Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1846-09-10
THE AID vALoREM PRINCIPLE.

The ad valorem system of duties, based on the
foreign value of the goods is the principle of the
Polko British Tariff In this, the act is anti-pro-
tective, because whenever foreign goods are cheap
est and protection is most required the duty will
be the least and when foreign goods are highest
and protection is the less required, the duty will be
the highest We cannot better exhibit the objec-
tons to this system, than by the following extracts
from speech made in le42 by James Buchanan,
then Senator from Pennsylvania, but now the first
officer in Folks Cabinet.
am (said Mr. Buchanan) not only opposed to
any uniform scale of ad yalorem but to any and
all ad vaorem duties whatever, except whe e from
the nature of the article imported, it is not possible
to subject 1t to a specific duty. Our severe
experience has taught us a lesson this subject
which we ought not soon TO forget. cannot re-
frain from adYerting TO some Of my reasons for
this opinion.
Oar ad vaorcm system has produced great frauds
upon the revenue, VIII lst it has driven the regular
American merchant from the business Of Import
| ing and placed It almost exclusively in the hands
of the agents Of British manufacturers. The A
mercan importer produces his invoice to the col
lector containing the actual price at which the iui-
ports were collected abroad, and he pays the fair
and regular duty upon this invoice. Not so the
British agent. The foreign manufacturer in his
!
intends to import nto our country TO the lowest
possible standard which he thinks will enable them
to pass through the custom house without being
seized for fraud And the business has been NTH
erlo managed with so much ingenuity generally
to escape detection. The consequence is, that the
| British agent passes the goods of his employer
1 through the custom house, on the payment of a
much lower duty than the fair American merchant
is compelled TO pay. In this manner he is UNDER
sold in the market by the foreigner, and thus is
driven from the competition, whilst the public rev.
enue is fraudulently reduced
Again; adj vqlorem duties depriue The american
Manufacturer OF nearly all the benefits Of incidental
protection ,chere ii is most required When the bu-
sness of the country depressed, it is at pres
emit and when the price of foreign articles sinks to
far less than their cost your duty sinks in the
proportion, and you are also deprived of revenue
at the time when 1t Is most needed.
Our own experience, therefore, ought to have
convinced us that, whenever it is possible from the
nature of the article, we ought TO substitute specific
for ad valorem duties. These continue to be the
same upon the same articles, Notwithstanding the
} constant fluctuations in prices. They afford
steady revenue TO the country and an equally steady
Incidental protection. When commodities are usu-
ally sold by weight or by measure, you may al
ways subject them to specific duty; aud this
ought always to be done.
Let u.s. then, abandon the idea of q uniform hor-
: zontal scale of ad valorem duties and whether
the duties be high or low, let us return to the an
cient practice OF the government Let US adopt
wise dlscrninations and whenever this can be
] done impose specific duties.
But the Patriot says that Mr.. Clay in favor
of ad valorem dutes and to prove it, publishes and
republishes garbed extracts from Mr.. Cay's speech
of March 1871. The facts are, that Mr.. Clay went
for ad valorem duties on one condition-to wit, &c
home ualuation, TO be fired By idO. For example,
ON tins plan the law would that all wool from
South America shall be valued at 20 cents Tor any
other sum- per pound, and pay an ad vnlorem duty
of 30 per cent. In this case, the uaiue being fixed
Q by law, the ad vaorem duty is fixed, certain and
q unavoidable a spec fc duty would be; whereas,
the ad valorem of the new Tariff is on the foreign
value of the wool, which varies in different markets
, and is altogether uncertain. The system of Mr..
Clay would be eminenty protectve-Polk's sys-
f TEN is anti protective.