The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1888-10-20


Representatives.
The report Of the minority makes dpcui.snt
Of twelve printed pages. II begins with the
statement that In the preparation OF the substi-
tute for the House bill no member OF the minor
fly Of the committee was consulted, or informed
as to It's provisions until IL wns reported to the
full committee, on the 25th OF September
The minority recites the work Of tie subcom-
mittee In hearing the "statements, arguments
and appeals Of manufacturers and others, who
demand that the present high rate OF the tarih
taxation shall be maintained, and In most In
stances prompted not by any revenue neoessi-
ties, but alone for the purpose Of increasing
their own profits at the expense Of sixty millions
OF tax xpayers."
Continuing, they say: "It is safe TO say that
all the interests benefited by high protective
tariff have been fully heard and have had much
influence In shaping this substitute, while the
great body Of the people, the taxpayers and
victims OF this policy, have not appeared and
have not been heard"
The minority continue: "Tho advocates OF
the substitute freely propose TO reduce duties or
abolish them on those things which yield only
Government revenue, but refuse TO reduce or
abolish duties on those things which prouuce
private revenue. But the minority
think 1t safe to soy that tho chief reductions In
tariff taxation, as provided by the substitute,
are confined to the articles OF sugar and rice,
with jute and few other unimportant articles
put upon the FREQ list, while there is an In
crease of duties imposed upon the multiform
manufactures Of cotton wool, iron and steel
articles that the whole people, and especially
the poor and most needy classes, are compelled
to use. The substitute relieves the non-neces-
sary tobacco, in all its forms-except cigars,
cheroots and cgarettes-from internal taxa
tion and gives free alcohol to the arts. Practi-
cnlly, the substitute sners to the people free
1yhi clYy md fran fnha 10 NIL
sive machinery for the collection OF the revenue
and enforcement OF the law In full force, while
1t increases taxation upon the actual and indis-
pensable necessaries OF hfe."
The minority continues: The rods out OF
which the farmers wire fence Is made are not
apparently changed in rate but by various
changes in classification actual and important
additional burdens are imposed. Areduction In
dutiable value from 81 to cents per pound
weight accomplished this. An additional si.e,
No. @, added without an apparent change or
| rate, does adroitly increase the rate paid on
| wire rods Of this size from 45 per cent to about
"a per cent. and is an increased tax on this one
| size Of wire rods Of nearly $4,000 upon tho
| basis OF the importations Of 1887, and there is
| added o proviso by which rods smaller than
| No. Q are classified as wire, aud thus effect
o third distinct increase Of tax in this
one section and this is called part OF osys-
| tem," and rightly so-called. Steel ingots, cog
| ged ingots, billets, bars, ETC., now pay forty
| cents per pound. BY the substitute, If valued
at one cent or less they ore dutiable ut one
half cent per pound, and as some OF these
| items were valued at seven-tenths Of cent
per pound in the imports OF 1887, the rate OF
one-half cent is an increase from forty.five to
over seventy per cent, aud nearly million
| dollars tax added by this one section. Cotton
ties also receive their careful consideration. It
| is not enough that the most formidable and in
| solent trust which ever laid its hands npon the
| throat of honest labor. threatening every
class from the poor oolored cotton ptckers,
whose few pounds of crop he could not gettO
market for lack of wrapping, to the merchant
| and capitalist who had advanced the neces-
saries of life TO sustain that labor through the
season. To these come the proposed revision,
not with helping hand, but with other burdens,
| and the cotton ties which their own friends
| hnd reduced to thirty-fve per cent in the
| tariff Of 1883 Zone of the bright
GASES in q desert Of iniquity), they omit
| by name. but include in new classification, so
that instead Of thirty-fve per cent. 1t must pay
according to the valuation of 1887. over one hun
| dred per cent, adding nearly quarter million
| dollars to tax the imported ties alone, all OF
which is loss to the cotton producer. Even
with this they arc not content, but still further
| schedule by raising the duties on trace
chains. and all other kinds less than
three-eighths Of an inch thick, from
21i cents, which is equivalent to A.S7 per cent.
to cents per pound, equivalent to rate Of
| b3.67 per cent. Can ingenuity 60 furtherf
'That taggers iron should bc raised from 80
per cent. to IS per cent. that table cutlery for
the poor should be raised by specidc'rates add
ed to nd valorem; that knives for the poor should
| be taxed heavier and made cheaper for the rich:
| cheaper for the 800 grade and dearer for the
| $15 grade by making each pay $40 and k26 per
cent. I'D valorcm; all these and more are
| longer startling, and prepare the mind for .
thousand other inconsistencies md dtscrimina-
| tions hidden by new and obscure classifcations
| that only time and patient Investigation will re-
veal.
| I'm the cotton schedule again the great pro-
cess Of eveling up is called into requisition to
| what end or for what purpose who can say? By
changes in classification and by new subdivis-
| ions, stiN further complicating the administra-
tion and by changes in rates, in effeot princi-
| pally increasing taxes, most glaring inconsist-
| encies and determinations are perpetrated IN
| this so-called revision. In the woolen schedule
the substitute not only retains Q duty on raw
| wool, but increases the duty from ten to eleven
cents pound on clothing and combing wool,
| and the existing duty is retained on carpet
| wools which all parties agree are not producec
in this country, and the changes made in the
| manufactures OF wool increases tho taxation.
and to that extent increases the cost Of the
manufactured article, and especially the cheap
er grades-the clothing OF the poor"
The minority criticise IN a similar manner tho
| lumber, salt and provisions schedules, and then
discuse the subjects OF trusts as follows:
''The present tariff is the nursing mother of
trusts. 1t is the wall behind which those COM
| binations are formed by which the people are
| plundered Tarin keeps out the foreign compe-
tition and the combination suppresses the do
| mestic, and the whole people are ut their mercy
and must pay whatever Is demanded. Inn
guage is inadequate to describe the iniquity OF
these corporations against the rights Of the
| people, or to depict their disastrous effects
| upon the general welfare"
The minority deny that tariff revision viii re-
duce wages, and conclude their report with the
following remarks concerning free wool; ~Fhe
minority are firmly convinced that besides the
incalculablc advantage to the whole country
which would result from the placing OF wool
upon the free list it is easily demonstratable
that no class will suffer, but that each will reap
OF six hundred million pounds OF raw wool in
1887, and o population OF sixty millions, the
| average per capita consumption is easily rcck-
| oned at ten pounds or fifty pounds to the aver
| age family OF Ave persons and the Northern
farmer. constantly exposed to the
| rigors OF our winters, consumes
something more than the average. 1t
requires from three to four pounds to make u
| pound OF cloth SO that from twelve to sixteen
pounds of woolen clothing for the family will oe
seen to be low average. This is now taxed
from IS to nearly 90 per cent. The manufacsH-
| rer is not benefited, because his finished lTo-
| duct comes into competition with tho foreign
| product made not only from untaxed WOOL out
cheaper wool. II the tax be taken OF woods we