury to the pub | lie good, it should be tendered uncalled for-- as all paternal governments consider it flrs
 duty to relieve the subject or citizen from the payment of taxes not demanded by the pres sure of the times.
 What is the tax on sngar9 And how does | the question stand ?
 It is calculated, from correct sources, that
 the consumption Of sugar in the United States amounts to 140, 100000 pounds, and that 60, ,000,000 of this are imported on the a.
 mount imported a duty of three cents per
 pound is paid. We manufacture in this coun-
 try about 80, O00,O 900 pounds of sugar, which sells in the market for the same sum that the imported sugars bring, including the duty; the
 three cents therefore paid for the imported su-
 gars from this equality of price go into the pockets of the nianufacturer-that is to say, while the three cents duty goesinto the Trea-
 sury, three cents also go to the manufacturer, whose prices are the same as those ct the im- porter. The manufacturer, therefore, taxes
 the American people on 8o.000, 900 Of pounds which they produce, the sum of S2, 400, 000,
 and on our whole consumption S4,200, 900 This is an enormous amount of tax upon an
 article of necessity, which twenty states m the
 union pay, to benefit the remaining four in
 which sugar is manufactured; :; nay, not four,
 because Georgia and Mississippi were in ia
 vorof repeating the duty. It may be said therefore, that, in effect, the American peo-
 pie pay for the benefit of Lousina and Alaba- ma alone, a tax on sugar equal to four million of dollars annually! Under these circum- stances it is natural enough that these states
 may desire to continue that tax, but it is very
 unreasonable that other states shculd consent
 to it.
 The lmerican System and high Tariff
 have for their avowed objects the protection of
 American industry that is to say, protection
 against foreign manufactures but what kind of protection are we to consider the high duty on sugar, which taxes twenty-two states in the Union, for the benefit of the remaining two? At this rate, one class of citizens will be compelled to apply for protection against the onerous exactiens of another class Let us go little further into our calculations on this interesting subject A good quality of
 Matanzas sugar may be obtained at that place
 for S2 g, per 100 lbs. an inferior quality at
 S1 25, or one and a quatcr cents per pound. If we take the highest of the two prices, and add the cost to boxes, the sugar may be had at little less than three cents perlb.-the
 amount we pay in duty alone ;whatthen is the
 actual cost to our consumers ? Add duty, freight, commission. transportation, profits,
 6Sc. it amounts to S7 75 per 100 lb., which 1 the consumer pays--whereas for corporations