The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1846-11-07

tum OF tax they pay. But the tax paid by a,
Hence the friends of "a tariff for protection, witt
revenue as an incident, contend for specific duties
as best designed to attain their object Those VIII,
look to a tariff for revenue, with protection as al
incident, advocate the ad valorsm principle as TIL
plain, direct, honest mode of accomplishing thei
purpose. .."
High duties operate as a tax not only on imports
but on the consumption of like articles of domestic
manufacture; for Srtieles similar in quality mus
command the same price in the same market. Tn,
advance on the import created by the duty, is &C,
oompsnied by a corresponding advance on the do.
nestle article. In other words he prices arc In
creased 10 the home consumer; and this is the great OBJ
jet Of the friends of protective tariff, in spite Of
the preposterous assertion that singh duties make
low pnces"-an assertion which, as general prin-
eple, needs no refulation, while conradicted by the
constant action of the manufacturers themselves,
who are necessarily asking for higher duties on
manufactured articles and for lower or no duties on
raw materials
II the price of the domestic manufacture be en-
HANGED in proportion to the amount Of the duty on
the import, it follows that the amount Of revenue
from duties on imports constitute, but portion Of
the tax thus imposed upon the people. The add
tional amount must depend on the proportion which
the consumption Of domestic manufactures bears to
the consumption of imported articles of the like
qusty. Il has been stated by the Secretary Of the
Treasury, that while twenty seven millions Of dol
lars were paid last year to the government upon
imports at least ky-four millions were paid 10 the
protected classes in enhanced prices Of similar do
nestle articles. This is startling fact IL exhibits
an abuse of power too grieyous to be borne, and
shows the enormous extent to which the people
have been plundered, to sustain and enrich pam-
pered and privileged class.
How far the new tariff law will answer the pur-
poses Of the government as a financial measure. il
yet to be tested. That the ad yaIorem princinle
may be safely relied upon To insure the collection of
efficiency OF revenue, is infenibe from the fact
that OF the whole amount OF revenue raised last vear
under the existing tariff of Isi2-the highest specific
tariff ever passed-the amount derived from the ad
valorem duties exceeded that derived from the spe
cifc duties by upwards of two millions five hundred
thousand dollars MAY not, then, the whole reye.
nue. be as eectually collected upon the same prin.
ciplel
Viewing the new tariff "A n ouestion NJ rov.r,,o
and looking to the e,perisnce Of onr DUN oov.r,,
men,. il NAV Ia safely Commanded Tim, r,od.r,,. A.,
ties will Weld more revenue than bipb du,iss Omit
TING detas !, will h. s,fcicn, n STATE tho, m =,
erenee n doeument, within the reach n ,u :, will
be found that the revsnuo from irno,,s hscoro ,ho
war of 1912 under the svstem Of low dn,;.s ,.k;ro
populoton into consideration Was ls,0er than
since been under the hiVh. dutv svstem. I.,v;,,
out the perod Of the embarvo and nj m. ,,r With
Great Britain, and taking a series Of ve,r, from,
1890 10 IsOs. and comparing il with the ser;ss or
wears during the higb-dutv svstem comr,erri,o
in 1917 and endIne in Is43 VIC shall find
that. population considered. the product or the
duties was much greater and less liable to ancu.
alton during the first period IL will also nm.
pear that the product in proportion 10 popuIst;op
has been less under the tariff of 1870 when tho IA,
ties averaged more than 6fty DER cent than il wos
at periods when the duties averaged considerably
less II is true that during the first period the u,rs
in Europe increased our imporstions but. AZ large
were re-exported. and duties were maid nm.
" on what were retained for constitution. our rev.
enue was not affected thereby. Reference to ppblc
documents will develop other facts materialv Affect
ing this subject. They will show. that during the
prevalence of the low-dutv svsteno ernbr,cng the
period from 1870 to 1908 the amount of foreien and
domestic exports from the United States. populs.
ton considered, was much greater than durinr the
period of the high-duty system embracing the years
from 1917 to ls43. They will show tina, our ex.
ports during the latter year were about the same
they were during the year 1907; and that emitting
the article of cotton, the agricultural exports were
less in lS43 than during 1907, when cotton consti
tued but small portion of our exports. II is at
presen unnecessary to do more than to call the pub
lie attention 10 facts like these Thew sneak for
themselves and set equally at nought the bold as |
,crtions of interested capitalists and the idle specu
atoms of deluded theorists. The conclusions to |
which they will lead the candid and unprecedented
ire irresistible They exhibit the various aspects
n which the interests of the country are to be od