The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-10-05

free whisky and free tobacco, leaving all The
expensive machinery for the collection or the
| revenue and enforcement or the law IN luii
| force while il increases taxation upon the
| actual and indispensable necessares OF life aud
this too, when there is a large surplus In the
| treasury and under the existing law tbat
| SURPLUS is being increased at the rate or over
$4,000 600 per month, thus withdrawing and
Withholding from the channels of trade and
| commerce of the country money absolutely
necessary to their successtui operatlon'
THE METAL SCHEDULE.
The minority illustrate by copious ref
erences to the metal schedule, They say:
In no single instance is the policy upon which
the substitute was famed more clearly demon
| strated than in that OF railway IRON. Inc cost
TO produce rails at the leading mills in the
United States in 1887 was less than $27 per ton,
of which less than 81 25 per ton was paid in
wages. The present rate of duty on
tute it is reduced to S1b 6s per ton. The
| question arises whether this will reduce the
wages of the operatives 81 80, or whether the
| Sll 43 bounty above the whole cost paid for
labor will satisfy the manufacturers. The labor
cost in ton of steel rails being 81 %, ON the
| pretense that this is so much higher than
| former wages a burden OF Sl5 66 is thus
laid upon every ton of steel rails I'M
1 ported in the United States and thus govern
| prices here in order to equalize the difference
| 10 domestic and foreign wages. This burden is
| laid upon the transportation of 1.-THE country,
and on its foreign trade measured by the amount
of duty collected, but when it is transferred 10
| our internal commerce the burden is measured
| by every pound of rails over which 1t has TO
pass, and ultimately falls with crushing weight
| upon the agriculturist, whose bulky products
must seek foreign market over these tax
laden roads in foreign ships and when these
| foreign markets are reached, these products
must compete with the pauper products or the
cheapest labor TO be found anywhere under the
sun.
WIRE FENCING.
The House bill made great strides for the
farmers relief when it reduced this tax TO %il
per ton The rods out of which the farmer
wire fence is made are not apparently changed
in rate but by various changes in classification
actual and important, additional burdens are
imposed The reduction in the dutiable value
from 316 to 8 cents per pound weight, accom-
plshes this. An additional size, No. 6, added
without an apparent change of rates.
does increase the rate paid on wire
rods of this size from 45 per cent
to about "a per cent, and is increased
tax on this one size of wire rods of nearly $500
upon the basis of the mportations of 1887, and
there is added proviso by which rods smaller
than No. are classified as wire, and thus erect
a third distinct increase of the tax IN TINS one
section, and this is called part of the system"
and rightly So
COTTON TIES.
Cotton ties also receive their careful consider
alton. II is not enough that the most formidable
and insolent trust which ever laid its hand upon
the throat of honest labor threatening every
class from the poor colored cotton picker
crop he could means mot wra a0
it, to the merchants and capitalists who had
advanced the necesSaries of life TO sustain that
negro thro. Oh the season. To these come with
the proposed revision, not with a helping hand,
but other burdens, and cotton ties, which their
own friends had reduced to IS per cent in the
tariff of 1888 lone of the bright GASES in the
desert of inquity) they omit by name but
include in the new classification, that
instead Of IS per cent it must pay according
to the valuation of 1887 over 100 per cent, ad-
ding nearly $3.50 900 tax on imported ties alone,
all of which is loss to the cotton producer.
Even with this they are not content, but still
further tax the struggling agriculturist in this
schedule by raising the duties on trace chains,
and all other kinds less than three eighths OF an
inch, from 21a cents, which is equivalent to 4sS
per cent, TO cents per pound, equivalent TO
rate of 53.57 per cent. Can ingenuity go further:
LEvELING UP.
In the cotton schedule again the great prog
ress of 'leveling up" is called into requsttion
TO what end or for what purpose, who can sayI
For instance, medium yarns are raised cents
per pound. They are already paying about a
as per cent tariff. Is this to pay the difference
in wages here and abroad? Hardly, since Iy
the census of 1880 it is shown that cotton goods
workers are only paid 81 O6 per cent of the pro-
| duct They do not get half of the present
| tariff, yet IL is proposed to still further
| increase the rate. BY changes in
| classification and by new subdivisions,
still further Completing the administration,
and by changes in rates In effect principally in
creaSlnR taxes most RltlTlDR
| and determinations are perpetrated in this So
| called revision Cotton yarns pay about 80 per
cent cotton clothes made from this yarn pay
| As per cent. while clothing ready-made by a
| tailor or seamstress from this cloth must pay
| 40 per cent.
HALF HOSE DEARER-
| Hosiery is made dearer for the poor but is
| undisturbed for the rich. A sock worth rs cents
| per dozen must pay 60 cents per dozen and 20
per cent. ad valorem or 100 per cent, but after
| ranch "a dozen in Vanp the tax is left
| at the old rate
The substitute not only retains the duty on
raw wool, but increases the duty from 10 to II
| cents per pound on clothing and combing wool,
| and the existing duty is retained carpet
| woods, which all parties agree are not produced
| in this country, and the changes made in manu-
| features of wool increases taxation. and to that
| extent increases the cost of the manufactured
article, and especially the cheaper grades, the
| clothing of the poor. To illustrate, take this
| example; The cheapest wooden dress goods,
| costing only IS cents per square yard, is taxed
| by the substitute cents per square yard and 40
| per cent. ad valorem making the whole tax
| thus imposed 80 per cent.
BULK SALT.
Bulk salt, which is now dutiable at nearly so
per cent is continued in the substitute at the
same rate Salt is the product of sea and
earth, which natures God bestowed upon man
| for his USE So free is it in natures plan, that
| little seawater exposed to the sun heat aud
| air, natures own factory, and the residuum is
salt Wherever found we employ the great
| forces of steam and electricity instead of
manual labor in preparing it for use. Why a
| tax should be imposed on an article of such
prime necessity and universal use is not shown.
| The existing law gives free salt TO the fishery
| interests Of New England, and taxes salt to the
| farmer and dairyman. The House bill makes
| salt free of tax to all.
| NURSING MOTHER OF TRUSTS.
| The present tariff is the nursing mother OF
| trusts 1t is the wall behind which these com.
| binations are formed by which the people are
| plundered. Tariffs keep out foreign competi-
ton and combination suppresses domestic, and
the whole people are at their mercy and must
pay whatever is demanded. Language is mad
| equate to describe the niquity of these corpora
tions against the rights OF the people, or depict
their disastrous effect against the
| general welfare. As the tariffs which render
| trusts possible are established and maintained
| at the special instance of those who form them
| II would be but simple justice, as well as good
policy, TO tear down as much as possible of their
cover, and refuse TO longer aid them in wrong
| doing. They are not private affairs. VI
as has been asserted, but public evils
| of the gravest character, affecting the price of
every article which contributes to the comfort
and support of the people. The provisions of
the substitute favor them greatly and win serve
| to encourage their formation in still other
branches of manufacture. Many of those be
| longing TO trusts appeared before the finance
| committee clamorous for such legislation as
would promote their interests.
| MONOPOLY DOWN ON MILLS.
They are all opposed TO the House bill which
should commend to all Americans their
methods. II is bad enough TO permit those who
are most interested manufacturers to appear
before our committee and suggest the lesisla-
ton they wish, but surely we should not listen