Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1872-01-26
The Gee and COfFee Question Agalp.

Our neighbors Of Toledo, the two leading dali |
los, are attempting now an then to bolster up
the enormous system Of monopoly which has
been developed by the unjust tariff now prevail
ing. 1t is true their arguments in the case con
sist merely Of an appeal to national prejudices'
aud prelentious desire TO relieve the poor W
man by removing the taxes from tea, sugar and
tobacco. As q species Of clap trap to deceive
the unwary ii may do well enough, but the
reading aud though tfu men Of the West are moi
so easily deceived.
The fact is, their policy means Just this II
proposes TO remove the tax from articles the
use Of which:is voluntary with tho poor, man
aud in lieu thereof Goh from bis hard earnings
from 40 to so per cent. or that money which he
is under the necessity Of investing in the coarse
clithing used By himself aud family and Ike
amount from the money he expends in the i'm
plements Of agriculture and of the workshop,
which are absolutely necessary to his earning the
means ofprocuring bread for his family On
the tea consumed by the poor man he pays tax
Of fifteen cents per pound and on his coffee a
tax three cents per pound The amount Of tea con
sumud in the United States is something less
than an average of one pound per capita, aud OF
coffee something less than seven pounds per cap
ita. Now when we ref set on this fact, which is
well known to all observan. persons, that the
great mass Vt poor citizens use both tea and cof-
fee very spariugly, aud thatits largest consump-
lion is made by the wealthier classes, it will be
seen that the great mass of the poor are not very
heavily burdeued by tins voluntary system OF
taxation. Taking the aggregate number OF
puor families in the counties of Wood and Lucas
we venture to affirm that the average amount Of
| tax piid on the tea md coffee consumed bv them
would not am ,unt to one dollar per family, per
annum.
On the otherhsnd when We regard the enhanced
| price Of every implement used in the operation
of farming, the extra cost of all the tools used by
the workers IN wood and iron, when we assoc-
ate with such extra expenditures tho burden
some tax which is now levied On all articles Of
wearing apparel of coarse texture which are
| generally worn by the working classes, and
which unlike tea ard coffee, are absolute neces-
stiles to himserand family, it will be readily
seen that the poor man pays ten dollars in in.
voluntary taxation ON such necessary articles to
every single dollar which he voluntarily pays
the government on the tea aud coffee consumed
by himself and family.
Then there is another important feature orthis
queslonwhichthe monopolists are d5sirous Of
coucealing from public view. 1t is this
| the tlxes paid on ten AMI coffee goes holly
| into the public treasury and aids in support Of
! the government, while the enormous taxes paid
by the poor workman on lis tools, his clothing,
! his boots aud shoes, falls mainly into the hands
of the graspiug monopolsts. In other words
this plea of the monuposts is nothing more nor
less than the plea Of exlortion urged by pryil-
! eyed class which burdens the many for the bene-
| fit of few persons.
| With the large circulation aud influence pos
sessed by our Toledo neighbors we certainly re.
gret to see their columns prosututed to such OBJ
jects.
BY way of illustrating still further the beau
ties of this s7stem which cur neighbnrs are ad-
ticles from Ro,reH's Ns,espaper Reporter and the
Lafayette (Ind journal on the unjust tariff lev
led on type and presses
TARIFF ON TYPE.
II the tariff on type used by the America q
printers we're removed, type could be bought
for abou; three. ftths of the present prce. If it
be claimed that type-Counding is American
industry that is entitled to protection, we an.
swer so is printing an American industry
hundreds Of times more neutrality-suspicious.
huudreds, perhaps thousands of times as many
mechanics and as much Of capital as type found
| ing. Priuiers are manufacturers Of no small i'm
pOrtance. Any bounty or tax upon their tools
and implements is a tax. not only upon one o
and education. Tax on type makes the prlm
mer and spelling book cost more 10 all the chill
iren Of he land, to say thing of its being
clog upon all pubic aud private libraries.
lit be true, rs We state above, that the prin
ters of the United States pay two-fiiths Of al
their type purchases, as tax to a monopoly, i.
it not about time they represented the fact t.
their member OF Congress This tax does no
go TO the government, because scarcely any type
{ is imported 1t cnn be removed in three months
ii every wspaper publisher will address a let
ter to his member of Congress simply asking u
: have 1t removed. No hne-spun theory of pro
lection will help retain tax so unjust to ST
large an industry. so useless for revenue pur
poses, and So detrimental to the educational ad
vantages OF the nation. Just one page of man
u;cript from every editor that reads this, vii
rem we the tax AS surely as the people rule
NegspHper Reporter.
TAhlFF ON PRESsES,
Sometimes the best way nf presenting an,
matter is by personal illustration we so will il
lustrate the way the tariff works by an alusio
to the single item Of printing presses. There i
sold in this country an English press Of Ger
tain make suitable to our purposes, which "
can bny in England for about SO 200 to S3 900
freight prepaid To this country yet the tariff
( so enormous t33A per cent. tn the whoesal
price, that the press can not possibly be sol,
4 here for less than 81 500 by 'he operation q
, the tariff, therefore, every printer purchasing
one Of these pre-. ses though Manufacture
/ himself, and Just as much cnttl to protec
n tiOn as "hpme industry rs the priltin
\ press buider--is compelled to paw 81 500 ia
: rec,ly for the benefit Of the American press m
j ker. For mark yau The tariff is 80 high tha
d it is practically prlhbitory and therefore yer
- few presses are imported, and the GDverumen
derives very luls revenue while tne America
printing press manufacturer is enabled to plac
/, Lis prices Mt figure so bigh that he can rea
extraprdnary profits. H. could sell Mt 25 pc
cent. lower than his present prices and Still
make fair living prudt aid but tor the tarilf h
would do so. BY i's operation, however he
enabled 10 richly feather his nest while ever
5 printer using presses in the United States
o robLe1 fnr hi- benefit One industry is thus op
pressed ftr the building up ~ another. This
7 Protection. - Lafayette Journal.