Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1888-08-02
New Series, Vol. %, No. 81.
THREE DECEPTIONS IN ONE.

New York Tribune
The one excuse which Democrats Of
fer for the Mills bill is that it will not
reduce the average rate of duty on duti-
able articles very much. To appreciate
this shallow fraud, one has only to re-
member that if a thousand articles bear
duties averaging 40 per cent, 999 of
them may be placed on the free list and
yet the remaining article may bear
duty of 40 per cent. Then Democrat
ic cheat may rise in his place and say:
"Here is practically no change in the
| the tariff; en- dutiable articles the duties
average exactly the same under this bill
as under the existing tariff" Wool and
certain other articles would be put into
the free list. The plea that duties on
the remaining dutiable articles would
not be much reduced is simply a decep-
ton.
But there is fraudulent misrepresen-
tatiOn of the issues in two other respects.
Fhe reduction of duties on some articles,
t. the average rate on all articles, would
be enough absolutely to destroy great
American industries, and yet it would
scarcely affect the average rate of duty
at all. Again, suppose average duties
of 40 per cent. on 1000 articles, of
which 500 are substantially excluded by
duties which secure the home market to
home producers. Take off all the pro-
tecting duties entirely, and the rate paid
on dutiable articles would not be chang
ed. Reduce rates on these enough to
PROSTATE every establishment in the
country which depends upon their
protection, and yet the average rate col
lected on all articles might be but slight
ly or not at all reduced. For instance,
some wOOllens require duty of so or so
per cent, let us say, and are not now
imported; reduction of the duties on
these to 40 per cent. might destroy the
wOOllen industry, and yet not lower the
average rate in the least.
Then there is a third intentional de-
ception in ignoring the vast difference
between specific and and ad valOrem du-
ties. The present tariff imposes specific
duties, wollens and cottons, for instance,
while the pending bill substitutes ad
yalOrem duties, the effect of which must
depend entirely upon the success of for
eigners in undervaluatiOns. Opening
the door wide TO fraud does not lower
the nominal rate of duty in the least.
But it does offer a large reward to for
eigners who swear their goods in at on
ly half their value, and so cheat the
Government of half the revenue on
them. That is one of the most danger
Gus provisions of the free trade bill;
provision which was deliberately intend
ed to insure the prOstration of great in
dustries for the benefit of foreign i'm
pOrters. Yet it would not alter the av-
erage rate of duty on the declared value
of imports, but would only hire foreign
ers to put that declared value a great
deal lower, thereby robbing the Treasury.
Ne man of practical sense will need
more than one evidence of the charac-
ter Of this bill. The men who put wool
on the free list proved themselves Free
Traders, extreme, absolute, uncOmprO-
missing and unqualified. 1t needs no
study to assure voters of practical COM
mon sense that the Free Traders bill
is not bill designed for the protection
of home industries.