New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-06-29
EETENTF REDUCTION.

The House has done well, and the country
NAV heartily congratulate itself The passage
of the Internal Revenue BILL in form that
calls for bat little criticism, goes far to excuse
months of delay. The bill was essentially a
Republican measure, though it was not in all
tespects modified in accordance with the wishes
of the last thinly attended Republican caucus.
That caucus, as subsequent votes have shown,
rcpresented the wish of the Republican mem
bcrs less satisfactorily than the Committee of
WAYS and Means, which reported the bill in
nearly the form that the House finally adopted.
The large vote i'll favor of the bill, 121 yeas to
so NAYS. was due to the refusal of twenty three
! Democrats to be bound by tie FOOLISH and I'M
patriotic decision of their caucus Only eleven
out OF 135 Republicans who were present
voted against the bill, though the majority III
committee against some of the amendments
proposed was very slender There Is posi-
| blity that the measure may be changed FOR the
worse in the Senate, though that body has fol
some years been more rational than the House
in financial matters.
The taxes which the bill repeats yielded
! 1923. 49,. $50 in the fiscal year lSSO-'S1. Dur
ing the fiscal year now almost ended, the re
| CENTS have been considerably larger, that it
is probably safe to say that at least
S25,O00,O00 Of the revenue of the present year
| will be cut of, il the bill should pass III Its
present form. The reduction of debt less cash
| III the Treasury, which is the most accurate
| measure of the surplus revenue. has probably
been about $130,0CC,O00 during the past
year Hence it might appear 10 some that
there wGs justification for Mr.. Hewitts critl-
| cism, and that more than One-siXth of the sur
| plus should have been cut of. But candid
| examination will show that there were very
strong reasons for adopting substantially the
course winch the House has taken.
| 1t should be remembered, first, that the
public faith and the provisions of existing
! law require that about $i5,OOO,OOO should
be applied to tie Sinking Fund, and expended
IN reduction of the debt. This would leave an &C.
tually available surplus OF only $1O5 100000, Of
which the House bill cuts of about one quarter.
| But second Congress has created a commission
to revise the tarIf. 1t was argued with reason
| end force by Mr.. Russell, of Massachusetts,
! that some part of the reduction Of revenue
should be made 10y notifications of the tariff,
as well as by changes of the internal revenue
laws. Nor does tins reasoning imply desire
that the tariff should be made less effective for
the protection of industry. There are two way =
to cat of revenue by a tariff. One ls to place
articles on the free list; the other Is to increase
duties 80 that iInpOrtatl0ns shall be prevented
| OF diminished. Ia some cases the former course
might be recommended by commission
anxious to give full protection TO hole III
dustry, because the free admission OF materials
is sometimes the most elective and whoe-
some protection. la other cases, tile same
commission might deem it wise to recommend
ALI increase VI duties. Ill order ~ diminish I'M