The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1889-02-16
THE REPORT ON THE TARIFF BILL
Is Simply the Old Story In a New
Form.
Two Revenue Measures to Come Be-
fore the House.
Both the Mcmillan and Randall Bills
will Appear Today.

WASHINGTON, Feb. 15.-The report Of the
ways and means committee on the Senate
substitute to the Mills tariff bill opens with
statement that the committee on finance
reported back to the House the bill with the
recommendation that all after the enacting
clause be struck out and an entirely new bill
substituted. 1t goes on to reeite that the
House bill was never read in the Senate ex-
cept by title. The original bill contained 81
pages the Senate substitute 179 pages. The
House bill embraces certain specified items
Of revenue; the substitute proposes an ORR
ginal, and entire revenue system. The Sem
ate informed the House 1t had passed the
House bill with an amendment, notwith-
standing that only the title and the enacting
clause remained in the text.
The report continues that the first clause
Of the seventh section Of the constitution
provides that all bills for raising revenue
shall originate in the House. The Senate
may propose or concur with the amendments
as on other bills. The committee says IL
may be safely assumed that substitute
such as the Senate proposed Is not an amend
ment in the constitutional sense. Therefore
the committee reports resolution directing
its return to the Senate finance committee.
The bill reduces the duties on sugar as 1t
asserts S27. 100, 7S3. and it Is argued that nine
tenths of this tax goes into the Treasury and
the remainder into the pockets Of the sugar
owners. In the case Of wool, cotton, iron and
steel it Is argued that the tax brings the gov
ernment So, 100000, and the manufacturers
$500, 100000. because the manufacturers pro-
duced the goods at home. The finance COM
mittee demands tax so high as to prohibit
the importation of foreign goods in order
that the home market shall be kept for pro-
xuha fhau ma 0omhfnQ and QQll
to the home consumer at prices as high as
the traffic will bear. This they are pleased
to call protection TO American industry. The
industry they are protecting is the industry
Of robbing the tax payers, limiting produc-
tion.
The policy of the party represented by the
finance committee is restriction against the
employment OF labor and restriction against
the demand for employment and better
wages. The report adduces statistics as to
the operation OF the tariff law In past years
to meet the Senate's contention and declares
that those years which showed decreasing
importations were among the darkest in our
industrial history. 1t Is contended that re-
duced duties mean larger expectations and
increased importati0ns mean increased pros
perity. Ninety per cent Of the goods con-
sumed in the United States are produced at
a lower cost than in foreign countries, which
Is sufficient answer to 1.-THE scarecrow that
free importations. would result In running
The committee says: "We cannot consent
to barriers so unhesitatingly erected by the
substitute of the Senate. The policy out
lined and declared by the finance committee
is destructive of all American industries ex-
cept that OF building up the privileged classes
who are to be enriched and kept so by the
prostitution of the taxing powers Of the
government. 1t prohibits importation, pro-
hibits expectation, prohibits employment,
locks out and distresses labor and promotes
arxA rr,fFo rfr Nl..
land.
.'fhe Senate bill has changed adyalorem
rates wherever it could be done and substi-
tuted specific rates instead. 1t is charged
that enormous frauds have been perpetrated
under the adyalorem system. But frauds
are not the product OF any particular system.
No system Is exempt from them.
The product Of taxation, and the number and
magnitude of the frauds Is measured by the
amount Of the burden imposed upon the tax
payer. and the facility for its evasion"
The remainder Of the report Is devoted to
an analysis OF the Senate bill and is made up
apparently from figures supplied by treasury
experts. OF the sugar bounty provision. the
report says: ANY bounty on any article is
simply disguised raid on the public treas
ury. In this case 1t was granted to preserve
intact the different elements Of a powerful
combination that could not exist without this
d0uceur. Manufacturers Of iron, steel, cot
ton and wool could not keep. their enormous
rates for private benefit without the cordial
support Of the manufacturers Of sugar,
while duties on sugar could not be retained
without lowering the duties on other articles
that contributed more money to private
purses than the tax on sugar did. With the
excessive revenues something had TO be re-
duced and sugar being the least productive
of private revenue, the reduction was made
on that article and the bounty arranged to
reimburse the sugar manufacturers"
In conclusion the report says Treasury
experts show the reduction ia revenue from
customs by the Senate bill will be ABOUT S14,-
100000, including the reduction in the free
list Of S5,S26,074. When we take into ac-
count the value of all the sacks, boxes,
crates and coverings also made dutiable
with the articles bearing an ad vaiorem du-
ty, there will be no reduction In customs
revenue. Imports bearing ad valorem rates
reach about S220,000,000. More than $780,,
coo, 900 Of these have coverings, whose value
is 70 be included in the appraisement of the
value of the things they contain. The tariff
committee, in their report, state that in TAX
ing off the duty from these coverings they
were taking off revenue amounting to 10 or
IL per cent. IL that Is true, putting them on
again will add 10 or IL per cent to the reve-
nues. The addition Of 10 per cent on cover
ings would, on that estimate, amount to an
increase Of s2O,OO0.O0O, which would leave
a net increase of S6.000,000 on the tariff
schedules. The tobacco tax Is repealed, and
internal revenue rates on cigars are reduced,
which Will reduce the revenues S24,37 ,461.
The tax on alcohol to be used in the indus
trial arts Is repealed, and 1t Is estimated that
the reduction will amount to S7,000,000. No
intelligent estimate can be made as to the
amount Of this reduction. 1t has been fully
demonstrated that methylated spirits can be
easily demethylated and the spirits used as a
beverage 1t can readily be seen that a wide
door Is opened to fraud, which 1t will be
very difficult 20 deter and prevent"