Centre Democrat. [volume] (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1848-1989, 1880-07-22
Garfield'S Tariff Record
Official Documents OF Congress.
From the Allentown Democrat.

resented 10 De pToteCtlouist. no
same paper, and so also the Chronicle,
recently published letter written by
De Goiyer- Credit Mobilier Garfield in
1879, in which he claims to be as good
tariff man as can be found anywhere,
while with great modesty (2) he de.
clares himself to be the "leader" of his
party on the tariff question. In this
letter he makes this declaration
IL have voted for every Republican tar
i'll bill which has passed the House since |
have been member of it,"
And now let us see how the Congress
sional records bear out the Iron and
Steel Bulletin, and the assertions of Gar.
field In his letter. The first session of
Congress of which Garfield was a mem.
Der was the first session of the Thirty
eighth Congress, lS63-64. This was the
session in which the tariff was raised
from the 81 tariff of Sc, to 50 per ton
on pig iron. On page $500, Part 4, of
the Congressional Globe of 1864. June 27,
we find James A. Garfield voting to re,
duce the proposed tariff on railroad
iron from so down to 60 cents per hun.
dred pounds, and on the final vote on
raising the tariff his vote is not record
ed. On the reduction of the proposed
duty on railroad iron he voted in oppo
sition to every protective tariff man in
the House, including such men as Judge
Kelley, Thad. Stevens and General
Moorhead.
The rest of Garfeld's tariff record we
premise by stating the facts that the
tariff of '42, the highest ever known in
the country, was 80 per ton on pig iron;
the tariff of '46 altered this duty to so
per cent. al ydloren, and the tariff OF 81
changed this again to "a per cent. In
March, 1861 this tariff was changed again
to Sc per ton, and then again in 1864
raised to $9-the figure of the old tariff
of ~.
1t was at this figure when the tariff of
1870 was introduced, on which occasion
James A. Garfield made the following
remarks:
"As an abstract theory of political econ
omy FREE TRADE has many advan-
tages and much can be said in its favor
nor will it be denied that the scholarship
of modern times is largely ON THAT
SIDE4 that a large majority of the great
Thinkers of the present day are leading in
the direction of what is called FREE
TRADE"
Judge w. ID. Kelley, the great tariff
champion of Pennsylvania, denied this
and cited the writings of Henry c.
Carey, whereupon Garfield said in reply:
al detract nothing from the great abii-
ty and the acknowledged fame of Mr..
Carey when l say that on this subject he
represents minority among the financial
writers of our day. l am trying to state
AS fairly as can the present condition of
the question and in doing so | affirm that
the tendency of modern thought is toward
FREE TRADE."-f GarHeld's speech on
the Tariff of 1870, Page 26S, Part I, APP
pendix to Congressional Globe, I'd Session
4lst Congress, April LIST, 1901
True to those remarks, we find Gar.
field voting TO reduce the ~ duty on
pig iron TO 81 per ton, and it was so re.
duced by the following section of the
law, on Pages 703 and 704 laws OF L.
s.. Part !, Appendix, ID Session 4lst
Congress
On iron in pigs seven dollars per ton.
On cast scrape iron of every descrip-
ton six dollars per ton.
On wrought scrap iron eight dollars
per ton.
SECTION 81. And be u enacted, That after
the 3lst day of December, 1869, in lieu of
the duties now imposed by law on the ar
ticles hereinafter enupierated or provided
for, imported from foreign countries, there
shall be levied, collected and paid the fol-
lowing duties and rates Of duties, that is
to say
On Page 80, Congressional Giobe, lst
Session AID Congress, will be found the
record of Garfield on taking the tariff
duties off coal and keeping said duties
on tea and coffee. The resolution on
the coal tariff reads as follows:
BE IL resolved, &C., That from and after
the passage of this joint resolution no tax
or duty shall be collected upon foreign coal
On this the vote of Garfield is record.
ed YEA.
A bill offered by Randall, Democrat,
of Pennsylvania, was next read as fol.
lows:
Be Il Enacted DC, That from and after
the passage Of this act Tea and Coffee shall
be placed on the free list, and no further
import duties shall be collected from the
same.
On this the vote of Garfield is record.
ed, NO.
This record shows that Garfield was
perfectly willing to put coal down to
the lowest price, and at the same time
voted that those who mined the coal
should pay the highest price for Tea
and Coffee
In 1872 the Tariff bill OF June 6, that
year, was voted on and passed the
House. This bill made a sweeping
reduction Of ten per centum in the
Tariff duties on foreign woods, and on
iron and steel. We quote from the
ID section as follows
SECTION 2-That on and after the 1st
day of August, 1872, in lieu of the duties
imposed by law on the articles in this sec
ton enumerated, there shall be levied,
collected and paid on the goods, wares and
merchandise In this section enumerated
and provided for, imported from foreign