Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1882-05-30
The Tariff Commission

II previous aONlC6S from w dSulugIOu
are reliable, President Arthur has, after
much tribulatien aud perplexity, at
length decided upon the personnel of the
Tariff Commission. 1t will be composed
Of Messrs. John L. Hayes of Massachu-
sets. Henry w. Oliver of Pennsylvania,
4. NJ. Garland of Illinois, Robert P.
Porter Of the District of Columbia.
Alexander Mitchell of Wisconsin, John
:. Phelps of Missouri, James Chest
nut, Jr., of South Carolina, and
probably William A. Wheeler of
New York, and ]. A. Amber
of Ohio. We are not familiar with the
views of all of these gentlemen. Some
are known to be pronounced protection
lists. 1t is to be presumed that at least
Mr. Chestnut, of South Carolina, is an
out and out free trader, and it is reason
able to believe that others are in favor of
tariff with protection as an incident. 1t
is noticeable, however, that all the va
rious sections of the Union are repre-
scented, and so it is but just to conclude
that the President has decided upon as
fair body as there was any reason for
expecting.
We confess that we do not an
ticipate a great deal as the result of the
deliberations of this commission. 1t was
evidently created by the present Repub-
lican Congress more for the purposes of
evading responsibility, taking the tariff
question out of politics until after the
fall campaign, and giving the protec-
tionists as long a hold as possible upon
the purse strings of the people, than
anything else. twill probably hold sew
eral meetings, and indulge in all kinds of
discussions. But, as the high tariff men
are either in a majority or certainly exer-
else great influence in the body, when
its report is made to Congress in
December next, as required by
law, it will probably be found that
a tub has been thrown to the popular
whale by recommending the placing
a few insignificant articles which now
cumber our tariff lists upon the free
list. and the incOnsiderable reduction of
duties on more important articles. The
duties on the great bulk of manufac-
lures, such as are demanded by the
every day necessities of life. will, how
ever, probably remain pretty much as
they are.
This, we anticipate. will be the out
come of this Commission measure, and
that it will be unsatisfactory to the ma
jOrity of the American people, who are
now demanding material tightening of
the burdens of taxation imposed by the
present protective tariff, there can be no
doubt. Still the prospect is not alto
gether without hope. The fact that
Republican Congress agreed to any com
mission at all is encouraging, since high
protection is the child of Rerublicanism.
and the money of the wealthy monOpO-
list, who has rapidly gathered his riches
from the people under the fostering care
of the Radical party, is always ready
to be poured out like water for the pur-
pose of keeping that party in power. A
protective tariff, then, is one of the great
bulwarks of Radicalism, and it is very
certain the present Congress would never
have recognized the necessity of tariff
reform even to the extent of agreeing
upon the Tariff Commission, if it had not
been literally impelled thereto by senti-
ment in the country which could not be
resisted.
This Tariff Commission is, therefore, a
step in the right direction, no matter what
may be the result of its deliberations
and the character of its report. Reve-
nue. reform must eventually follow.
Should its recommendations in that
direction be more favorable than it
now seems reasonable to anticipate,
the Congress which created the body
must acquiesce therein, while, if its re-
port should not be acceptable to the peo-
pie at large, popular sentiment will
undoubtedly make itself so strongly
felt, that the Forty-eighth Congress will
not be able to refuse the demanded re-
lief.