Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-02-13
PROTECTION IN PARABLE.
A Few Points Adapted to the Common
est Perception.

Washington Post.
As l sat on Saturday last by the side OF
Senator Williams, of Kentucky, and list
ened to his lucid and very able speech on
the tariff. a train OF thought passed
through nv mind which / should like to
present to you. BY adopting mode
similar TO the parable in the New Tesla
ment the difference between a tariff for
revenue and one for protection may be
clearly demonstrated.
As no coffee is produced in the United
states, if tariff tax were imposed on it,
all the money paid by the consumers
would go into the Treasury Of the United
States. No tax, however, is levied on
coffee, because il is said that old women
are fond Of it, and Congress, wishing to be
very kind to them, allows coffee to be as
cheap as possible. But suppose that
Congress. to obtain more revenue, should
levy a tariff tax Of fifty per cent. on coffee,
and should also provide that hereafter the
taxes should not be paid at the place
Of importation. but to the merchants who
sell directly 10 the consumer: An old
woman comes to country merchant in
December and SAYS:
I'VE are very badly eff at our house,
and my husband sold some of his corn at
forty cents a bushel, and | have brought
n little money to buy some necessaries.
Let me have two dollars worth of coffee to
carry us through the winter"
The stOTekeeper replies: ''Well. madam,
YOU shall have the coffee, but Congress
has put a tax Of fifty per cent. on coffee,
and you must also pay dollar Of tax,
making three in ALL
The woman says: Then / reckon had
better give up the coffee and try to do with
parched rye. We need pair Of blankets
very much. as my husband has the rheu-
matism and our children complain a great
deal of the cold these nights. You used
to sell blankets at - a pair, and / suppose
YOU can let me have them for that. But
tell me. will / have to pay 81 tax on them -
Madam" replies the merchant, Il am
sorry to be obliged to tell YOU that you
will have to pay much more than one dol
lar on them, for three-fOurths of the blan-
kets are made in New England, and sew
enty-iVe cents of the dollar has to be paid
to the manufacturers of the blankets, so
that there is only one quarter of the dollar
left to the government; hence, to make up
your share of the public taxes, you must
buy four pairs of blankets, which will cost
eight dollars ThereupOn the woman
saws:
And will ] then have to pay another
dollar, SO as to make nine in all:" The
merchant answers:
.sOh, that will not do madam, for then
the government will only get its quarter
of a dollar. YOU must pay four dollars
more, making twelve in all. Then l can
pay one dollar to the government, three
10 the manufacturers and have eight dol
lars left to pay me for the four pairs of
blankets
But" eXclaims the woman, ''why am
l obliged to pay three dollars to the man.
ufacturers, for / never owed them any
thing:"
The merchant says, Madame, they are
American labOrers and want two dollars
a day for their wages. As their work is
only worth a dollar and a quarter, the
government has to give them three-quar-
tiers more to make up the two dollars a
day"
''Oh. well, them eXclaims the delighted
woman, my husband and l were both
born in America and have always lived
here, and / suppose we can get one share
of these taxes, can we not? Ny husband
works as hard as anybOdy-;n fact, he got
his rheumatism 10y working out too much
in bad weather. And remember that
when he got sick he had to hire some men
to save his crop, and paid them fifty cents
a day, and he said that this was as much
as he could afford TO pay them, and they
were very willing to take it,
Madame" replies the merchant, Il
am very sorry to be obliged to tell YOU
that the government only gives bOunties
~ HldhuistOtul els s'liu NtVSo hOt SiNC "hs
to farmers and mechanics in the country
On the contrary, you all are compelled to
pay the taxes so that the manufacturers
may get this additional sum to increase
their wages"
My God eXclaims the poor woman,
''what are we to dOg | have not the
twelve dollars and we are in very great
Distress
Does not this Illustration fairly present
the case as made by the present prOtec-
tive system! \ dozen hard working
farmers and mechanics are taxed for the
benefit of one man who gets two or three
times as much as they DO.
Il. l.. CLINGMAN.
IIpSEjDqfOV Feb q