The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1888-01-26


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men to the hard, sharp. and grinding COM
petition Of the capital snd labor Of the
world.
Proceeding to details, Mr. Sherman said
that during the fiscal year ending June 30,
1887, the total value Of foreign importati0ns
was S6S3, 600 600, $685. 600 Of that
amount being free of duty, SO that, as to
over one-thtrd Of all articles Of foreign pro-
duction consumed in this country, there
WAS absolute free trade They were mainly
such articles as, by reason Of climate, could
not be produced here, and did not come
into competition with domestic industry.
With that kind of free trade be was il
hearty sympathy. He would extend it
TO every article of cosnmon use, the growth
or production of which Ia the United
States was not prefits bic. It was exactly
the opposite policy that was proposed by
the President and BY the sch@ol to which
the President belonged. They sought to
place taxes upon articles now free, such "a
tea and coffee, In order thst greater re-
duetion might be made on articles that did
C me into competition with heme industry.
After aeaucting the free lies the value of
Imported goods last year was $50, 000,000
on which duties were lsvied. Should there
be upiferEe rate OF DUTY On these goods?
NO, Dub bDer6 snGul0 Pe
A CAREFUL DISCRIMINATION
aud Classification Of rates, depending upon
the nature and quality Of the goods, upon
who ware tn be tho consumers, and upon
the effees which the rstas proposed would
have upon domestic Industry. Therefore,
sricles of vclustery use, OF luxury, eFna-
nseEs, or Appetite not in cemmon use
among the people, aad which are purchased
slmest exclusively by the wealthy, should
bear a higher rate CT tsxation-the highest
rate coaEeetible Without excluding them or
inducing smuggling. This was foueded
upon the aemftSSd nlaxim Of political
economy that taxes should be assessed
upon those best able to pay. This applied
to wines, liquors, and cigars (supposed to
be superior IL favor to tho domsstic arti-
elesl and to silks, satins. braadcloths, in
Vulnerable articles OF dress orpsment, to
porcelain. statEary, painting, glassware,
and the ike. As to all these articles the
price was matter of Indifference to the
consumer, and the rate Of duty was very
much like the price fixed by the nanufae-
turer; that is, as much as could be got
This was the policy of the present tariff,
and it had operated even better than had
been hoped. The value of such articles
imported was not less than Sl20, COO 600, and
the duties collected on them net less thar
S6o,G0o,0 600, nearly ene-third Of the whole
amount collected.
1t certainly could not be said of these
duties that they ssimposed a burden upon
those who consumed domestic products as
well as upon those who consumed imported
articles" (usfng the Presidents langusge).
On the contrary, these duties had imposed
the chief burdens Of taxation upon articles
Of voluntary luxury and had still melted
American artists and mechanics to compete
in those branches OF industry with the
skilled artisans of Europe aud Asia. In
this way
REMARKABLE PROGRESS HAD BEEN MADE
ia those expensive productions, and porce-
LATIN, table ware, ornaments, clothing, deco
rated and enameled furniture, and a multi
tude OF other articles of taste and luxury
lthe work Of American mechanics) had
been brought within the means Of great
masses of tae American people. To reduce
the duties GA these foreign luxuries would
be to transmit the burden of taxation from
those who now baar it willingly to the
shoulders of the people.
Another class of duties YVES on articles Of
food aud On animals. OF these the value
imported laat fscal year was $112 600, 600,
and the duty paid on tn EN- S6S, Geo 600 OF
this sum the sugar, rice, ard fruit imported
were valued at SOL, 900, 600, and paid a duty
of 1868 000, 000-or more than Zine tenths
of all the taxes levied on food and animals
These were articles that entered into the
consumption of every family in the United
States. If the object were to reduce surplus
revenue. what better mode, he asked, could
be suggested than TO repeal one-half OF the
duty on sugar, and thus directly releve the
people frem $2S, $50 900 of taxes on an
artisle in most general use and nov bearing
tax of So per cent? No such suggestion
was made by the President or the Secretary
of the Treasury; and he Mr. Shermas) did
not care to explore the reasons for their
silence. He believed In
PROTECTING ALL HOME INDUSTRIES,
without respect to section or to the
place or manner of production-whether
on the farm or in the workshop; but,
if protection was not the object of the
law. and if surplus rsvenue was the great
evil to be dealt with, why not give relief to
the people by s. reduction Of the tax on
sugar? The effort to prsduce sugar in tbs
United States in quantities at all approach
ing the demand had failed, though protected
by the highest tariff rates, still, in view of
the hepaful prospects Of preaueing sugar
from beets and sorghum cane, SIS well as
from sugar care, he would not cripple that
indus -ry by reducing protective duties, ex-
cept by giving the producers OF domestic
sugar bousty equal to the reduction of
duty en- the Imported article. But it was
not of the duties on food that the Presi-
dent complained as a ''vieious, negotiable,
and Illogical source of taxstien." The du-
ties of which he con plsined were those for
the benefit of manufacturers, and he urged
especially "a radical reduction Of the dulles
Imposed upon raw materials, used Ia man
ufactures, or their free Importation
The great body Of crude articles imported,
which entered info the processes of domes-
tic industry to the value ct S106 000, 900,
were COW free of duty. Every imported
article Of that clsss was SO, unless it com
peted directly with the development of
American resources. Duties averaging 80
per cent were now levied upon such i'm
ported articles, valued at 59500,000, and
which yielded a revenue OF SIG, 500 ESQ.
The chief Of them were agricultural pro-
auats-wool, fax, hemp, and other textile
grasses; hops, bristles, and seeds-valued at
S35, 900, 900, and yielding a revenue of $l0,-
100000, or less than 80 per cent. The re-
nainder was chiefly metals, Ia ore or pigs,
coal and marble. 81 value OF S22. 500. 900,
and yielding 50 COO. These imports
came into direct ee2petitioB with the pro-
duciens of nearly two million American
farmers and OF kandreas of thousands of
laboriBg men. This moderate protection,
given to the labor and capital EMPLOYED
in mining and agricultural industries,
was
THE FAveRITE POINT OF ASSAULT
by the Presid ent and all free traders upon the
protective policy. It wss the citadel OF the
system. The whole depended upon the
principle that it was wise to give, BY tariff
laws, To all forms Ct American labor the
degree Of protection or advantage which
the Imposition q duties Ga similar foreign
productions necessarily gave That had
been the role since the Beginning of the gov
erHmcnt, and had been recommended by
every President FROM Washiagte to Polk.
Tbs same rule has Been applied for the