Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1890-07-30
Senator Vance on the Mckinley Tariff Bill.

In his speech in the Senate last Friday
on the Mckinley Tariff Bill Senator v ance,
of N. c., said:-
ITO the common sense view, he said, it
would seem that the removal of unneces
sary taxes was matter Of wisdom, and that
to continue to collect them was not to be
thought of for moment. But those who
would think SO would "reckon without their
host" That had been proved by the his.
tory of the tariff commission of 1882, which
had utterly ignored the wants of the people
and OF the government, and thought only of
the wants and wishes of the manufacturers.
An average reduction of 25 per cent. in Is
toms duties had been promised in 1882, but
the tariff of 1888 had resulted in an increase
of 121 per cent. That tariff commission
had found an average tariff rate of AZ per
cent. ad valorem and had left an average
rate of AZ per cent, which was now, owing
to constantly increasing rates, the result of
specific duties in the close neighborhood of
50 per cent. He asserted that every bona
fide effort to reduce taxes had been defeat
ed. The result of the pending bill might
be to reduce revenue to certain extent,
but not to reduce taxes. A reduction Of
taxes was ono thing, and a reduction of rev.
enue another and quite different thing.
What the people desired was common
sense reduction of the revenue and cOrres-
ponding relief from the payment of taxes.
But the taking off of two cents pound on
sugar with one hand and the paying of two
cents pound to sugar.producer on the
other hand was, indeed, reduction of rev.
enue with both hands; but the taxes re-
manned aud the people paid them all the
same. Agriculture supplied 7s per cent. of
the foreign exports of the country, and that
export might be doubled and quadrupled if
the tariff were only arranged so that other
nations could send in their products to pay
for American products.
But protection would not permit that.
Instead of reducing the wall that shut out
foreign products it was raised higher and
higher, and was bristling with more and
more penalties. The only possible effect of
proposing bill like the Mckinley bill was
to aggravate the evil.
AN OUTRAGE ON HUMAN PATIENCE.
an insult to the intelligence of mankind.
Looking at the high-sounding title of tie
bill, ITO reduce the revenue and equalize
duties on imports" and comparing it with
what it would accomplish, the bill would be
pronounced the most stupendous fraud
which the ingenuity of man had yet psrpe-
trated on a mu ch. abused andlong. suffering
people. 1t neither reduced revenue-in the
sense of reducing taxation-nor equalized
duties on imports. On the contrary it in
creased taxation, and it made duties more
unequal by imposing heavier burdens on
the poor than on the rich, and by so swell.
ing the taxes on the necessaries of life as to
shock the moral sense of every just man.
Talking Of probable expenditure and rev.
enue for the current fiscal year, Mr.. Vance
thought it safe to say that the expenditure
would be very close to $685., 600 900, of
which at least 20 per cent. would be in ex-
cess of revenue. Thus no; only would the
surplus disappear, but the sinking fund
would probably suffer also, unless the river
aud harbor appropriation bill should be
sacrificed, which seemed to him quite like
ly.