Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1882-12-09
WASHINGTON LETTER.


duced are simply crude propositions, grow
ing out of undue haste on the
part of certain members to make a record
for speed in proposing the abolition of all
internal revenue laws. The ways and
means committee have, however, agreed on
one important measure, namely: the aboli-
ton of all internal revenue taxes on
This will likely be agreed to.
Judge Houk's bill for preventing fraud
and intimidation at elections, and insuring
fair expression and faithful recording of
the will of the people, has met with much
favorable comment, and is likely to receive
the general support of both houses.
Kasson has bill establishing some fixed
term for subordinate officers and employees
of the government, and something will be
done in this direction. Year after year
feeling has grewn that it was necessary to
do away with the uncertainty which is at
the bottom of much decentralization of the
civil service.
THE PRESIDENTS MESSAGE
and the accompanying reports of the heads
of departments bristle with suggestions for
Congress to work out, The most import
ant suggestions, of course, relate to internal
revenue and tariff reductions.
The President recommends the removal
of all internal revenue taxes save those on
whisky, and general overhauling of the
tariff, to relieve it from crudities and unjust
provisions which are to-day the main source
of whatever weakness affiicts it. The Sec
rotary of the Treasury does not go quite SO
far, but recommends retaining the internal
revenue tax on whisky, beer and tobacco.
Probably Congress will remove the tax from
tobacco, and all other articles included
in the internal revenue laws, except
whisky and beer; or, to speak exactly, dis
titled spirits" and ''fermented liquors"
AS to the tariff, it is not thought that
changes in it will be in the direction of de-
parting at all from the protective system,
which has built up the manufactures of the
country and made us nation instead of a
colony, but that there will be such reduc-
ton as is demanded by the need of reducing
our revenues to an amount only sufficient
for the economical administration of the
government, and the prompt payment of
its obligations as they fall due.
The tariff laws now in force were SUBJ
stantially made up during and just after the
war, at a time when the enormous cost of
the rebellion made it necessary to tax to the
uttermost whatever would yield revenue to
meet the extraordinary expenses of the
| government, and whoever came before
| Congress and pointed out something that
could be taxed was looked upon as public
benefactor. Of course some ''iobs'' got
into the system, many of which have since
been removed, but some of which
remain. And beside this, some
taxes were put at figure
then imperatively demanded by the needs
| of the government but which neither reve-
nue. nor protection now require to be kept at
SO high point. Yet, what would have
been an unbearable burden to any other
country in the world, has been a great and
| positive benefit to our own. First, it has
raised large revenues which have gone to
rapidly diminish the principal and reduce
the rate of interest on the public debt; and,
second, it has greatly stimulated our manu-
facturers at home, bringing about competi-
ton which has given us all sorts of manu-
featured goods at half the price
they would cost to-day If we de-
pended on foreign manufacturers
And while we have been reaping this result
on the one hand a very large class of skilled
mechanics has grown up making the very
best kind of a home market with good
prices for the productions of our farmers.
But now the very prosperity and growth
which this
GREAT NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Has produced is bringing in an amount OF
revenue SO greatly in excess of the needs OF
the government, either for its current ex
penses or to pay such parts of the
public debt as it can now reach
that the imperative need il
q reduction of taxation not only to pre-
vent extravagant appropriations, but tt
escape contraction of the currency through
the accumulation of excessive revenues.
few ears ago the country was stagger
ing under load of debt that would hav,
crushed any other country that ever ex
listed on the face of the earth. To-day it
greatest need is to guard against excessiv
accumulation of revenue. Nothing tina
man could speak or write swould go SO ia
publican administration as this single fact
). The President and the Secretary of tn
r Treasury, fully alive to this condition @
things, and strenuously advocating tn
;, strietest economy in the expenditure c
public money, come forward with til
i recommendations calculated to give th
p country theNfullest benefit of this state {
prosperity, and both the Presidents mes
sage and the report of Secretary Folger al
! generally commended as the ablest paper
of the kind that we have had in man
years.
s. The report of the Tariff Commissio
g. supplements the executive recommends
tons; and this, with the fact that the tar
commission bill was passed by the Republ
r cans in Congress, in perfect good fait
n makes it very probable that congress wi
9 in short session, do great deal of goo
2. work.
r. THE POLITICAL OUTLOOK
2 is improving day by day. In New Yor
G Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Iowa al
elsewhere in the Northern States the r
Q, publicans were in condition of apathy al
j. Indifference, peevish, foolish, all the mo
"A so that there was no reason for it. On
r in while man gets into a condition
bihousness and general cussedness, whe
he will make more fuss and noise over
le sore finger or pimple on his nose than
al would, IN a decent frame of mind, over
! broken leg. Any fool can lead him the
III provided he leads him in the direction
some folly or deviltry- Over-security, id
~ ness, the lies of malignant newspapers ,
y peeted and reiterated for years past, b
ii combined in many Northern States to 6
or the party into peevish, idgetty conditi
g and a lot of the sorriest, broken-down sol
headed and sore backed political hac
is took advantage of the state of affairs
o. raise howl against the President, agair
70 "bosses," and the Lord knows what; a
~ they managed to lead off enough men
le defeat the party in aaany States 1t W
to 1874 over again. The result has shown t
9 foolish followers of these false leaders t
- mistake of being led by them. TIL
brought up in the ditch with general
o. sprained system, just escaping brok
IL necks, and they have had enough. M
A.. DO ~, 3e