Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1847-02-05
TuE sIyEWs OF WARD

THE 80 SIN EWS OF WAR;
! The country will be pleased to learn that the
! loan Bill has passed both Houses OF Congress,
and is now law of the land. The Union under
stands that there is every prospect of the success
Of the Secretary of the Treasury in obtaining the
necessary loans
! The Wings, says the Richmond Enquirer, have
! indulgsd in severe assaults upon the Democratic
policy as having involved the nation in financial
difficulty and produced the necessity for making
this loan. They especially denounce the repeal
OF the Tariff of 1912 as the of all the mis-
Chief Had that Tariff continued in force, say
they, ygc should have raised revenue enough for
all purposes, the war, &c. This assumption is
easily refuted by the fact that in consequence of
the protective and prohibitory character of that
law the amount of revenue under it in the fiscal
year 1855 was 100000 less than the amount col
ieHted the year before. Under its operation, the
reEenua was being gradually diminished, and it
became necessary to adopt the new Tarfof 1916.
toipreyrnt the growing dminutiOn of revenue
Tae operation OF the new law, though brief, is yet
sufiicie:t to promise that it will produce re-
venue shan its much-boasted predecessor.
thu REPEAL of the TaritFof 1912 which compels the
Gdvernment to make loan is altogether gratui
tois. The war forced upon by Mexico, has
called for additional expenditures, which could
noi be net by the customs. In the war OF the
Re: outian, and in the last war, our Government
was forced to resort to extensive loans-and it is
no. now the repeal of the Tariff Of 1912, but the
actual existence of war, which has made the pre-
scr!t loan necessary In spite of the attempts of
WAg politicians to depreciate the national credit
and discourage the efforts of our Government to
iraia money for the war, we feel confident that
thelopPesitioh will De disappointed, and that men
ind money enough will be obtained to carry on
fhe war vigorously, and to successful and hon
orable termination.
20 show the operation Of the " ruinous" Tariff
.of I846, q0ote the remarks of Mr.. d. II. Lewis,
Chairman Of the Committee of Finance, in the
Senate, on Tuesday, in the debate on the Loan
BBlI:
Mr. LEWIS said he should not decline reply
Hing TO the questions which had been put to him
by the gentleman from Delaware. The commit
tee had u.pt, and as the result of their deibera
fions, reported this bill to the Senate. lie had no
Information which did not come before that COM
AmittRe. j his call for Information was Il mere
Beating about the bush in order to attack the tariff
Irhd real object Of the Senator from Connecticut
Ne Huntington was to pour out his tears over
ahe laritF Of 1912. The gentleman from Della
bare had similar project. His (Mr L's) reli-
knce for increasing the revenue upon the ia
sif OF 1916, together with tax upon tea and cot
Zee and he had no doubt that they could raise
Burger revenue by these means than would be ac-
buirhl from any other source. Though he could
BOT crafty the gentlemen with precisely the in
brn.ation which they had called for. he had a lit
be iAforl:,aton with regard TO the working of the
AlrilIs of l842 and 1916. He had learned from
IN oticia! source that there had been an increase
Ii about twenty per cent in the revenue under the
hriif of 1916 over the receipts by that OF 1912.
This had been the increase up to the 10th Janua-
y inst, aud he understood that the increase was
I'LL going on. He had antici pated the increasing
venues bY proposing TO issue treasury notes and
Rgotiate Tor ? loan. Let them contrast the two
&.Iiis then and he would submit it to the gentle
ben, whether the tariff Of 1916 not as good
Z that!ot 642. In regard to the remark OF the
snorable senator from Maine, abiding TO a want
foresight in the Secretary OF the Treasury, he
EPull say i, was not always the case in time OF
ace thaia financial officer could anticipate their
sceasties. How much less could he do itwEen
e cauntry was engagcdin war. The true theory
us. that the means OF the Government must be
ppdrtioned TO the prospective demands upon the
feasury--und if the Secretary OF the Treasury
He'd to predict with certainty in regard to the
iut4 oftae Government, there was no reason for
3!surng him.