, 1866-12-03
WOOL AND NoOLLENs.
No ill n nfa

a Washington despatch speaking of tho
wool trade says that tho Forthcoming report
OF keTenue Commissioner Wells will treat at
length OF the wool trade Of the country"
and adds:
-. "1he facts presented will oc Of especial iutos.
ess & u view of a9e ial! n tne pricee Of woollon
Ssse s.oppsa eatrey e. an a s9 sosn
ming ou khott time. bta1use tooo1 oto cotss n1oTs
s IL as ~ gooas se Ihe
thai elut owing 10 he ipeqs,.e }mnnI4 a1ow "
sFoollcn goods in 1856 over 1855, the imnnfs lar
b;1. oeins hs saIned At about twentyne niliions,
millione." 'eas "ey na'o exceeded slxty-sesen
ne WOOL growers complain bitterly that the
price Of wool Is too lou !; but the mannf,ctn.
fess declare that 1t istoo high. The remedy
proposed by each side is more tariff, The wool
growers demand higher duties on foreign
wool In orderto make domestic wool dearsr.
hat tnc manufacturers resist thus propos1-
Lion unless greatly increased tariff is levied
On imported Woollcns. Wool, they say, is
now so dear that they cannot afford TO buy
II. A higher tariff oil foreign wool will crip-
pie the American manufacturers still morr
anu reduce their consumption Of wool, and
nc 10" Will that benefit the wool grower?
ine cloth makers want Congress
70 ado about thirty per cert to the duty on
foreign woollens, which ma, averages some
thing over fifty per CT In d. But tho
WOOL growers also dem -, So. increase of
duty On foreign woods OF lii'y to forty per
cent. They will not consent to the former
without the Inter. But Il the duties arc en-
larEed thirty or forty per cent on wool, Us
well as on woollen goods, the manufacturers
Will DC worse of than before, because the
effect will be to make wool dearer and wool
lens dearer, and thereby reduce tho domestic
consumption Of their hbrlcs.
Its complained that the importation of
~oo1lcn goods in 1866 far exceeds the In
porta1ion of 1865. Congress at It's last ees-
sion materially increased tho duties on
foreign wool and woolcns, by adding the
cost Of transportation, Insurance, commits
sions, and handling to the invoice cos; of the
aft1c:es, and charging the full tariff rates on
thosc additions TO the foreign value. On
bulky articles like wool this amendment has
the elect Of increasing the tarif on wool
lfotn twenty to thirty per cent. On wool.
len goods tue duties advanced from six to
ten per cent.
But this considerable increase Of tariff
would seem to be Of no practical benefit to
8oollen manufacturers or wool growers.
How Will still more duty on wool aud WOOL
lens mend matterss If the tariff on wool Is
increased the manufacturer will be worse off
Than now, because the raw material will be
deatcr; and II to countcrbalance that evil,
the tariff on Woollen goods be doubled, tho
whole American people who consume wool
lens Will be made to suffer by having the cost
of their clothing doubled, and tIlis dcasness
Of clothing will necessarily result in dituin-
ishcd consumption, thereby damaging both
wool growers and clotl, makers.
A year hence woolleu mills will be afflicted
with worse depression than they now COM
plain Of, and to cure their ills will clamor
for still more tariff Like drinking salt
water, additional tariff will merely increase
their intolerable thirst for more Meanwhile
the only class who will pocket money By
making woollen goods dcarcr, are those who
have stocks on hand but the whole COM
munlty will lose what they gain, and receive
not d cent Of consideration in return. The
best artificial remedy for the existing stagna-
ton III the woollcn business will be found in
8 repeal Of internal taxes on wocllcn goods,
IN dye stutfs, and on all rnw ma
terials cnterin. into the manufacture Of
wool!cus, and also q reduction OF internal
taxes. generally TO the greatest extent, that
the financial requirements Of the GOVERN
'nc,lt will permit. Que dollar Of taxes re-
.nosed from all industry is worth more TO it
Than three dollars OF increased duties. 4
repeal Of one huodrcd millions of cxciscs on
raw materials, manufactures and iucumcs,
would do ten times more to strengthen. pro-
mote, and devclope the manufacturing in
dustry Of the country than the benefit to be
derived from any Imaginable increase or
change Of the tariff. Remove the hurtcn of
internal taxation, and thereby unfetter the
ellorts Of capital aud labor, and all classes Of
the community will instantly begin to cN-
pcricEcc the benefits Of such policy.