The Portland daily press., 1867-01-08
PORTLAND.

Tuesday Morning. January 8, 1857
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The Revenue Commfssion..,. R.oo.,
The act of July 13, 1866, creating the office
of Special Commissioner of the Revon,e
makes it the duty of that officer to report from
time to time such notifications of the rates
OF taxation or Of the methods of collecting the
revenues, and such other facts pertaining to
the trade, industry, commerce or taxation OF
the country, as he may find by actual observa-
tion of the operation ofthe law, to be condu-
Give to the public interest" In the execution
of this important trust Mr.. Wells has availed
himself of the information collected by the
| Statistical Bureau of the Treasury Depart
ment, has visited the custom houses of New
York, Philadelphia and Boston, and has con-
suited with leading agriculturists, manufac-
turers and commercial men from every Sec
tion OF the country. His two Assistants,
Messrs. Young and Elliott, have pursued the
investigation at points which Mr.. Wells was
unable to visit personally. Whether the rec
concentrations Of the Commissioner shall pre
vail or not, the information thus procured bv
actual and systematic observation, is obvious
ly entitled to outweigh anybody's casual inn
pressions and must hereafter form the solid ba-
sis for any reasoning entitled to respect, on
the subject Of the revenue. .,.,.'.t NJ, M. +, Il
Mr.. Wells's report was laid before the Hous-
es Of Congress last Thursday. We published
the next morning synopsis of its recommen-
dations. The entire document has since come
to hand-a pamphlet of 123 pages. As amag-
azine of facts bearing upon one of the most
important and difficult subjects of legislation,
it fully approves the wisdom of the law pro-
viding for their collection. Imperfect in some
respects, it certainly is; our experiments in
taxation have not yet been prolonged suffi-
GENTLY to enable any observer to master the
multiplicity of their details. The same dill
gence should be employed in further study
of the subject. There is ample scope in this
direction alone for the employment of the
whole force OF the Bureau of Statistics. The
rumor from Washington. that Congress is in
clined to discontinue that Bureau must be er
roneous; Congress cannot afford to leeislate
on this subject in the dark. 1t is furthermore
not the least of our obligations to Mr.. Wells,
that be calls the attention OF Congress con-
stantly to the established principles of econo-
mic science. "It is fashionable and comfort
able" he says, ito believe that the experience
OF other countries is no criterion for our own
but this is grave error. The difference in
our favor is one merely of productive and re-
Operative power; we cannot set scientific
principles at defiance; and the laws of trade
and OF national development are as truly laws,
as those which regulate the course of the plan
cts or the alienation of the seasons"
The picture which Mr.. Wells draws of the
industrial condition of the country has its
bright and its dark sides. He observes dur
ing the past year great activity-industrial
or speculative-in nearly every section of the
coantry, with consequent extension of busi-
ness; an unprecedented progress in the in
vention of machinery for economizing labor
orperfecting processes or products; contin-
ued and increasing influx Of foreign immigra-
tion, tending to relieve the labor market; and
spirit of enterprise which seems to redouble
its energy with every burden put upon it. On
the other hand, prices Of the leading articles
of consumption and rents ave. ye nearly 90
per cent. higher than in 1850, while wages
have advanced only about go per cent. the
usual and necessary effect of the increase and
disturbance Of prices is visible in the decrease
oanS7lmntin,, ks,o,nT. 4
marked decrease III the expectation Of various |
articles; our foreign commerce is being swept
from the ocean; and foreign producers are
able to undersell us in our own markets, y
a We proceed to give a few of the facts which
indicate the unsatisfactory condition OF our
industrial interests. The articles of cotton
goods, calico, woolens, paper, rolled and slit
iron and nails, clothing, leather, boots and
shoes and fisheries, are selected as fairly rep
resenting the productive industry of Massa-
chusetts 1t appears that in 1865 not only
was smaller number Of hands employed in
these occupations than in 1855, but the gold
value of the products had fallen off nearly 1-2
per cent. The 20 per cent. duty upon lumber
has SO increased the price as to check the con-
struction of houses, factories and ships, thus
directly increasing rents, cost of manufactur-
ed products, and freights. Our expectation
of boots and shoes amounted in 1865 to two
millions of dollars; it has dwindled in 1866 to
half million. We exported in 1865 twenty
seven millions OF dollars worth Of -four; in
1865 only eighteen millions. Flour has actu-
ally been imported from France within the
year, and starch from Great Britain. We can
no longer compete with foreign nations in
foreign markets except in the few cases where
nature or accident favors the American pro-
ducer-as in the cases of petroleum, cotton
sewing machines, &c. The copper from the
Superior mines, which was formerly exported
to France or Germany, cannot now command
even the home market. The class of ships
which now cost in New York about 800 (cur-
rency) per ton, to build and equip for sea, can
be built in the British Provinces tor about $40
(gold) per ton. In 1853 the tonnage OF the
United States was Is per cent. in excess of
that of Great Britain; it is now estimated at
was but single ship on the stocks in New
York, and but one or two in Boston. Expe-
rienced shipowners in New York told the
Commissioner that no voyage with an Ameri-
can vessel, can be planned at present from the
United States to any foreign port, with rea-
sonable expectation OF profit. =
1t is the burden of taxation, direct and indi
rect, which oppresses these varied interests.
Mr.. Wells argues that relief is not to be sought
by increasing the burden, that is by imposing
still heavier duties upon imported articles, in
cluding the raw materials which our manu-.
facturers need but by reducing the direct taxa
ton so as to foster cheap production at home
Our difficulties, he says, are directly causedby
high prices but an incre Use of the tariff-that
is to say of taxation upon imports-is legisla-
ton in favor Of still higher prices. We have
already protective tariff, averaging 43 per
cent. upon our total imports; it will not an
swer to make it prohibitive. The annual rev.
enue of the country, derived from taxation of
imports, domestic products, sales and incomes
amounts to $l1 .46 per capita in gold British
taxation amounts to only S10.92; yet the
British debt is S125 per capita, while ours is
only s74. In Mr.. Wells's opin ion we need less,
not more, taxation.