Los Angeles herald., 1891-06-09

Revenue ". Robbery.
EDITORS HERALD: An editorial in to-
days Times contains the following:
''There is much discussion in the pa
pers at present about tin, the manufac-
ture of which in Southern California
recently commenced. Block tin, which
is rarely used now in pure state, is on
the free list at present, and will be so
till July, 1898, when it will pay a duty
of cents pound. 1t was the belief of
congress that during the intervening
period the American production would
be so developed as to Justify the duty"
Upon what principles protection of a
developed" industry may be justified,
if in its nascent condition that in
dustry does not need or merit encourage
ment, neither congress nor the Times
has attempted to explain. To the COM
mon mind it would seem that if tin
mining or any other enterprise could,
without the fostering aid of government,
spring into being and grow into devel-
oped industry, it would be able, under
the same conditions, to continue sue
cessfully on; and that to impose duty
that would take money out of the pock-
cts of the people to put into pockets
OF the operators of such industry, to
increase their profits, would be inde-
fensible robbery. That, by the way,
happens to be precisely the view that a
rapidly increasing majority of our peo-
pie take of the position of the Mckinley
war tariff.
Perhaps the proper Interpretation of
the alleged belief of congress is that it
was thought by the disciples of monop-
oily in that body that by July l, 1898.
the production of tin might become of
sufficient dignity to command recogni-
tion and be assumed into the honorable
company of robber monopolies, trusts
and combines, and be entitled to extort
an additional four cents pound on its
products.
One of the beauties of the tin plate
tariff to which Republican papers fail
to direct the attention of the grateful
American consumer of canned goods, is
the rebate of duty on imported tin
plate allowed to exporters of tin plate
goods.
The importer pays duty OF 21s cents
per pound on all tin plate imported,
which duty is added to the price of the
plate and to the cost of the article made
of it, and is then paid back to the inn
porter and dealer and falls upon the ul-
innate consumer, if he happens to be an
American; but if the tin goods finds a
foreign market, the duty that was paid
the government is refunded, (or to be
exact, IS per cent. of it is) and can be
deducteds from the cost and price, with
the result that our canned goods can ac-
tually be sold cheaper to foreign con-
sumers than to our own citizens. Mil
lions of dollars annually are thus tilched
from our people-mainly the poorer
class-on this one item alone for the os-
tensible protection of one solitary, en-
pirical, seven by nine tin plate estab-
lishment Imagine tariff for the pro-
lection of California cocoanuts and you
have the idea. l see / have used the
words "war tariff" l apologize to the
memory of many patriotic statesmen.
The war tariff was strictly a revenue
measure to which the Mckinley bill
bears little resemblance, except in the
amount of exaction. The former was
tariff for revenue, the latter tariff for
robbery. MAYNARD f. STILES.
Los Angeles, June 8.