The Athens post. [volume] (Athens, Tenn.) 1848-1917, 1858-12-17

800 .''' ,'p''"f S"N oc cupiOltu
In commercial and man ufacturing enterp Uses,
and In the construction of railroads. md other
works of public, and private improvement,
prosperity willngnin smile throughout The
land. IL is in vain, however, to disguise the
fact from ourselves, that \ speculative inna-
tion OF our currency, without u corresponding
imitation In other countries whose manufnc.
lures come into competition with our own
must ever produce disastrous results to our
domestic manufactures. No tariff, short OF
absolute PFohibitlon, can prevent these evil
consequences. .,
In connection with this subject, {, is proper
to refer to our financial condition. The same
causes which have produced pecuniory dis.
tfess throughout the country, have 40 reduc.
ed The amount Of imports from foreign coun
tries, that the revenue has proved inadequate
TO meet the necessary expenses of the gov
eminent To supply the deficiency, Congress
by the act Of the 23d of December, 1857, au
thorzed the issue of S2O00O,O00 of treasur,
notes; and, this proving inadequate, they au
thurized, nv the act of June l4th, 1868, {
loan Of $20,000,O00, ITO be applied to the
payment appropriations made by law"
No statesman would advise, that we should
90 on increasing the national debt 10 meet
the ordinary expenses ofthe government
This would be most rbinous policy. In
case Of war, our credit must be our chief TO-
SOURCE, at lenst for the first year, and thi.
would be greatly impaired by having con.
tracted large debt in time of peace. II il
our true policy, to increase our revenue so n.
to equal our expenditures. It would be ru.
nous to continue to borrow. Besides. IL may
be proper to observe, that the incidental pro
lection, thus afforded by n revenue tariff
would at the presspt moment, to some ex.
tent, increase tba Violence of the manufac.
turing interests, Ml1lDg give a fresh impulse to
our reviving business. To this, surely, nc
person will object.
In regard TO the mode of assessing and
collecting duties under n strictly revenue
tariff, have long entertained and often ex
pressedthe opinion, that sound policy re.
quires this should be done bv specific duti. 8
in cases to which these can be properly ap
piled. They nre well adapted to commodities
which nre usually sold by weight or BY ,mea-
sure, and which, from their nature, are OF
equal or of nearly equal value. Such. for ex
ample, are the articles of iron of different
clnsses, raw sugar. and foreign wines md
spirits.
In my deliberate Judgment, specific duties
are the best, If not the only means of secur.
ing the revenue against false and fraudulent
invoices, and such has beer the practice
adopted for this purpose nv other commercial
nations. Besides, specific duties would afford
to the American manufacturer the incidental
advantages to which he is fairly entitled I'M
der u revenue tariff The present system is
n sliding scale 10 his disadvantage. Under it,
when prices are high and business prosper.
Gus. the duties rise in amount when he least
requires their aid. On the contrary, when
prices fall, and hr is struggling against nd
versity. the duties are diminished in the same
proportion, greatly to his injury.
Neither wonld there be danger that hiph-
er rate of duty than that intended by Con
gress, could be levied in the form of specific
duties. II would be easv to ascertain the
average value of any imported article for u
series of yenrs: and. instead Of suhjeciing il
to an ad raiorem duty at n cert lin rate per
centum. t" substitute in its place an equiva.
lent specific duty.
BY such nm arrangement the consumer
would not be injured. II is true, he might
have to pay little more duty ON n given ar.
tirle in one year; but If SO, he would pay n
little less in another, and in n series of years
these would connterbalance each other, and
amount to the same thing, so far rs his in
terest is concerned. This Inconvenience
would be trifing, when contrnsted with the
additional security thus afforded against
frauds upon the revenue, in which every con
sumer is directly Interested.
have thrown out these suggestions M the
fruit OF my own observation, to " hich Con-
gress, in their better judgment, will give such
weight as they may justly deserve.
The report Of the Secretary of the Treasu
ry will explain in detail the operations of that
department of the government. The receipts
into the treasury from all sources during the
fiscal year ending 3Oth June, 1853, including
the treasury notes authorized by the net Of
December 90, 1867, were S7O,273,s69 SO,
which amount, with the balance of $l9,7lO,-
ia 81 remaining in the treasury at the com
mencement of the year, made an aggregate
forsthe service Of the year Of S87, 1885, 1888 SO.
The public expenditures during the fiscal
year ending June 80, 1858, amounted to $751;.
585, 667 rs, of which S9,684537 80 were up
plird TO the payment of the public debt, and
the redemption of TREASURY notes with the in
ierest thereon,t leaving in the treasury on
Julyl, 1853, being the commencement Of
the present fiscal yenr, S6,398,3l6 10.
The receipts into the treasury, during the
first quarter of the present fiscal year, COM
mencinp the LIST July, 1858, including one
half of the loan of twenty millions of dollars
with the premium mon Il. on,hnrized NV The
nct of I4tb June. 1883. were &2b Gao $40 Az,
and the estimatad rec.ipts for the remainir ~
three quarters to The so,h June 1859. from
ordinary sources. nre S3s. 6oO, 900. MAKING
With ,hs halance bsfors STATED nm nogreno,s
y nc zoo ,or &c