St. Landry democrat., 1888-04-07
THE MILLS TARIFF BILL.

| A Glimpse at Its Features as Prepared TO
| Presentation to the House of Represen
tatives, and the Arguments on Which 1t
Passage will be Urged.
| WASHINGTON, March 3O.-Although ths
Mills Tariff bill will not be reported from
| the committee on ways and means to the
House before next Monday, and the state
ment of the majority is under an injunc
ton of secrecy, in the hands of the com,
| mittee, its contents are well and definitely
known here. The majority report is OF
| great length, and is largely composed Of
an argument in favor of free wool, anG
tabular statements, compiled by the
Treasury Department in support of the
statistical assertions which the majority
make. The report begins with the
| statement that the surplus accumula.
| ton in the treasury last year was
| ST., 800 ,0G0, and that the estimated
surplus Of this year is $s1, 100000. With
receipts growing larger and expenditures
smaller, it is feared that the accumulation
Of money in the treasury will work great
injury to business and bankrupt the people
II Congress does not take some action te
reduce the revenues. One way of making
this reduction is to reduce taxation to the
level of expenditures, and leave in the
pockets Of the people all moneys not need
ed for public purposes. Another way is
to raise the expenditures to the height OF
taxation. The latter course the majority
of the committee deem unwise. Attention
is called to past eras when reckless ap-
preparations were made. The committee
have determined to recommend reduc-
ton of the revenues from both customs
and internal taxation, and have carefully
kept in view the interests of the manu-
facturer, the laborer, the producer and the
consumer. The imperfection of the bill
is recognized, but it is recommended as
the best that could be agreed upon. Our
capacity to produce, it is stated, is far in
excess of the require ments of our home
consumption, and as consequence many
of our mills are closed and many Of those
still in operation are running on short
time. This vicious condition Of business
could not exist with low duties on i'm
ports. Prohibitory tariffs surround the
country with lines Of investment and pre-
vent all life from without, while trusts,
combinations and pools plunder the peo-
pie within.
The interests Of the laboring man by the
proposed reduction in the tariff are
pointed out in detail. The consumption of
raw materials which it is proposed to
admit free Of duty form the text of the
argument for relief. More extensive
markets for the sale of our products and
active competition in business is pointed
out as the remedy for the bad condition Of
the manufactures of this country. With
the markets Of the world open to us our
manufacturers may run their mills on full
time, giving constant employment to their
laborers with q steadily increased rate OF
wages. Elaborate statistics are pro-
duced to make strong these points.
An argument is submitted in support of
the transfer Of dutiable articles to the
free list, the revenues upon which now
amount to over $29000,O00. The largest
reduction by the free list is in The wooden
schedule. The majority think there is no
greater need for duty on wool than there
Is for duty on another raw material.
The recommendation of the wool growers
and the wool manufacturers associations
are regarded by the majority as proposing
a duty high enough to keep out all manu-
features of wool. The change to ad valo-
rem from specific duties made In the bill
are strongly supported.
The minority report will not be made
public until it is presented to the House.