The daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1848-1851, 1849-10-24
Ad valorems and specific duties.

goods fcr the uses OF the government Is oppressive
to domestic interests and destructive to the public
morals, Long essays are published, plentifully in
terspersed with Tariff statistics to prove how the
revenue may be, and is habitually defrauded to an
enormous extent by false invoices and wholesale
perjury. There is undoubtedly great deal Of diff
fculty in exactly valhing the goods imported, but
it is an error to say that the foreign invoice is the
measure of value received at the Custom house 1t
is only one Of the proofs Of true value, which Is
determined here by our own officers, and penalties
are imposed for an under valuation. If an invoice
of goods is found on appraisement 70 exceed in
value by only ten per cent. the value declared by
/ the entry, the whole invoice is ohargeable with
tsgenty Der cent increase Of duty on the appraised
value. Diligent and faithful officers could, we
/ think. make naturalization a dangerous and ex'
pensiye business. Besides, if the obiec ton be
merely to the operation Of the system, it ought not
to be condemned without the previous exhaustion of
all means for giving it fair trial. One remains
vet untried, which would, doubtless, have strin-
gent effect in REFRESHING frauds. 1t is that on all oe
casions government should have the option of
taking the duties either in cash upon the valuation
or in kind, taking its proportion of the goods.
This has been proposed at different times when
Tariff bills were under consideration, but there are
difficulties in the details for carrying it out, which
caused It's rejection. But it would, decidedly be
better to adopt it, rather than abandon the ad
valorem system for that of specifics. The diff
Guilty Of administering the law should be no ground
for the adoption of an antagonist principle while
any remedy is possible for the defects.
But the defects of the law are of secondary i'm
portance after all, in the objections to the ad valo-
rem duties. The real grievance is 1.-THE princi-
PIE, and the real ground of complaint is, that il
does not sufficiently protect the domestic manufac-
lurer in the possession of the market against foreign
competition. Fairly stated, and openly stated, the
demand is, that specific duties are needed to protect
domestic manufacturers, because ad valoTems di-
minsh when it is the interest of the manufacturer
that they should rise, and rise when they are of no
use to him.
Yetwe see it often stated that the manufacturers
want no increase in the absolute rates of taxation.
All they want is that the protection contained in
the ad valorem duties should be made specific.
The propositions are irreconeileable. Specific
/ duties take into consideration quantity in some
form only. Ad valorems consider only value. By
one system, a fixed tax is charged upon alimports
-ofthe same kind without regard to cost by the ad
valorem rate every individual article is charged in
proportion to its valuation. A specific duty on
any class of articles as on a square yard of CLOTH
ora dozen of glassware Of some kind, may be &C.
cidentally equivalent to q given ad vaIorem upon
one Of the articles. But with all others of the same
class, it is differentiated the difference increases
in both directions from the point of casual conci.
dence. Thus q specific duty of one dollar a yard
upon cloths is twenty-five per cent duty ad valo-
rem upon cloths costing four dollars yard and
every specific duty can be- thus shown to be. equi
yalent in some cases to a certain ad valorem. Bu
at every other point the duties by one scale
increase as the other diminishes. Thus the duty
of twenty-five per cent. is equal to a duty of one
dollar yard on cloths costing four dollars. But
on cloths costing six dollars yard, the twenty-five
per cent. would amount to one dollar and half
The specific duty Of one dollar the yard would be
only sixteen and twothirds of one per cent ad vao-
rem So on the inferior quality, costing two dol
lars a yard, the specific duty would be ffty per
cent. and the ad valorem Of twenty-five per cent
would be only fifty cents Both fluetuate as the
cost Of the article varies-ony the ad valorem duty
preserves the same proportion to the value of the
article taxed-being low on the low-piced, and
higher on the more costly; while the specific
duty operates reveFssly, and is higher the value
of the article diminishes, and falls as it rises.
This violates the first principle of taxation
which is, that men should contribute to the support
of government in proportion. to their means. The
principle Of the specific is that allwho use imported
articles, or the corresponding domestic article Of
which the price is maintained by taxing the foreign
article, shall pay alike, whether they use the cheap
est and coarsest OF the most fine and costly article
The tax is essentially unequal and its inequality i:
of the worst sort, for it discriminates in favor
those who are most able to pay, and imposes bur
dens by system on the poorer consumer, the highes
| upon the poorest. AS a revenue, the ad valorem
contains the only true principle Of revenue, that
taxation shall be graduated by the ability Of the
payer The specifics, on the CONTEMPLATING the
same fixed sum upon every description of article
make the duties largest, on the inferior article
growing lighter as the cost augments.
The plain distinction, therefore, to be observed
for the fair discussion of this question: is that &C
valorem duties are equitable adjustments of the
contributions Of taxpayers for revenue to the Gov
eminent, in which protection to manufacturers is
an incident Specifics are arbitrary arrangements
of the same, in which the protection is the first
consideration, and revenue merely contingent and
accidental.