Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1888-10-18
ANOTHER TARIFF BILL.
The Senate Committee Make Their
Report.
How Wool a. Affected.

The majority and minority reports on the
substitute tariff bin have been presented 10
the senate, also an additionaAreport by Sen-
ator Beck favoring the Mil bill. both ne
ports agree that "a reduction In the now ex-
cessive national revenue Is needed, aud thnt
is about tho only thing on which they do
agree. The majority report is defense OF
The protective system, maintain, mr. that
some industries must be encouraged. and
any reduction in tariE rates would work an
injury 10 tho country; while the minority
report stOutly maintains that tho burdens
of the people can only be lifted by reducing
import rates 10 a revenue basis, and that
the higher the protective duties arc laid tile
worse it Is for tho prod Icers. 1t further
holds that the senate bill throws additional
burdens with crushing weight on the labor
ers and farmers, and benett9 only the
monopolists. To sustain this view the
report cites the fact that the rGJcs on cotton
ties, now controlled by powerful trust,
and certain sizes OF iron used by the farm
crs are increased.
Senator Beck says the substituted bill
goes TO tho extreme Of prot ctiOn, restrsc-
ton and destruction, and Tat the Mills bHt
is AN eminently conservative measure, the
passage Of which will be TO the benefit OF
the OO,OOO,OOO people OF the United States
In regard 70 wool the ma Orlty report
says Wool has been dutiable since 1916
and through all tho tariff mutations which
have taken place since, no suggestion has
been made by any political party, up TO the
present administration, for the removal of
duties. The wool growers Of tho country
produce annually 800 900, OOJ pounds of wool,
valued at $l000O0,0O0. They supply nine
tenths of the clothing WOO used by Ameri-
can manufacturers, and they have raised
the United States 10 the hrst rank among
the wool producing countries OF the world
Those who have, by their patient labor and
intelligent efforts, built up this great In
dustry, relying for security upon the pDO
lection Of present revenue ARRANGEMENTS,
are certainly entitled to fair tire tment.
To this the minority report says:
II requires from three TO four pounds TO
make pound Of cloth, so that from l2 20 II
pounds Of wooden clothing for the family
will be seen to be "a low average. This Is
now taxed from So 10 ne riy 30 per cent.
The manufacturer Is not benefited, because
his finished product comes into competition
with tho fore gn product, made not only
from untaXed wool, but cheaper wool, II
the tax be taken of woods we vii import
more woods, of course, and in 10 other way
can our great factories prosper, because
thor capacity is beyond our own wool pro
duction. When tho facto les arc turning
out more product employees have O. cadier
work and better wages, and indirectly, of
course, the whole country Is benefited.
Under tho house bill the manufacturers,
with free wool, secure even higher com
petitive advantage over the foreign than
under the present law or the substitute.
The manufacturers Will export wooden
goods as we now export cotton and leather,
and the demand for the wool will bettbf
the wool market and encourage increased
production, while the average wool grower
himself will reap from cheapeued cloth.
ing more benefits than he ever did from
n tax on his product, which he must him
self pay
/ The remainder Of the reports are taken
up very largely with assertions and denials
/ of the usual congressional sort