Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1866-02-09

'iiS COMMISSION uSiicht tilal 4df 5tE ItNtnl
can be obtained than now Is, and with le
?, expense to the Treasury and far less ammo
ance 70 the people than is now experience
Any thing like a synopsis Of this long az
elaborate document is out Of The qucsiiO
for our limits. We can notice bat Gc
/ points and give a few extracts intcrc5ta
from tie imp -rtant of clriyss iulorlaa:iJ
which they contain.
The want Of reliable commercial statistic
Is dwelt upon, and some gross Disagreement.
between certain reports and the actual iect
are pointed out, and the Importance Of gov
ernmen;al provision for the accumulation ap,
publication Of reliable knowledge Is urged
The analysis Of the British system of rev
enue shows the change which was gradually
brought about therein. Instead Of laying
heavy duties On raw material needed for tt,
sustenance Of the laborins population and
for the operations Of the manufacturers, and
putting excise duties On almost every thing
made at home, as tic practice was thirty OF
forty years ago, tie later policy has been to
I leave tie trade in raw materials for home
use as free as possible, to put the duties on
/ foreign manufactured articles, and TO lay
excise duties mainly on q very few articles
of luxury, which long experience has shown
the people would use, cheap or dear
Tie free trade which the British politicians
axe all the while preaching up so vocilerous-
l. to other nations, thus appears to he a
virtual protection to their own manufactur-
ing interests They want other nations to
let in British manufacturers without duty
because the British manufactures arc allowed
to get from abroad raw materials for their
work at as little expense as possible. The
free trade they practice for themselves is a
very different thing from that which they
preach for Others.
The French system difci- IN some partic-
ulars from the English. yet cmbodics the
same essential principles.
Proceeding to 4 consideration Of our own
National revenue system, as it now is, the
Commissioners remark at the outses. as fol-
lows:
The dinuseness Of the present revenue sys-
TEN Of the United States is doubtless one Of its
greatest imperfections, and under il the exsmp-
ton Of any article from taxation is the excep-
ton rather than the rule To sssert this, how
ever, IS no reflection on the judgment or skill
Of its authors The system was framed under
circumstances Of such pressing necessity as to
afford but little opportunity for any careful and
accurate investigation Of the sources Of reyen- |
ue; but it has most ce; tainly accomplished the |
attainment Of the end designed, namely. the I
raising Of revenue; and the country to-day is /
undoubtedly receiving by taxation far morerey- I
enue than is necessary for its legitimate expen- /
dItures As a success, therefore, our present /
revenue system is a most honorable testimonial, .
not only TO the wisdom Of its authors, but 10 1
The patriotism Of the people who not only en-
dured but welcomed the burdens il imposed up /
on them.
\ system Of taxation, however, so difusiYe as
the present one, necessarily entails 4 system Of .
duplication Of taxes, which in turn leads TO an .
undue enhancement Of prices; decrease both 1
o. production and consumption, and consequent I
ly Of wealth; a restriction Of expectations and .
Of foreign commerce; and large increase in
the machinery and expense Of the revenue col
lcctel
In respect to the injurious influences Of this
duplication Of taxes upon the industry Of the .
country the commission cannot speak too strong
ly. Its effect has already been most injurious.
1t threatens the very existenee-eyen with the
protection Of inflated prices and high tarii-of .
many branches Of industry; and with re.Irn
Of the trade and currency Of the country 10
anything approximating is normal condition, it
must, by checking development, prove highly
-'rcus.
sas,- 'tlOns given of the injurious
The illusti. duplication Of taxes on
peration Of this M. - very striking
Manufactured articles, "a, lies Is thus
he cost ot the manufactured art. 'ich
several important instances, among WI
-c books and umbrellas, raised SO as to ex- t
ed all duties and charges on the same ar t
cles made abroad. In some cases the for
ign article can be laid down here at about
alf the price of the same article made at y
ome. a change Of the system or an aban- S
,nment of the manufacture to foreign na- 7
ons Is unavoidable The Ill adjustment of
le tariff and the excise is now in many {
.ses so glaringly in favsr of the foreign
anufactures as to demand prompt and
.dical remedy. After making such correc- I
ons in the tariff as are necessary the conf
ission estimates that considering the growth !
: our population and the readiness of our e
eople to buy desirable foreign articles when
icy can pay for them, the revenue from c
istoms for the year 1867 will be not less
ian $3.50, 900 900. The amount OF internal
venue for the fiscal year OF 1865 was over !
2Il GOO, 600. For 1866 it e expected to ,
/, sSOO.OOO, 1000. I
The increase thus far from the ,xc1se on |
s:illed spirits, though large is but small
art of what it might have betn had not I
ongress, after it became apparent to every
,dy that larce tax would be laid on that
.icle, spent several months in adjusting the
tails Of q yoluminous Internal revenue w
d in disputing particularly about he
whis'sey tax" before enacting anything.
,e dis tillers drove the business meanwhil
the tmost, so as to accumulate stock
fore be tax vas laid. Though from July
1864. 10 July i, 1865. the tax was SI.b
gallon, and g gallon after thai, the great y