Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1888-08-02
THE MILLS BILL PASSED

Bun Makes Kong and Earnest s,...,.
Before the Ballot Is Taken,
WASHINGTON, July 23.-The Mills Tar;f,
bill passed the House Saturday hv n
majority Mrs. Cleveland, who sat with
mrs. Folsom in the Executive gallery
so IISs sne democratic applause and
smiled her approval of the result
Mr. MILLS CLOSING SPEECH
chairman Mills arose in his place to
close the long debate on the Tariff Hill
Promptly at 11:30 the bill was called mn
MIR. Mills, after offering two amendments
antenGed to correct typographical errors
an the Dill, moved the previous question on
them, and they We're adopted.
he then proceeded to address the House
beginning by stating the condition of the
finances of the Government. placing the
surplus at 1925. 600 600. This, he said. shouId
arrest the attention of the country. II rem
resented unnecessary taxation drawn from
tine people and piled up in the Treasury
IL was taxation levied upon the product
OF labor 1t was an iniquity. This
enormous amount of money was constantly
towering prices and piling an enormous
load on labor and increasing the benefits
OF privileged classes How long would il
De before stagnation would occur and
bankruptcy and ruin flock over the Ianda
Inc majority had attempted to bring be-
lore the House bill to reduce this taxa.
ton and lessen the inflow of money into
the Treasury. By the amendments which
mad been made in committee of the whole
the total reduction of duties had fallen
from oS,Oo, 600 to $4,000, 900, the free list
from ~, 600, 900 to 10000, 900. The relative
rate of duty had fallen from s47 10 not to
S40. but to 81. 49, and yet this measure. so
moderate, was characterized as a free-trade
measure.
was S4249 on every 500 free trades 1t
was an enormous amount of taxation. 1t
was a tax which the wealth of this country
would not permit to stand for a moment.
State taxation was levied on lands, houses.
stocks, bonds, horses and cattle. and the
property owners would not permit any
party of Administration to remain in power
an hour which would levy a tax of IS on
the hundred. Yet this bill, CARRYING a
taxation Of S42 49, was characterized as a
1ree-trade measure. The term free trade
seemed to have double meaning. Some
gentlemen seemed to understand that free
trade meant the absolute interfering of
our foreign commerce from all taxa
ton The Democratic party had used
the term free trade as a term ex-
pressing the freedom of our commerce
from all obstruction save that of Just
and necessary taxation to support the eco
nomical administration of the Government
Applause The tariff of 1915 had been
called free trade tariff, and he had him
self spoken of the decade from 1850 to 1860
as the free trade period, because in that
time commerce was not restricted by OBJ
structions thrown In It's way by capitalists
and monopolists.
He then proceeded to take up and discuss
IN detail the various schedules of the bill,
beginning with those dealing with chemic-
ais The present duty on chemicals, he said,
was 81 81 per cent The proposed bill placed
1t at 2S.17-a reduction of little over 81 in
hundred. Gentlemen called that free
trade. The next was the earthenware and
glass schedule. The duty under existing
law was $685. in every $780, The bill fixed
1T at S52.17. That was free trade, too, he
supposed. If $50 taxation on every 800 was
free trade, in Gods name would some one
tell him what was meant by the term pro-
tectlons [Applause.l
Sugar was found at duty of SIS. Is, and
the committee reduced it to S62.3l There
was nobody making much fuss about the
enormity Of that reduction. The bill cut
down the revenue from sugar 81, 759, 900.
This was next to the largest reduction
made in any schedule in the bill. 1t had
beer constantly charged that the bill was
sectional, that it barely touched sugar,
and that the committee threw it's arms
around the sugar industry to shield it, yet
the reduction in sugar was only second to
that in the wooden schedule. There ought
to be high duty on sugar because Demo-
Gratis believed that taxation was a tribute
requested from citizens for the support of
the Government, and because they believed
that in laying taxation it ought to be so
laid as to be as little burdensome as
possible. By the tariff on sugar
the Government got SIS, 000, 900, with
&c, 600, 600 protection. In order to get $751;
900 900 into the public Golfers it cost Sc, co.,
600 protection to the sugar planters. But
in order to get S5S 000, 600 into the Treasury
from iron and steel and wooden goods it
cost the people over 800, 900. 600. Why,
then, should the duty on sugar be repealed
in order that more bufdensome tax at
higher rate on wooden and cotton goods and
iron and steel might be retained? The duty
on provisions under existing law was
S24 50. The committee left it at S23. 80. Yet
it was charged that this was free trade
measure. The existing duty on cotton was
$39 %. The bill fixed it at s59.07. Where
did the free trade come in on thatf The
$12 40 600 revenue from cotton had been
reduced only SGT, 600. The duty on hemp,
jute, and fax was at present s2S. TO- 1t
was left at S2l94. This reduction of
only So was brought about to a
great extent by the putting Of a
large amount of jute and hemp and
manila on the free list. The pres
eIt duty on wool and woolens is
S5a.sI. The committee bill left it
at $500, reduction of over $40 on every
500 of taxation. This reduction seemed
large, but it was caused by the placing of
raw wool on the free list. The reduction
on dutiable wooden goods amounted to
So OOO, 600, but the wooden manufacturer
was not injured. He was benefited. This
bill gave the manufacturer free wool and
40 per cent taxation. and still it was said
to be free-trade measure. The duty on
books, papers, ETC., was now So Ii. The
bill left it at Sc. o. less than 10 cents re-
duction. The bill reduced the duty on
steel rails from S17 per ton to s11 per ton,
and although the duty was left at 81 per
cent. it was charged that the Democrats
were trying to ruin this infant industry.
Fifty-four per cent was a larger duty than
had been placed on steel rails from 1865 to
1870.
Mr.. Mills then addressed himself to the
consideration of the free list. On that list,
he said, had been placed articles amounting
to $50, 600, 600. The largest was wool, from
which Sc, 800, 600 was received. When the
Democrats wished to put wool upon the
free list they were charged with breaking
the middle link out of the chain. The gen.
tlemen who were charging the Democratic
side of the House with bringing in a free
trade measure had taken the duty on cot
ton and put that article on the free list
Had they striker out the middle link of the
chaina When it was proposed to put wool
on the free list it was charged that the
Democrats were striking the combination
which had made the protective tariff, and
that they should not touch wool. The first
tariff ever framed in this Government after
the Constitution was adopted embraced in
ITS title a declaration of the principle OF