, 1888-05-19
TARIFF.
A Long Discussion Of the
Tariff Bill.
The Presidents Message Criti-
cised by Randall,
Who Denounces Tariff for
Revenue Only,
But Favors Now, as He Has
Always Done,
The Total Repeal of Internal
Revenue Taxes.

WASHINGTON, May 1S.-The house on
assembling Immediately went into com
mittee of the whole on the tariff bill.
Anderson of Iowa spoke briefly in opposi-
ton to the principle Of protection and at
the close of his remarks Randall took the
floor. He opened his speech by referring
to the president recent message in which
the executive advised congress hat the
surplus in the treasury by the end of the
current fiscal year was expected to reach
the sum of $40, 900, 600. He then
quoted from the presidents message, de
filming his position on the tariff and inter-
nal revenue questions and said hat from
the utterances of the president he under
stood the executive to be averse to any
reduction of
INTERNAL TAXES
as hat mode of taxation offered in the
opinion.of the president no just complaint
and that nothing is well able to bear bur-
den with hardship to any portion OF the
people, The president further said that
the tariff law was y vicious and Illogical
source or negotiable tax and ought to be
revised and modified; and the president
had urged upon congress an immediate
expression on the matter to the exclusion
of all others. The president had asserted
in substance that the reduction necessary
should be made by additions to the free
list ana by the lowering of the rates of
duty.
In the presence of such language, ema-
mating from the executive, it was impera
lively required of the representatives of
the people to give a fair, intelligent and
prompt attention to the suggestions made.
He had done SO. He had introduced a
bill, some of the provisions of which were
at variance with those recommended by
the president. The president sought to
prevent a continuation of the surplus
revenue by resortlng to changes in the
customs, but its only remedy he CRandalD
proposed was through the repeal of in
ternal revenue taxes as well as by a full
revision OF the tariff, as promised the
people by the Democratic convention OF
1884. The reduction provided for in his
bill aggregated SIT 200, 900 on internal
taxes. Those taxes had always been the
LAST TO BE LEVIED
and the first to be repealed when nc
longer necessary. Jefferson had given a
deathDlow to the excise taxes, that most
vicious OF all taxes, and had received the
thanks OF the legislature of his native
state for having internal taxes abolished.
The first tax also to be repealed after the
war-lSl2-had been the excise tax,
which was recommended by that legisla-
ton and was the first law enacted under
the administration of Munroe.
The Democratic convention of 1884
declared that internal revenue was a war
tax and this declaration, taken in connec-
ton with other declarations of the plat
form, clearly establishes the fact that the
Ctant,, ~ IL r-., 49, 1900
OF the internal revenue taxes should first
20 and hat they should all go whenever a
sufficient sum was realized from the GUS
toms house taxes to meet the expenses of
the government economically admins
tered. The county was practically in
such a condition now, and the true re-
spouse to those declarations warranted a
repeal of the internal revenue taxes to the
extent proposed by his bill. He favored
now, as he had always done, the total re-
peal of the internal revenue axes. APP
plause. In the bill which he intro
duced he proposed to sweep all those
taxes from
THE STATUTE BOOKS
except the tax of fifty cents on whisky,
and lie would transfer the collection of
that tax to the customs officials if found
practicable. With Albert Gallitin he had
regarded the excise taxes as offensive to
the genius Of the people and tolerated
only as a measure of emergency, and as
soon as the occasion for them had passed
away they should cease to exist.
Randall then entered into an explana-
ton OF the principles upon which his bill
had been Constructed, and said that in
any instance the rate was too low to cover
the cost OF production, he was ready to
raise 1t, and if more than needed he
WOULD LOWER II.
M~onopolies existed without the tariff.
He was for the protection oil labor, not in
one state, but in all.
Randall then analysed the metal sched-
ule Of Mills bill, and declared that il
would bring about i~ncalculable injury to
the industries of commerce. He could
find nothing in the bill which ave a re-
turn for FREQ wool. He found many inc
qualities in it, and discussed a few fea-
lures intended to relieve poorer laboring
men. He referred to the declarations OF
his colleague-Scott-as supercillious.
He believed, with his Democratic friends,
to not undo the good that had been done
to the manufacturing industries by pro-
tective tariff, and read from Jefferson,
WonrOe anu OtLer Democratlc 1OrelatnerS,
to prove that protection was a fundamen-
tai Democratic principle. He closed with
a tribute TO the results and principles Of
protection. and asked that they be main
tanned through the efforts Of the party
that instituted them.
! Randall said that in the execution OF
the idea of the committee to secure free
raw materials to stimulate manu- 'actures,o
tho hill nlaaad nm tho froa LET lar,a
number OF articles which are really manu-
featured articles, constituting the products
Of large and useful industries throughout