Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1845-1854, 1848-01-12

+
e taxed and unrestricted labor with which
i ought to be, and certainly yet will be prou
II y associated. Under this system, the
boring men, while they receive the full w
: ges heretofore allowed them, would oil.
! participate to o reasonable extent in II
profits rs an addition to their wages, a mo
powerful and certain stimulous TO rende
: their labor more productive, and thus il
} crease, for the benefit of all concerned, tn
capitalists and the workingmen, the profit
} of the establishment. " hat is called tn
pauper labor Of Europe is already inferio
to our labor, but would be rendered sti
more powerless to compete with us whe
labor here participated with capital in tn
profits. -. -. =.
When we reflect that the workin,
freemen of the Union must constitute III,
great mass Of the people, whose votes will
control theGovernment and direct the polic,
OF the nation, the superior comfort, educa
ton, Intelligence and information necessa
rlly resulting to them from this improve
inent Of our social system, is important tt
the successful progress and perpetuity o
our Tree institutions, and must be grateful te
every republican patriot and lover of man.
kind.
Whilst all have derived great benefit:
Iron the new tariff, it is labor that has re-
alized the largest reward. 1t was contend
ed by the advocates of protection, that il
enhanced the wages of labor, and that low
duties would reduce wages here to the rate
allowed for what they call the pauper la.
Dor OF Europe. On the contrary, the op
ponents of high tariffs insisted that labor.
left to seek freely the markets of the world,
would find for its products the best prices,
and as consequence, the highest reward for
the labor by which they were produced. The
duties have been reduced; and yet wages
have advanced, and are higher now than
under any protective tariff. There are ma.
ny more workingmen concerned in other
pursuits than in manufactures, and with
much less of machinery as substitute for
labor; and by depressing agriculture. com.
merce and navigation-by restricting their
business and the markets for their products
tho wages of those engaged in such pur-
suits are reduced; many workmen also lose
employment; ond, competing for work in
manufactures, the wages Of all are dimin.
ished. =
1t is not only the reduced duties that have
produced these happy results, but the mode
OF reductlon-the substitution of the ad va
orem Tor unequal and oppressive minmu m
and specific duties. The higher duty was
thus always imposed, by the very nature
Of the duty, upon the article of the lowest
1alue, consumed by the poor; and the low
er duty assessed upon the article Of the
higher value, used by the more wealthy,
olten operating as duty of 10, 20, or so
per cent. upon'the high-priced goods, and
of 90 to 200 per cent. ad valorem upon
articles of lower price. Nearly the entire
burden Of the tariff was thus thrown uponI
abor, by whose wages chiefly the cheap
'r articles were purchased; whilst capital,
With whose profits the more costly goods
we're bought, was almost exempt from the
ak. 1t never would have been tolerated to
AVE imposed duty Of 10, 20, or 80 per
'ent. by name upon costly articles, and ofI
10 or 200 per cent. upon cheaper fabrics.
where the nd valorem rates would have ex.
'ibited the injustice and inequality of the
uty; but it was accomplished by minimum !
nd specific duties, which assessed a high
r duty in proportion to value upon the
heaper articles, and the lower duty upon
lmllar articles more costly in price; thus
nposing the higher duty upon labor and
1e wages OF labor, Us effectualIy as though
,e lax gatherer had collected from The
'orking man third or fourth of his wages
very day, whilst capital was comparative
7 exempt from taxation. Such is the
vsten which has been oyerthrown by the
Institution Of the reduced advalorem. op.
rating the reverse of the former system.
favor Of the poor and the wages Of labor,
far as any tariff can so, operate, and, as
e see, even with lower duties collecting a
'rger revenue A tax in proportion 10
le value OF imports or property, must al
'ays be more productive than one which
the reverse of that rule, or which disre-
ards it altogether. Thus, five impose n
TX of ten dollars each upon all houses, i,
lust produce less revenue than the I'D VA.
'rem tax in proportion to value; because
le former tax would fall most heavily IN.
the poor, who were the least able to I
ear il, and more lightly upon the wealthy, ;
no had greater means Of payment, and
ereby revenue would be diminished
hus, If the-tax Of ten dollars were limos. {
alike upon the cabin and the costly
yelling, it would bring less revenue than t
the same rate ad valorem, beginning with S
Q lowest at the rate of ten dollars, were i
sessed in proportion to value upon all {
,uses. Indeed, the tax upon the cabin c
light be reduced to dollar, or say one per +
mt, and applied ad valorem to all dwell. +,
'gs, and it would yield larger revenue j
an the anti-ad-valorem specific tax Of ten i
liars upon all houses, Irrespective of their S
:lue, which is no more unjust or unequal 6
an the same minimum or specific duties f
on hats, caps, boots. shoes, &c and like t
ticles Of import, without regard to their val. f
I. The ad vaiorem duty Incorporates itself p
with the exact value Of the ar. p
lie, and collects the tax in exact proper. l
N to the value; the form which, Of all
,ers, must yield the largest revenue. Per- f
ps the most perfect model Of an anti-ad. Il
loren tariff was that Of New Mexico, by n
'ich duty Of $500 was imposed on each 9
lgon-load Of goods introduced there,whol- h
Irrespective Of their value. y
The orent arc1nent fnr nroyecf;oy, :. III 80 -