Weston weekly leader. [volume] (Weston, Umatilla County, Or.) 1878-189?, 1880-10-23


The golden rule of successful trading
is to buy in the cheapest and sell in the.
dearest market. Under arepublican ad
ministration. farmers in the United States
ate compelled to reverse this rule. This
is owing to the high tariff upon all the
neeessaries of life which they are obliged
to buy. Here are few of the most im.
portant articles with the Advaloren, I'm
port Duty paid on them, according to the
kind:
woolsn Manufactures. 81 %, 70 and !. per cent
Cotton, IS, As, 81 and 6S
Linen 80 IS and 20
Silk soandBO
Iron and Steel 80 35 as 4s and so
Leather 90 25. S. and SO
G5essssy Is; s; and md Esrtasn~ars as g and Is Is
Hemp and Jute fabrics 40
Window Glass 90 and T2
The import duty on diamonds, which
farmers do not use extensively, is only
10 per cent but on cleaned rice it is SO
per cent. This import duty is levied on
no less than 1900 articles. The heaviest
rates are imposed on articles of general
and necessary consumption by the ieo-
pie. The duties above given were those
collected In 1873. Now let us see what
it cost the farmers. The census of 1870
put the number of agricu'turists at s.
| 922, 900. It is safe then to conclude
that this number had been increased to
Z 100000 in 1873. Each family would
average at least 5000 annually spent in
buying such goods as are subject to i'm
port duty. This would make an aggra-
gate of 81, 100000 for one year.
The average duty on imported goods in
1878 was 42a per cent. To be on the
safe side we will call it 40 per cent.
1t is simple mathematical problem then
that the farmers paid the enormous sum
of $400,000,000 for the sole benefit of
the American manufacturers This is an
in lirect tax which the republican idea of
protective tariff imposes yearly upon the
people; and of which Gen. Jas. A. Gar
field is SO ardent an admirer and SO earn
est supporter, as his votes in Congress
abundantly prove.
AS we have seen the duty on woollen
goods is from 81 to II per cent (average
/ sc per cent). Therefore for every
$40 spent for woo!len goods we throw
away Ss. On every SO spent in cotton
and linen goods we waste So. And SO OF
through the whole category. Railway
iron cost from 80 to 50 per cent more ii
America than it could be bought for i
:. there was no duty on it. This increase
the costof building railroads; but the Com
panies make up this additional expense b,
increased rates of freight, for which tn
former has to pay. And yet the politica
party that upholds this system of higl
: trait, loudly and constantly proc.aims ii
. self to be the friend of the laboring elias
ses. 1t is their friend by extra lin, fror
them yearly the modest amount of $4O0
! 100000.
1 But what becomes of this $400,0C0,OO
which the farmers pay annually over an
above what they onght to pay on gooc
/ subject to import duty2 The amount {
n Custom revenue derived from duties o
d foreign goods imported in 1878 was $l3'
. 100000. The agrieulturists being abo,
J one half the population contributed abo,
. $50, 100000. But we have seen tn
,e they paid 100000, and yet on
y $60,0oo,0o0 of it went to the legitima
l. purpose of national revenue. What l
9 came of the remaining $34O, ,O0O,0O'
n The government never received any ben
e. fit from it. Did it cost $340,00O,OOO
)" collect s4oo,ooo,ooo2 Their fgur
=, show at glance the grand beauties
~ protective tariff, and how the poor ms
il is made poorer, and the rich manufactr
Y. er made richer by it's operation.