The Somerset reporter., 1888-02-22


Some time ago the Tribune Of New
York invited an expression OF opinion by
individual farmers, agricultural societies
and grangers regarding the influence of
the tariff upon agricultural industry and
the changes in the tariff desired by farm
ers. The result was the receipt of sever
al thousand letters, which the Tribune
submitted to a committee consisting Of
Hon. Warner Miller of New York, chair
man, CYRUS c. Carpenter, John 5. Rich,
W. c. Morse, Edward Burroughs, J. d.
LYMAN. w. NJ Grosycnor, Hon. j. H..
Hale Of Connecticut and Hon. JAMES
Wilson of Iowa. I his committee WIS
charged with the work of making up the
concensds of the farmers of the country
as shown by these letters.
The following excerpt gives the spirit of
what the committee found in the letters.
The great majority of these letters ex-
press the connection that the tariffs rot
withstanding defects and omissions, has
contributed powerfully to the growth and
welfare of agriculture. A few are hostile
or Indifferent. With hardly an exception
the letters received point out that the tar
if should have directly defended the in
dustry of farmers in ways which it has
not. 1t should shield them as complete
ly as any branch of manufacture from
the spasmodic and destructive competition
which the cheapncss and degradation OF
labor in some other lands permit.
But the barrier around farming indus.
try, at all points relatively low, has many
gaps, partly from early oversight, partly
from a mistaken revision within the past
few wears. Even at this hour some i'm
understood in many of our cities and towns
by the products Of i'll paid or unpaid la
Dor. Onions from Spain and Egypt APP
pear in markets as far west as Chicago.
Tobacco raised by coolies in Sumatra les
sens the reward of American grounds
Wool clipped by slaves, by conyicts, or
by creatures scarcely less degraded, stops
wool growing by an army of American
farmers and sends millions of sheep to
the slaughterer. Potatoes and cabbage
by the cargo from places where women
work daily in the fields, come hither as
ballast, with eggs by the ship, load from
Holland cattle from Mexico and barley
from Canada.
The fraudulent importation of cattle for
slaughter across northern and southern
boundaries on the pretense that they are
IOI DTtCGli1 purposes OILY, anu D1 INV
free of duty should be eiIectually prevent
ed. IL is quite enough that 800 head
were imported at IA duty of only 20 per
cent which would be thought scarcely
protection for any other industry. But
IL 900 head were brought in from Canada,
though American producers have for
wears been unable to get living prices
The collapse of extensive speculations
l.. "A
Der of animals to be sacrificed at low
prices, and though consumers gained rel
atiycly little, one of the chief indus
tries of the country was rendered almost
wholly Improbable. The greater danger
will come if similar speculations arise in
Mexico or Canada At their collapse inn
mcnsc numbers of cattle may again be
forced upon our market, in spite of the
low duty which will then prove no pro-
lection. But the fraudulent evasion of
the law already Increases and can be ill.,
definitely extended.
The duty on barley should be raised
equal to that on wheat, viz: Twenty
cents per bushel, with proportionate in
crease on the duty on barley malt. Over
10000, 900 bushels of barley were import
ed during the last fiscal year, and probab.
~ oNtl lb,bVpi''b dhi lht- biI' liHb Nhi'H'tdi
year, while in 1856 the home production
was 80 900, 600 bushels. The regions in
which it may be most probably grown,
have their prices fixed in great markets
which Canadian producers can reach by
water while most of of our own produc-
ers cannot. The duty on potatoes and
market garden products which at times
cun be brought hither in ballast in almost
unlimited quantities should be large
enough to insure defense to farmers
near the scaboard and border.
Here follows statistics of the importa.
ton of potatoes, of the home production
on the middle Atlantic coast, showing
that New York, New Jersey, Connecticut
and Pennsylvania produce fewer potatoes
than they did twenty eight years ago.
The report continues; More than LOCO,
600 tons of flax straw goes to waste or
is burned in western states, worth if
prepared $4,000, 900, while we pay SIC,
600 600 to foreign markets for linen goods
besides duties amounting to $1,000 600
which the government doesn't want.
No less than 219 of the 1916 farmers
who refer at all to the duties on sugar
ask the abolition of those duties. The
producers of tobacco don't ask any in
crease of duties, but they earnestly desire
that the fraudulent imposition of cOOlip-