The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1880-03-12
PAPER MAKING INTERESTS.
Congress Should Remove the Duties
from the Raw Material.
journal of Com nercel

journal of Commercial
Congress supposed that it had admit
ted every description of paper stock duty
free. "Rags, cotton, linen, jute and
hemp, and paper waste, or waste or clip
pings of any kind, including waste rope
and waste bagging, fit only for the man.
ufacture Of paper" is one classification
free of duty. Another law placed on the
free list "rags other than wool, paper
stock, crude, of every description, in
Guiding all grasses, fibres, waste, shaw
ings, clippings, old paper, rope ends,
waste rope, waste bagging, gunny bags,
and gunny cloth, old or refuse, to be
used in making and fit only to be con-
verted into paper" Still another made
free ''Esparto, or Spanish grass, and other
grasses, and pulp Of, for the manufacture
of paper"
Unfortunately, there is in the dutiable
section the clause "dried pulp, 20 per
cent. ad valorem." The department de-
cided that "pulp of, for the manufacture
of paper" only included the pulp of
certain grasses, and that under theclause
"dried pulp 20 per cent" wood pulp used
for paper must pay 20 per cent. This
would be a fair decision, perhaps, if a
later section Of the same act June %,
1874 did not read: tThe importation
of the following articles shall be exempt
from duty: y n Paper stock, crude,
of every description" Even "drieds
pulp" therefore, If only of the kind to
be used as paper stock, ought to be free.
The claim that it is not "crude" would
not exempt it, since the section goes on to
include rope, bagging, rags, paper waste,
and every ything else likely to be made
into paper.
The production of wood pulp in this
country is in half a dozen hands, who
have legal monopoly Of the business.
1t can be imported from Norway, to cost
there only little over / cent a pound,
but it is bulky, pays heavy freight, 20
per cent. duty, and wastes nearly DO per
cent. in use.
1t can be made in this country at
first cost of about ! cent pound, but is
now sold at 8 or cents. The monopo-
lists would not have so fine time of it,
but two of the leading members of Con-
gress are among the largest owners, and
their influence and skill combined are
likely to stave off any legislation in fa-
vor Of the people. They can not direct
ly resist the tide of public opinion, but
they will favor commission" to exam
inc and report, or some other convenient
method to postpone any change in. the
law for another year.
We wish to say few plain words on
this subject. Congress has designed to
allow all paper stock to be imported free
of duty. There is not a shadow of
doubt that thi is the will of the people,
and that an effort was made to express
it in the fullest possible manner by ap-,
propriate legislation. All that is now
necessary to give full effect to this design
is to amend the law by adding to the
present reading the words in italics, viz:
"Esparto or Spanish grass, and other
grasses, and pulp of, and all other pulp,
for the manufacture of paper"
If this is done, and it should be at
once, the duty on foreign-made paper
may remain as it is. Ii this country
can not stand the importation of ground
wood and its crude condition for the pro-
duct of printing paper, because two
Congressman who own patent and with
three or four others have fat monopoly
of the business, are likely to object, then
the newspapers must put up their prices
and the people submit to the exaction as
best they may. The only thing we ask
is that there be no dallying, and that the
issue shall be clear and the result deci-
sive. If the people side withsthe mo-
nopoly, and the House of Representatives
stands by its two wealthy manipulators
now in control of the paper market, we
wish to know it at once and have done
with the struggle until new Congress is
elected. We hope some member will
move the question and put it to square
test.