New national era. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1870-1874, 1874-04-09

ton. So, in reducing the duty on pig-iron, W
, took that much money out of the Treasury
: amounting in single year to over 100000
and that large amount Injured 10 the bencf
and profit of foreigners. 1t stuck to tn
4 myers OF the bloafed capitalists and mono
4 pOists of England.
The foreign lumber imported during the las
7 fiscal year yielded 81 Asa, 100 revenue. TIL,
quantity imported altogether is not equal t,
the sales i'll one of our western cities in a sin
, gle year. Nevertheless, a large revenue il
realized from this source and it might be in
creased, by advancing the duty, to benefit o
the 1reasurp and American producers. The
value of the annual product of lumber in the
United States is estimated to be s | SOC, 900,
600.
Now, in point of fact, over seven-eighths
OF the total expenditures for living of a large
majority OF the American people is required
Tor subsistence alone, and as food is cheaper
here than in any country of Europe, even
admitting, for Illustration, that the price OF
some manufactured articles is higher in this
country at the present time; vet the work.
lnSman, realizing double compensation for
his labor, can afford to pay higher prices for
the remaining one-cighth part of his dsbursc-
ments, and make money by emisrating tothe
United States.
The revenue derived from imported salt in
1872 was 81 ,0S3, 50j. But on the lst of Au-
gust, 1872, reduction of about 33 per cent.
was made in the duty, resulting in large
reduction in the revenue from this source
during the fiscal year ending June 80, 1873,
being only 4Ii2 ,39j. This reduction great
satisfaction, and occasioned great rejoicing
III foreign countries. 1t should be borne in
mind that salt may be found in nearly every
state in the Union. The material from which
1t Is produced is not considered of any value,
and barrel of salt as seen in our markets is
nothing more nor less than barrel of labor
| There are no laws liking prices. The
| prices OF commodities are as changeablc rs
the sands of the sea. If we remit the duty.
the foreigner would get that much more rpr
his salt. Although large reduction occur
red on the 1st of August, 1872, vet, as will
be seen by the report of the Bureau OF sta
tistica, the prices of salt in our markets were
not affected thereby. 1t is interesting to
notice the changes that have occurred in the
production Of American salt since the Great
tariff act of 1862. The importation of salt
for 1860 was 1900, 600 bushels, yielding only
! sd 600 revenue. This was under a free
| trade or reTcnue-reformo tariff. In 1871,
under the highest rates Of duty, the importa-
! ton was only about zoos, 200, but Welding
s !,1I6,jS7 revenue. The quantity was .
| 000, 900 less than the Importation under the
| irec-tradc tariff above mentioned; yet under
| the protective tariff we obtained over $780,
600 more revenue. IL is interesting also to
note that since 1860 we have more than
doubled the production Of salt in this coun-
! try, and in this single industry employment
| il given to over 30 GOO men. Before the Ia
| ri!i act Of SCI our manufactures were unable
| to supply the markets Of the sca-bOard with
a single bushel; but in 1871 over > 900 900
| bushels Of domestic salt was sold in the city
of New York. The II ,lIG,jS1 in gold which
foreigners, in 1871, were required to pay into
the Treasury for the privilege Of selling their
salt in our markets causes the shoes OF for
eign producers To pinch, and the Spanarl
driving his slaves and the Englishmen work
ing paupers in Liverpool are anxious that the
tariff should be repealed. So they hire peo-
| pie TO come over here to give us advice, and
try TO produce change in our tariff laws to
| suit themselves, under the name of 'rcye-
nue. REFORM
| The duty on raw wool ana manufactures of
wool for the last fiscal year was So, i9G ,G2S.
The duty on wool is about ten cents per
pound. The quantity Of wool imported does
not materially affect prices in our markets,
as our farmers produce over liz GOO, 900
pounds. And il the hai-nalled hcrdsmen of
South America wish to compete with our
farmers in selling wool in our markets we
|
regular duty at the custom-h0use. The duty
comes out of the foreign producer, the people
Of La Plata and Bucnos Ayrcs, and other
other places, who wish to sell their wool in
| the American markets.
Should the duty be repealed the effect
would be to crush our own wool-growcrs, for
the influx of foreign wool would "lut and
spoil our home markets, and the home mar
ket is the chief fnot the only support to the
| ynnl-, 1t,
department of industry.
| The value Of the woods and wooden goods
imported during the past fiscal wear was
SD, COZ, 7l2, yielding S3S 400 ,C2s revenue !:
the value Of iron steel goods was So 30, l57,
yielding $lS, 237, 1888 revenue and the value
of cotton manufactures was S3I $40. $50,
yielding $ll ,55I ,l13 revenue the value OF
leather WAS Sll ,Sl2, III, Welding s., 73i, S2S
revenue; the value of lax goods sd ,T2i ,SO1,
yielding @7,2l2,19l revenue; the value OF
hemp goods was $500, HI yielding
81, Gas, OS9 revenue the value of lead goods
was So, 1893, yielding 81 ,;G5,SlS revenue.
The aggregate revenue derived from the
above eight classes of commodities was
$S2,2IG,1 %. As have already shown with
reference to other staples, so, in like man
ncr, the foreign producer of these goods pays
the duty required by the tariff into the Treas
ury of the United States. II we remit these
duties, Or any part of the duty, we shall
lodge the amount in the hands OF the foreign
producer, making a heavy loss to our Treas
urv, and doing our workingmen an lrrcpar-
able injury. We possess the raw material,
the machinery, and the artisans capable of
producing all these commodities, and when
we allow foreigners to bring their goods into
our markets it is right and proper that we
should levy protective duties upon them for
the encouragement OF our home manufactures,
and for the purpose of charging and diversi-
flying our industries.
Some shori-sightcl shoemakcrs in New
| Eng land want the duties on leather repealed.
They are so blind that they do not see that
the price of leather would not be reduced BY
a reduction of the duties, and they forget
that for fifty years a duty Of $3.50 was levied
on every pair of boots imported into the
United States. Under protection, and by
the aid of skill and machinery, their indus
tries have reached point of perfection to
defy foreign competition. Prices have been so
reduced by domestic competition that even
without tariff foreigners could not sell much
of their work i'll our markets but notwith-
standing this historical tariff fact before
them, we now hear these shoemakers raising
their voices against our tanners. They want
to kill of our tanners for the temporary ben
eft which they immaginc would accrue to
them. They forget that by striking down
even one home industry so great as that of the
leather manufacturers would cripple all others
and paralize and destroy the prosperity of the
country, and consequently the shoemakers
would suffer as well as all others by the gen