Richmond daily times. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1853, 1853-03-31
UNITED STATES SENATE.
MONDAY, March %, 1858.


reced report to the Senate at Its annual session.
the average prices annually of bar iron merchantabe
manufactured by rolling; bar iron merchandise
factured otherwise than by rolling; railroad iron manufdc
tured by rolling, and pig ron for the last years pre-
ceding 1885, in the foreign markets Of production ship
ment Also the average prices annually of the same
descriptions of iron New York and Pittsburg for the
same period together with the charges for freight nsu
rance, and commissions
Mr.. HUNTER asked its immediate considera-
ton. 1t had been suggested to him by men of
practical experience that good basis for COM
promise between the consumers and manufactu-
rers of iron would be to establish a point in the
price of the article beyond which no duty should
be imposed. 1t had been said that it would be
eminently useful to ascertain that point upon
which the duty on that important article might
be taken off, without injury to the manufacturers
on the one hand or consumers on the other, and
that protection would be afforded by the impos-
tion of duties whenever the price abroad should
range below certain point to be established by
law. As it was desirable that some sort of COM
promise between these two leading interests
should be agreed upon he had submitted the
resolution with view to ascertain if such pro-
ject would be possible He thought it extreme
~ desirable that harmony should be produced
between these two rival interests, and where such
a compromise could be made without inflicting
injury upon the producers, he thought it ought
to be done. The idea, to say the least, he con-
sidered plausible, and without intending to COM
nit himself in its favor, he thought there was
sufficient in it to make it desirable that the in
formation should be obtained in order to fix a ba-
sis for action hereafter
Mr.. BRoDHEAD alluded to the fact that ever
since the years 1916 and ls47 the manufacturers
of railroad iron as we'll as of iron generally Ind
been asking that some compromise might be
tered into with view to save them from: ruin,
and he believed that appeals had heretofore been
made to the honorable Senator from Virginia,
(Mr. Hunter) but without effect He (Mr. b.
was now happy to perceive, however, that the
honorable Senator was willing to listen to such
appeals, because it evinced ut least n disposition
to enter into a compromise. He should have
been much more pleased, however, to have heard
the doctrine avowed some two or three years Ago.
when those engaged in the manufacture of iron,
and railrord iron in particular, were suffering
under the disastrous effects of low duty.
Mr.. HUNTER though the honorable Senator
could not be aware either of his purpose or his
agency in the matter. He had submitted the
resolution to see whether something could not
be done by which more satisfaction could be Civ
en- to the consumers of iron, without inflicting
injury upon the manufacturers; that was the
object of the resolution, rs he had stated ut the
time of its introduction. 1t had been suggested
to him that some such compromise might be
done not, but it must be apparent to all that
they would have to meet The question in all its
length ard breadth ut the next session, and he sub
mitted, therefore, whether it would not be more
beneficial in every point of view to obtain such
information as would ennble them 10 act under
standingly on the subject?
Mr.. H. professed himself to be free trade
man to the extent at least Of evying duties strict
~ revenue principles, THAT was, the lowest
H. -.
er the Government upon economical prime ples:)
tbut at the same time he held that under no cir
cumstances whether by improvident Legislative
interference or action of the Government, should
the industrial interests be suddenly or wantonly
depressed. Whenever the government sought
reform of the kind, he considered that it should
be so gradual in its operation not to prejudice
! interests which its own act might have called
into being. His object in introducing the reso
| luton was n kind one.
Mr.. BRoDuEAD professed himself ut some
loss to understand in what sense the Senator
from Virginia professed himself to be ga free
trade man." because something more than three
| weeks ago that honorable Senator had advocated
what he (Mi. b. considered the very worst kind
of discrimination. That Senator had argued
at that time in favor of repeating the duty on al
railroad iron. Suppose the duty were to be tn
ken off articles that entered into general consump
| ton, where Then was the revenue to be obtaned
| He should like to know what the Senator meant
by his ayowal that he was free trade man.
| Did he mean that he was in favor of genera
repeal of all duties and resort to direct taxation!
| ltwould really seem so from the fact of his
advocating the entire abolition of duty upon rail>
road iron. He Mr.. b. could no difference
between taking off the duty railroad iron and
| the other articles alluded to.
Mr.. HUNTER could not have his consistency
on the subject called inquestion. He had be
fore stated the sense in which he had used the
phrase .'free trade man.. He thought he had
explicitly enough avowed the fact that he was
in favor OF levyng duties strictly on revenue
principles, and for raising so much only lis was
indispensaby necessary to an economical admin
istration of the Government. Tho Senator from
Pennsy lvania had attacked also his (Mr. H.'s)
position in regard to the entire abolition of duty
railroad iron, and intimated therelrom that he
must be in favor CT direct taxation. That was
not necessary inference. In the vote which
he had given lie lad been instructed by the
Legislature of his own State. During the
previous period he had avoided mingliug in
the discussions on the subject of railroad
iron but had voted in accordance with in-
structions The whole object of the resolu-
ton wns to ascertain Il point where duty
iron might be taken off without injury to the
manufacturing interest, and reserving provis sion
by law in which duty shall be levied on all iron
where its price should range below that point
He knew many manufacturers OF the article who
believed that it would form basis for compro-
mise; but he did not presume to say it would, nor
could he do sountl the Information was obtained
The idea he conceived sufficiently plausible to
justify him in calling for the informasion aud
he hoped the resolution would be adopted
The resolution was then agreed to.
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