The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1885-07-24
HOW TO RESTORE COMMERCE.


The platform of the Republican State |
Convention is manifestiy the work of /
several hands. The gaps and seams /
oin 80 badly in several places as to be- |
tray the clumsiness of the joinery. It |
Is related that the plank for restoring !
by bounties on exports and !
discounts of duties is the handiwork of
the eminent Philadelphia financier and
political economist to whom the country
was indebted for the scheme of distTibu
ting the surplus revenue among the sew
eral States. The main object of that
scheme was TO prevent any reduction of
the tariff. If the authorship of this
bounty plan were not revealed, it bears
plainly enough the evidence of a COM
mon origin. In order that this scheme
for restoring the country's commerce
may be contemplated in all its beauty
and completeness it is presented here
with:
THE revenues necessary for a liberal
support or the Government and to the
payment Of pensions to our disabled SOL
dlErs, their widows and orphans, and OF
the principal and interest of the public
debt, should be raised by an additional
levy upon imports and with view to
lift business from its present and guard
it against future depression. we insist
not only upon protection to all home in
dustries, but on prompt revival of our
commercial marine and promotion OF
foreign commerce by proper discount of
duties on goods imported in American
bottoms and proper bounties to goods
exported in American bottoms"
Such proper discount of duties i'm
A. -,
bottoms as to secure prompt revival of
our commercial marine would play hav-
oc to the "full protection" advocated in
this platform. as we'll as with the reve-
Dues of the Treasury. While revenues
would be diminished to the amount of
the bounty to ship owners. it would af-
ford TO the iron, wooden, cotton and silk
manufacturers small satisfaction to be
told that the increased supplies of for
eign goods competing with their pro-
ducts had been brought oyer in Ameri-
can bottoms.
While the volume of revenue would
be greatly diminished by this discount
of duties on imports unless great stim-
lus to trade sholld be caused bv it. the
bounties upon exports in American
would cause additional expense to the
Treasury. As it would be necessary to
meet this expenditure by increased tax
alton, fresh burdens would be imposed
upon the labor and capital of the peo-
pie. The platform demands that the
| revenues shall be raised by an additional
levy upon imports, after repeating the
internal taxes on tobacco and domestic
wines. But under the existing policy
| the margin of the highest revenue has
| already been passed. If the protective
! Ir1fiao innranoa1 r,h
| Tics. iron. steel and other articles there
would be less revenue, while this
| scheme of discounts on imports and
| bOunties on exports in American bot.
| toms, involving q vastly increased ex-
! pendituTe, would reqnire more revenue.
| Whence. then. is the revenue to come {
/ 1t would be necessary to revive the du.
! ties on tea and coffee, and TO increase
! the duties on sugar and on necessaries
| OF living not within the protective sched
! ule. The patient backs of Russian
/ peasants would not incline to the bur
| dens which such a system, established
| for such purpose, would impose.
Could this policy be adopted, its chic
| result would be to provoke a warfare Ot
! commercial reprisals. Other nations
| would be compelled to retaliate by max
| ing Determinations against American
| imports. BY treaties with every com
| mercidl nation provision has been made
by the Government of the United State.
against the very species OF Giscrimrna
tiOn which is proposed in the platform
! Of the Republican party of Pennsylva
MIA. All these treaties would haye to bt
| abUoga'ed before this policy could bt
adopted. The ingenious author of the
/ AmeTican-bOttom plank appears never
! fO hQUG fhnnnhf nf fhaf sl~a a
many other cOntTivances the thing i,
curious enough, but it will not work
Its only value is in belrayiIg the fac
that the prOtectiOnists of Pennsylvania
are becoming re}tive under their owl
system, and are beating about for som,
means to modify its severity. Pbjldda
| Record