The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1870-04-05
IRON The Missouri Democrat
The Tariff Bill.


The speech Of Gen. Schenck, in
closing the general debate on the tar
if bill. was a fair sample OF the meth
cd by which tariffs like the one under
which we live are usually slipped
through the House. I'VE must have
revenue, and therefore these heavy
duties must be imposed" is always
the first statement, and it is always a
faEsehood. Larger revenue could cas-
liz be raised by lower duties; if a
thousand articles are now absolutely
excluded by the duty on imports, the
government receives no revenue what.
ever frou the high duty on these. and
would receive a large revenue If the
duty were so reduced az 90 permit the
importation of such articles. IL is.
then, no more md no less thar a false.
hood to assert that the great multi
zoe O. clauses in these tariffs which
T intended to exclude some foreign
article are needed for revenue. Such
duties are desired only for another
purpose, and can be honestly defended
only By a different reasoning. When
Gen. Schenck tells the House that we
must have duties substantially such
as the proposed bill imposes. in order
to raise the revenue required by gov
eminent, he tries to deceive the House
and the people. IF revenu was his
object, the duties might be so adjusted
as TO relieve the people of halt the
taxes which they now pay, and yet
secure to government a larger reve-
nue. than it now receives, for,
when q foreign commodity is ex-
cIuded by q duty, the government gets
no revenue. while, If the price Of the
corresponding domestic article is rais-
ed above the normal cost ofthe foreign
article duty free, the people pay q tax,
and that tax they pay, not to govern
ment, but to favored interests. By
Wiping out every duty which involves
such q tax as this, the burdens of the
people might be greatly reduced, while
the revenue would be increased. Now
we do not argue that every such duty
ought to BIZ instantly or entirely re-
moved, but we expose the falshood
and rasealit7 Of defending such duties
on the pretense that they are needed
for revenue. A prohibitory duty can
never be needed, a never be useful,
for any revenue purpose, and the man
who defends one of them on that
ground Is either a fool or 4 knave.
In the speech of General Schenck,
this familiar falsehood appears some
what less boldly than is usual, but the
germ Of il is there, nevertheless. I'VE
have proposed to reduce the revenue
about twenty millions" says Schenck,
'sand the committee could hardly rec
ommend q reduction greater in
amount" The inference which he
wishes to produce is hat any other
reduction of duties would involve a
greater reduction of recommendation
is the same old falsehood in essence.
Had General Schenck dealt honestly
with the House, he would have said,
Here II about three thousand du-
ties which are designed to exclude
foreign articles as far as possible, and
these duties, being designed to yield as
little revenue Is possible, we retain for
the purpose of protection, increasing
them In cases when, foreign products
not being excluded, the duty does
yield revenue contrary to our inten-
ton. But duties on other articles,
designed for revenue. we have so re-
duced that we expect the revenue to
the treasury will be cut down about
twenty millions. Prohibitive duties,
on the other hand, having been in
creased, the people will pay a heavier
AK nan DeIOre on q protected do
mestic articles. The net result of
this tariff. therefore. is to Increase tax
alton while reducing revenue; to take
more money from the people; and to
give less OF 1t TO the Government and
more to nonopolies.n THAT is nre-
cisely what Dir. Schenck would have
been obliged to say If he had tried IN
tell the truth, the whole truth and
nothing but the truth.
To this general deception in regard
to the nature and object of the tariff
there is always added a multitude Of
falsehoods about its details. The adj
vocates Of such bills as these have a
great faith in the stupidity, g~uIlibility
and dense ignorance of members Of
Congress and their constituents. and
they therefore rely largely upon blunt
measurements about the details of q