New-York tribune., 1871-01-03
S4LT Z.


Hlcssrs. A. Kerr g. Brother, of Philadelphia
and Baltimore, want to import Salt, and do nit
want to pay tho duties by law chargeable
thereon. AS they charge the dGty over to
those who buy and consume the Salt, with
(the Free-Traders tell us) a liberal profit
thereon, it might seem that their interest was
on the other side; but tho fact is that Ameri-
can-madc Salt now sells in competition with
the foreign, and reduces the profits of import
ing Salt 60 q minimum; so Messrs. Kerr &
Brother cry nightly to Congress. They give
what they allcge to have been the cost re-
spectively of ten cargoes OF Salt imported
from Liverpool by them, with tho duties
chargeable thereon, which they Ggure up TO
an average Of 105 per cent, and thereupon
they comment as follows:
'The above is liberal average sample OF the present
duty sALT OF the primo necessities OF ie, nj l5
cents per pounds IN bulk and "a cents per 100 pounds
I'm sacks The freight on the above cargocs will average
fifteen shllings per tun 176 per cent. OF cost This
protects the onondaga Salt Company who are about tie
only parties benefited by the present really exorhb
rates. about 3T5 per cent OF the value or the articles
pared by them for sale.
"As the figures speak for themselves. II IA unnecess
for US 10 detail tho facts The very high rate OF duty
not only affects the importer, but affects all tho Amer
can manufacturers o. salt who ground into obscrty
by the impostons OF the favored and wealthy On0ndaga
monopoly aud the consumer, who meets all the expense
OF monopoly striving to absorb the entire sat trade Of
the country.
"You cannot fail to at glance that the burden Is
too heavy bear IN times OF peace and prosperity We
therefore earnestly, behalf Of the millions 10 be bene
ted thereby. call for reduction iof the tariff i'm
ported SALT TO the following rates, wiz SAIL III BULK
6 CENTS PER 100 POUNDS; IN SACKS, CENTS PER 100
POUNDS"
Comments by The Tribune.
At present, we are buying little Salt abroad,
and this is bought and transported at very low
rates, as it could not otherwise be imported at
all. Mcssrs Kerr g. Bro. assert that "the freight
"on the above cargoes will average fifteen shii-
"lings (sterling) per tun." But suppose we i'm
ported twenty times as much Salt, will any one
guarantee that ship-owners would bring it from
Liverpool at fifteen shilings per tunl Would
not the average charge be nearer thirty shil-
lingsq
SO as to cost. Reduce the duty as these i'm
porters suggest, and the price at Liverpool
and Turks Island would be advanced imme-
diately on the receipt of tho news. Holders
would say, ave shall now have many and
"largc orders from the United States" and
would raise their prices accordingly. This is
consideration which these importers per-
fectly understand, but they take care TO ig-
more it in their appeal.
There are at least a dozen places where Salt
is manufactured in this cOunty-in West Yir-
ginia and in old Virginia; in Western Michi-
gan, &c. There is a large deposit or mine of
pure Rock Salt in Louisiana. All over Colo
RADIO and Utah, Salt Wells, ponds, aud springs
abound. Now the 0nondaga salt-boilers have
to sell their Salt in competition with other
producers, domestic as well as foreign, and
have TO pay the cost of transportation to the
consumers. The Michigan Salt Works
arc at least 500 miles nearer to Chi
| cago than ours are: 80 the Virginia