Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1888-03-16
A BILL TO DESTROY AMERICAN lhDUS-
TRIES.
From the Phila. Bulletin j

the LIST instant. II cmbOdics th,
widest departure from our pietec
tive policy and The closest approx
imatiOn to free trade that have
ever been formally presented fol
the consideration of the American
people. IL is essentially q fire.,
trade measure. and 1t will greatly
please the manufacturers Of Great
Britain. II might, indeed, be
styled bill for the relief Of tho
manufacturing industries of that
country.
The bill deals with most of the
schedules of the present tariff, bu'
passes over many items IN these
schedules with the intention oil
continuing in force existing duties
1t is not, therefore, a complete tar
i1.revision bill. This is, of itself
an Objectionable feature, as there
can be no harmony of rates in a
tariff which is constructed in this
piecemeal fashion ; while omis
sions, Implications, and incon-
gruOus and contradictory prOyi-
slOns are certain TO occur, giving
occasion for confusion and endless
lawsuits. The dill is also clumsi.
" constructed in other respects
The admirable arrangement of the
present tariff by schedules is Who'll
ly ignored, and instead we are Civ
en- a hedge.podge or stir-about.-
The free list comes first. then arti-
cles subject to duty, and then on
page - we have more free list
Old copper, nickel in ore or matte,
and knitting needles are made both
free and dutiable.
Existing rates of duty relating to
chinawaTe, glassware, chemicals,
iron and steel and other metals,
cotton goods, wooden goods, sugar,
woOdenware, and miscellaneous ar
ticles have very generally been re-
duced in this free trade bill.
The bill greatly enlarges the free
list. The additions to the free list
occupy ISL lines Of the bill, and
each line averages more than one
article, so that the total additions
number over two hundred articles.
Included in the articles heretofore
dutlable and now transferred to
the tree list are all hewed and
sawed timber, sawed lumber of
every description, hubs for wheels,
slaves, pickets, palings, lath :,
shingles, clapbOardS, and logs
This is n severe blow to the lumber
interests OF many states. Salt
comes next on the free list, fellow.
ed by fax, hemp, iute, manila, and
other tlbres, burlaps, and cotton
bagging. Then follow rinplatcs,
and further along We find CO l.
ties. A long list Of chemicals and
chemical products passes from the
duitable TO the free list also cx-
pressed and distilled oils. linseed
oil, log~ood aud other dyewoods,
spirits of turpentlue, and Opum.--
Copper and nickel ores and old cop.
per and nickel matte are made free
of duty, Many small trnits, meat,
game, and poultry, milk, feathers,
garden seeds, beeswaX. talIOw,
grindstOneS, aud all building and
monumental stones are in the tree
list. Wool Of every kind is tram.
fcrred TO the tree list.
We look in vain IN the free list
of Mr.. Mills's proposed tariff for
coal aud iron ore. According TO
Mr.. Cleveland and other free trade
theorists these articles are "raw
materials" but the present duty of
10 cents per ton on both articles il
continued, while wool, lumber, salt,
and other "raw materials are
placed in the free list. The ex.
PLANTATION il that coal and iron ore
are products in which the South is
greatly interested. The South pro.
tested against transferring these
articles TO the free list, and so they
remain subject to the existing du-
~. THIS is right, but why shOnld
we have a sectional tarill bill q!
/ Cotton.bagging has also been trans
ferred to The free list to please the
South, which uses il.
a striking feature of the bill is
the preference Of it's authors for nd
rdiorcm duties; there are in its pro-
visions many changes from specific
to dd raiorcm duties, which can
easily he evaded IN part through
AUTHORIZATIONS, find their proper
place in a bill which is framed 10
help foreigners at the expense of
our own people. The tariff of 1916
and 1851 were dd rdlOrcm tariffs
entirely, and we know the results.
The liberal substitution Of nj
ralOrem for specific duties in Mr..
Mills bill is "A radical departure
from the methods of revision so
earnestly recommended by Score.
tary Manning in the first year OF
his official connection with the
Treasury Department, He then
urged that, IN any revision OF the
tariff which shOull take place, spe-
cifc duties should be substituted
for ad udlOrcm duties wherever pos.
sible, his object being to prevent
frauds on the revenue. But Mr..
Mills frames bill to make these
frauds more numerous than thev
now are. His bill might be termed
a bill to debauch the public service.
Mr.. Mills must know that that
w0uld be its effect if it were enact
ed into law
The duties on broad silks and
silk ribbons are left unchanged in
Mr.. Mills's bill. We have noticed
in other tariff bills in late years,
which have proposed to reduce du-
ties on many articles, that broad
silks and ribbons always escaped
attack. As raw silk ~ in the free
list, it is, at least, a little strange
that our statesmen Of the Morrison
and Mills school have been 50 well
pleased with fifty per cent. duty
on finished silk products that they
have been willing to continue it
Silk il no more a luxury now than
a hundred other articles in daily
use are luxurles, and our free trade
statesmen cannot justly claim that
they "tax" it because it is luxury.
Will Mr. Mills please explain why
he passed over silks and cut down