Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1862-04-03
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Report ON Tobacco.


T The select committee TO whom was refa,ra
Senate joint resolution No. 80. relative 10 "a
mobilization of the proposed tax bv Conptes
upon leaf tobacco" >" having had the same unde
consideration, report:
That the Congressional committee of Way
and Means propose to lay an excise duty upo
topaoco, leaf or stem, uDmanufactured, of thre
cents pound, and further provides that th
payment OF this duty shall not exempt II from
tultner duty when manufactured. 90
IL tne proposed excise duty should be levied
your committee can only see an utter destruc
tion to the tobacco growing interest of the coun
lsy, and especially to that Interest in the State
Ohio. - = ' :
Bat two sections of the State of Ohio, Il
any considerable extent, are engeged In thi
agricultural interest --ths Miami Valley ant
that portion Of Eastern Ohio embraced In th,
lfth Congressional District, consisting Of th,
counties OF Belmont, Noble, Guernsey, ant
Monroe. Some other counties in that portion
oIltne state are also engaged 10 it--Washing
ton, Morgan and some few othere, but not e
that extent which the 18th Congressional Dis
trict is The amount produced iu Easter
Ohlo annually, and shipped from that section o
tne state to the city Of Baltimore, that CITY
heretofore having been the depository of all, oI
nearly all OF the manufactured tobacco OF
tnis otate, preparatory to It's exportation to Eu,
rope 10 about twenty thousand hogsheads
averaging about eight hundred pounds each
making O total of about sixteen millions OF
pounds OF this production from that section OF
tho State alone, the largest proportion of II DO.
ing raised aud shipped from the four counties
ABOVE named as comprising the l7th Congres.
Elonal District. ! .
The other section of the State engaged n
this pursuit. the Miami Valley, ships to the
same city and In the same manner about TO-.
Uuu,UeU pounds. All of the tobacco raised in
Onio' except very small portion, 10 exported
from the city OF Baltimore to foreign market
tor 1t Is well understood fact, owing to the pe-
culiar kind and quality, that none of 1t Ia man.
niactured In this country, being exported to
England, France, Austria, Prussia and the Ger
man States. 90 a
Eastern Ohio. raising of the manufactured
article 10 ,0OO,OO pounds, would have, If this
unjust excise duty is imposed upon the tobacco
grower, as is proposed by the committee OF
WaysI and Means, for the grower alone will
have IL to pay, the sum Of about $3.50 000
whilst the Miami Valley, raising 10000, ,O0C
pounds, would have $500, 900 to pay; this IN.
terest alone being taxed $7s0,00O, thereby yir.
tuaily prescribing this important branch of ag-
ricultuFe. IL is all raised by, and all of the
proposed duty must be paid by, our small farm.
ersj men owning forty, fifty and eighty acres Of
land, and renters OF small farms-she largest
proportionlby the latter. They have their prep
aratiOns made; houses erected for curing and
firing 1t, and their farms especially prepared and
allotted for this particular crop. This tax must
destroy their business and In many instances
bring ruin and bankruptcy upon them, for the
reason that they receive or have received upon
an average for the last ten years upon the very
kind--"leaf and stem unmanufactured"--
which this excessive excise duty of three
cents per pound is proposed, about So rs per
hundred pounds, being tax Of eighty per cent
upon its average actual value, leaving the
amount to be received by the grower for bis
production and his labor, q sum wholly made
quate TO earn the expenses of It's growth. They
would not even be able 10 pay for the prepare
tlon of the soil for its planting. Again-their
Insrket being wholly q foreign one, they will
be unable TO compete with foreign tobacco grow
eFs, such as Cuba, Brasil, Central America, aud
other Countries that seek and enter and COM
pete In the same European markets with Ohio.
The result is, that If they could ever continue
It's raising and culture under this tax, they would
be unable to compete with the other countries
mentioned, and ultimately be compelled to aban.
don the markets. aI .-' .!.-s .1 % p
A Discrimination Of three cents Der pound In
favor Of the foreign grower, when he has al.
ready the advantage Of cheap laoor, will most
efectually destroy lie cultivation in our State
and az the same time defeat the object Of the
committee of Ways and Means, that Of reve-
nueI prescription oil o valuable article Of ex
port which It has heretofore been the uniform
policy OF the Government TO encourage and pro-
teot.5L. . l-l1 q a-l ,s- ~ = 1I-ls
I According to tho report of the Custom Hous,
the shipments from Maryland and Ohio alone IL
the year 1861, from Baltimore, amounted tc
IS. 4S9 hogsheads, valued at $3,S96,994. 1.sg
| Your committee therefore deem the report OF
the committee Of Waysa and Means in relation
to this specific article Of agriculture and expor-
talon as measure unjust and unequitable, II
will destroy and ruin the interest in this State
and deprive II Of large revenue, and will moi
In the end Increase the revenue Of the Fedora
Governmept. -l-y Lf s- sac ~
We therefore earnestly recommend the adop
tion Of the Senate resolution on the subject.
w. 8. KENN0N,
House Select Committas