The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1841-02-02

Tariff party, from his commanding talents aud
known devotion TO the principles OF that party,
thus speaks:
"Mr. McDuffie said that the resolution only
proposed an inquiry, which did not commit the
House /; and every resolution for an inquiry, ne
thought, ought to be adopted. The resolution
decides nothing, if il did, he should be opposed
to it; for there was nothing, he thought, SO UNI
wise as to remit the duties on articles OF luxury
while they were retained on articles OF neces-
sity.
s'Let US examine this matter. Our imports OF
foreign merchandise may be divided into two
great classes. The first consists OF articles
which are entirely produced in foreign coun-
tries the second Of articles partly produced
abroad, and partly produced in the United States
The former are usually denominated the unpro-
tected, and the latter the protected articles.
Now as TO the former class, comprising teas,
cofiees, silks, wines, and variety of other inn
ports, will assume, that from these one-half OF
the federal revenue will be collected, though, in
point OF fact, il would be more correct to say,
one third only
"As to this portion Of the revenue, no one has
eue7 pretended that The burden is not equally
distributed ouer The Union, In proportion 10
the consumption Of articles from Which Il is
derired. II must be apparent that the manufac-
turing States have no grounds for alleging
that the duties on silks, wines, tea, and coffee,
expose them TO an unequal and oppressive bur
den. Will solitary voice be raised to denounce
this part of the bill under consideration As
suredly there will not.
Can any one be so blind as not to see that
the reduction, or, more properly speaking, the
/ repeal OF the duties on tea, coffee, dye-stufs,
manufacturing materials, and on most OF the
unprotected articles, will operate as an additional
protection TO the Northern manufacturers
| "There are two modes of giving this protec-
n IN he mn p,,fo fha
sists in imposing duties on such articles as they
make themselves; the other, in taking of, or di-
minishing duties on such articles as they con-
sumo, and do not make at home, but import from
abroad, in exchange for some of their own do
nestle productions. In this two fold aspect OF
the subject, regard this as one of the most in
geniousy contrived schemes Of protection that
has ever been presented to Congress.
| '.Of the reduction Of duties for which this bill
provides, about one-half is as direct protection
! to the manufacturers as ii il had consisted OF an
1 increase of the articles which they make. In
proportion as you reduce the cost of tea and cof-
fee you diminish the wages of the operatives,
and, in proportion as you diminish the cost OF
materials used by the manufacturers, you dmi-
nish the cost of producing their manufactures
| 1t was then true, no one denied the justice
and perfect equality of such a tax but new
| lights have broken upon US and it has been left
1
which the undivided South contended for as not
only just in itself, but the only jest tax, and es
| pecially advantageous TO the South, is now dis
covered TO be as especially injurious. Such,
sir, without one exception, was the course and
arguments of the anti Tariff party. But il does
not stop with the mere authority of individual
names, however distinguished. The anti Ia
| riff Convention which met in Philadelphia
in 1886, a rare assemblage of character and ia
Tents, passed three, and only three resolutions
one Of the three was on the subject Of taxing
| wines, silks, &c What was that resolution
Listen sir. will read it.
''3d Resolution, That wines, teas, coffee,
| and similar articles be not added to the list of
those now free Of duty, but may, on the contrary,
| be subject to duties corresponding in proportion
to their respective value with those laid on other
imported articles subject to duty"
Yes, sir, this resolution passed. unanimously
that body. 1t was not only regarded impor
| tant that these articles should be taxed, but so
| important as to be embodied in one of the only
three resolutions that were adopted There
was scarcely public meeting in opposition TO
the tariff, where this point Of taxing Injuries
was not insisted on as primary principle. The
objection to the tariff was not from any oppos-
ton to raising the requisite revenue; but that
the tariff Of duties was so laid as to operate
equally, by laying those duties chiefly on articles
made in this country, and thus enhancing their
price for the benefit of those who manufactured
them, and at the expense of those who were
| consumers, and not also manufacturers and as
this inequality did not exist as to articles not
manufactured in this country, and as to which
we were all equally consumers, and only con-
sumers, the tax was equal on all the sections
| and interests. This is the sole real foundation
| of the celebrated forty bale theory. No one,
presume, ever contended that, if an article, the
produce Of Georgia, is exchanged for merchan-
disc of kind not manufactured in this coun-
try, and that the article so imported, is sold at
price increased by the duty, and is consumed by
the people not of Georgia. but Of Maine, that
| the producer in Georgia, and not the consumer
| in Maine, pays the duty Such proposition Is
absurd beyond the reach Of argument. But
where the article so imported and enhanced IN
price by the duty, comes IN competition with
similar article of American manufacture, the
price of the latter is also raised and supposing
the consumption of the article to be equal be-
tween the producer of the article OF foreign
commerce and the home manufacturer, II is per
| fecty clear that the former pays all the duty, the
! latter nothing tor whilst they are both consum-
ers, and the consumer pays the duty, to the pro-
Queer, the duty is uncompensated taxation,
whilst the manufacturer receives back IN the IN
creased price of his own article, all that he pays
as consumer of the foreign one.
This is the objection which runs through all
our papers upon the subject. | will read a few
extracts from the celebrated and able exposition
Of the South Carolina Legislature in 1925
"Men ask not for burdens but for benefits. The
tax paid by the duty on imports, by which, with
the exception of the receipts Of the sales OF the
public lands, the Government is wholly support
ed, and which in its gross amount is annually
equal to about S23O00,0Oo is then in truth, no tax
on them. Whatever portion of il they advance
as consumers of the articles, on which II is I'M
r al (rz,, ths Inhn nt
with usurious interest, through an artfuy con-
triyed system. That such are the facts, the com