The Kinsley graphic. [volume] (Kinsley, Kan.) 1890-1940, 1890-06-20
m.k,NLErs REBATES.


Against the American People In tine Hum
bug ssAmerican Bill"
The Mckinley bill is bill of false
pretensess Besides its attempt to gull
the farmer there are various other de-
ceptions aimed at in it. One of the
most notable is in the matter of rebates.
When any material is brought into
! this country and is then sold outside of
/ the country again, either in its first
form or after being worked up into
some manufactured product, the Gov
eminent refunds 90 per cent of the duty
which had been paid on this mate
rial when it was brought into the coun-
try. This part of the duty refunded by
the Government is called rebate, or
drawback.
The Government now gives back, as
stated, 30 per cent. of the duty. Mr..
Mckinley proposes that the Govern
ment shall hereafter pay back 90 per
cent. keeping only one per cent to pay
expenses for collection.
This measure was claimed by McKin-
ley, in his opening speech on the Tariff
bill, to place our manufacturers in pre-
cisely the same position, with regard to
raw material Mckinley has heard the
foreign trade, as if they had free
voice of the manufacturers of the East
/ demanding free raw material. He has
seen the petition of the New England
manufacturers, with the names of hum
dreds of the most prominent firms at
tached to it, asking for free coal and
coke and free pig iron.
Something had to be done to make it APP
pear that this demand had been granted.
Accordingly the rebate on raw material
was raised from 90 per cent to 90 per
cent. This, Mr.. Mckinley said, would
give the manufacturers, so far as inn
ported materials were concerned, all the
advantages of free trade in the foreign
market In this way the Lord High
Tariff Maker thinks he has silenced the
demand for free raw material.
But it is just here that the false pre-
tense comes in. This rebate, as is well
known in manufacturing and trade
circles, is practically dead letter. 1t
is worth so little to manufacturers they
seldom apply for it. The difficulties
and delays in the way of settling the
, rebate are so great that it is almost en-
tirely ignored.
Speaking of Mr.. McKinley's claim
that the 80 per cent. rebate gives the
> manufacturers all the advantages of
! free trade, the New York Commercial
, Bulletin has this to say: 'Manufact-
q urers who have had experience of the
visionary character of rebates will not
be deceived by this. They know that
. rebates, although ostensibly put forward
as announcements to the export trade
! have no effect in that direction
: and simply serve to mislead
: public opinion, if they are moi
!, so intended. The conditions under
= which the rebate of duty can be claimed
:, are so onerous as to be practically pro
hibitive. In the first place, exports o
Z. such manufactures as textiles, to qualify
= for it, must be wholly composed of i'm
= ported materials, and in the second
such articles as plows, moving machines
and shovels must have imported mate
:, rial incorporated in their manufacture
to an extent exceeding one half of thu
total of the materials used. 1t is still
further necessary, in order to make
claim leg innate, that the imported
materials shall be identifiable, that is
In every step of the manufacturing pro
IS cess they shall practically be under tn
surveillance of Government officials
u ,, The present tariff allows a rebate of 9
d per cent, under the above conditions
IF but the trouble and expense attending
t. any attempt at its collection have bee
ie so great that exporters have found it +
# their advantage to ignore it altogether
,r 1t is not at all likely, therefore, that tn
e proposed change from a rebate of 30 pc
= cent to one of 80 per cent. will prove
e satisfactory solution of the difficulty
Ie and the clause will therefore continu
l. useless
Mr.. A. B. Farquhar, of York, Pa, on
- of our largest manufacturers and ex
al porters of agricultural machinery, ha
b. written letter to the New Yor
to Tribune in which he calls attention t
the embarrassments which combine t
4. make the drawback or rebate provision
III practically dead letter. 1.-THE least c
Or these" he says, sis the fact that tn
n duty is not refunded but only
~ ~ portion of it-9O per cent. Then tn
D. regulations which are required by tn
Of Treasury Department to guard agains
70 frauds, the necessity of proving that tn
a. imported goods in each article excee
of half it's value, the limit of time in whicl
ct drawbacks can be claimed, the DANCE
or of having orders countermanded by cor
~ tinual delays, practically involve 81
much annoyance and precious time a
DR. to eat up all the profits there were il
es the drawbacks, even when the materia
- was as much as 80 per cent. cheaper i
~ England than here"
ID And thus it is seen that the tariff
makers talk about his rebate placin
Or all the advantages of free trade in tn
: hands of the manufacturers, is simply
l. piece of pretense. 1t is like his dut
on eggs, which Mr.. Butterworth, hi
le Republican colleague from Ohio, say
." means lone omelet a year"
to But why should Mr.. Mckinley propos
n to give foreign buyers great advantag
er over the home consumer at the doors O
the home market factories? He held u
his bill as IAN American bill not
r European bill" Why then shouts
g, Americans be Disseminated against il
n, this precious American bill? Our tariff
N maker gives Europeans, who buy tn
he products of our factories, the advantag
le of free raw materials; but he refuse
this same advantage to the America
buyer. And yet he calls it an ''Ameri
~ can bill" What has the American cit
. zen done, that he must be made to pa
n duties on raw ma terials which are offere
: to the European without duty? Doe
30 Mckinley think that the people viii
& look upon this as just and fair to them
~ This looks as if Mr.. Mckinley regard
A. ed the home market theory as a hun
bug, and the home market itself as er
titled to no special consideration. 1t
known that many of our manufacturer
90 secretly entertain the same feeling
toward the home market They Wi
- contribute literally for election es
penses to hold the home market fo
themselves, and will make expensiv
OF trims to Washington to see that tn