Middletown transcript., 1868-01-04
Take. o. ssee.sariss.

wneh every uoii,fl0f the revenue needed
to support our gocfnment will be levied
on superhuities, I'D when articles of ne.
cessary consumplons will be free. That
this idea is NOT athimerical one is abun-.
dantly testified ~ the success already
achieved in this lirection by other cou,i-
tries, and notablIin England. Less than
acentury since efry article imported into
the United Kingdom, and many of those
exported were burdened with high duties.
Every useful commodity. and every article.
Of comfort and luxury, had to pay a heavy
contribution to the State before Ii reached
the consumer, and the tariff exhibited a
formidable load # unjust and oppressive
burdens. Underthe spread Of more liberal
ideas the taxes ltvied by the custom laws
upon almost every article largely consumed
were gradually reduced or got rid Of
Through the arduous and intelligent la
bors OF Golden, Bright and other leaders
of the Anti-corn Law League, the princi-
pie Of protection which had long ridden
the British. people, as it still docs our own,
was formally Abandoned and dsowned.
The taxes on brtadstuffs were repealed,
and great diminption was made.
Two hundred ycars ago the number Of
articles charged with taxes in Great Bri-
tain numbered LOCO. In 1887 they were
reduced to | ,425 articles in 1926 to L.
$50; in 1S4l to 1862; in 1S49 to 515,
and in 1888 to 456. In the latter year
the Chancellor OF the Exchequer, Glad
stone, thus stated the principles that gov
ern the tax levy:
First, to abolish altogether the duties
which are unproductive; and 10 the next
place to abolish, as far as considerations of
revenue will permit, duties on articles OF
manufacture, except such as are in the
last stages as finished articles. In these
cases we have endeavored to fix the duties
in such a way that, as general rule,
they should not stand, as to any class of
goods Except silks higher than ten per
cent. on their value
"Next; We have been desirous to lower
the duties that press on foreign articles of
food, which enter largely, if not. into the
necessaries Of life, at any rate into what
may be called the luxuries and comforts OF
the mass of the people"
Still greater reductions in the number
of articles taxed have taken place; and
since 1860, the British tariff retains only
nineteen articles subject to import duties.
Our own complicated and burdensome
tariff presents a painful contrast to this
simplicity, with its 3, 800 articles subject
to duty-or about double the number that
were ever taxed in Great Britain, oven in
her darkest days of national exclusiveness
and oppression. Yet England raises as
great revenue every year from customs
as does the United States, and collects it
far more cheaply and surely. Five great
items produced twenty million pounds,
s 100, 200, 200, more than our whole rev.
enue from customs (all sources) in 1865,
and nearly as much as the total average
receipts of the current fiscal year from i'm
ports. These great staples are sugar, tea,
tobacco, wine and spirits-all, save enc OF
two, articles of mere luxury or superfuity.
Great Britain has a populatioh about equal
to our own. No nation stands more IN
need of a large revenue. since ncr national
debt is greatei by ope-third than ours
What is the secret Of her success Low
taxes ans &c. aRsaR prices for sll the assssss-
,
1t should never bb forgotten that hea-
Wy taxed articles extensively consumed by
the people, enhancq the cost of those arti-
cles, FIRST, to the eftent of tho duty itself;
second, to the extent of forty per, cent,
premium Oh that duty, (as all such taxes
are payable in god, third, to the extent
of the expense, delay and inconvenience
suffered by the dhaler in the payment of
the duty !; and lastly, on account of the
discouraging effect of such duties upon the
importation of the article. How many
times have we!been told, in the last three
years, as a reison why the merchants no
lodger keep certain articles on hand. we
can't afford tolimport that article any more.
the duty is 50 high" And how often are
we reminded, when hesitating over the
frightfnlly dear prices asked for imported
goods that the article has paid forty or
fifty per cent gold duty and cannot possi-
bly, be afforded any less3 This enhance
ment of the cost limits the consumption
of articles which are of primary me-
cossity to ttc welfare of the people, and
so far it is great injury. tits the boun-
den duty Of the State to interfere SO as to
diminlsh materially the comforts of the
community. Yet we find our Govern
ment, through the unwise and mistaken
counsels Of men who appear not to- com
prehcnd the first principle Of political econ
omy, standing in the unparental relation
of an obstructionist to the commerce of the
people. BY a system of inordinately high
duties, never paralleled before in this
country, we are cut off from using our own
resources to the best advantage while the
Government, instead Of reaping the adyan-
tage which the people lose. is actually
cheating itself ont of millions by pursuing
a more reasonable system Of taxation, in
the articles subjected to customs duties
1t appears from the last report of the
Commissioner of the Internal Revenue.
that the present average tax laid by the
custom laws upon imported goods, is for
, ty-eight per cent on the dutiable value Of