The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1886-02-18
MoRRrsoNs TARIFF BILL.
An Average Reduction of One-Third on tn,
General List.

-
General List.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 1.-THE Morrison bill
has been practically finished. The first
part consists of the free list, which em.
braces wood, coal, iron ores, salt, hemp,
fdte, manufactured marble, besides
other articles of minor Importance. 1t was
the original intention that the free list
should go to the bottom of the bill, but this
mere matter of form has been modified.
The second division Of the bill provides
reduced duties on general imports
amounting on an average the list through
to about S3H per centum. Many
articles in the tariff list are not touched,
but are copied as they stand In the statute.
as are in common use, including coffee, tea,
sugar, esc Pig and scrap-iron, on which
duty of BIO of q cent per pound, or $7.20 q
ton, Is levied, is changed to- of . cent, or
$500 ton. The existing classification Of
woods" are consolidated, and the average
rate prescribed for both. According to the
tariff schedule the low-rate woods pay 21S
cents a pound and the higher quality five
cents. The consolidated rate is 9 45 cents
a pound. The imports of these woods last
year amounted to 81 200, 600 pounds of which
5000, 600 only were of the high grade. 1t is
therefore, figured out that this change is
really an increase of the tariff on this ar
ticle. There is no change in the silk or
Liquor. schedule. The third division of the
bill relates to sugars principally. A care
full revision of the different classifications
of sugar has been made, and reductions
provided which are estimated to amount
to 81 600, 900 annually, calculating on the
basis of last years importations. This
portion of the bill, it is thought, will meet
with considerable opposition from both the
great warning sugar interests of the coun-
try-the Louisiana and the Claus Spreckles
mOhOpOlieS of the Sandwich Islands, There
is no doubt but that both these great inter-
est will make common cause against the
proposed reductions, but Mr.. Morrison has
considered the subject carefully, and has
concluded that he can not better serve the
consumers of the country in the matter of
any one article than in giving them cheap
sugar. 1t is also understood that he has
Incorporated into his new bill feature of
his bill of the last Congress in the substitu-
tion of numerous specific duties for ad va
!orem duties. He does not regard with
favor the ad valorem system, and thinks it
should be employed only when specific du-
ties are not practicable. 1t is estimated
that the decrease in the revenues of the
Government on account of the
proposed M free list will not ex-
duty on the iron ore is the most important
change, although the placing of coal on the
free list will have the effect of cheapening
all kinds of Goals at the seaports to the ex-
tent of the present tariff on coal. The new
bill is not altogether acceptable to two or
three leading revenue reformers in the
House who have been taken into the conf
dence of the Chairman of Ways and Means.
The principal objection is that it is too con-
servative in the respect that it does not
make reduction on a sufficient number of
articles and does not reduce enough in ar
ticles that it does touch. The total reduc-
tion of the bill, if passed, will be about
twenty-five millions per annum.