Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1892-03-04
To the Editors.

S0SA11 Ndo oSNauoC Scl CdIu newspapers
had led him and others equally sincere
to believe the same falsehood, [ re-
piled: "Will you cut from that cloth
which you are selling at five cents per
yard, one square inch?" He did so
with great care. "Now count the
threads each way"
Eighteen threads one way and
twenty-four threads the other way
he replied as he laid the magnifying
glass down upon the counter.
"NOW measure this five cent and
tell me how many inches wide you
sell for a yard"
"TWenty-four inches wide and
thirty-six inches long," said he.
"Now then, let me say, that when
the Treasury Department levies a
tariff tax, it levies it on cloth by the
square yard-36x36 inches; not on
cloth as you sell it, 24x36 inches,-
which is but two-thirds of a yard,
not full YARD at all. And further,
on cloth taxed five, seven and eight
cents per yard, the threads count fifty
each way to the square inch, not
eighteen threads and twenty-four
threads per square inch. The tariff
tax on this kind Of cloth we have
measured is about a cent per yard, not
to speak of two-thirdS of a cent per
yard as you sell it."
WELL" said he, q have cloth that
will count fifty threads each way to
the square inch" Taking down a
piece of ladies' dress goods, he care
fully counted under the glass the
threads in an exactly square inch.
Not satisfied with one trial he counted
the threads per square inch in several
pieces, and in no case did the threads
number fifty eaun way per inch in
cloth which he sold for less than forty
cents per yard
Well" said he 81 have learned
something, and it is that the grades
of cloth taxed five, seven and eight
cents per yard l cannot sell for less
than forty to sixty cents per yard"
Here, Editor Democrat, is an in
stance of sincere, intelligent, manly
man duped, fooled into belief by
the newspapers ne had trusted.
Exactly in line with the above is
the deception high tax papers are
spreading that the American con-
sumner of foreign goods does not pay
the tax.
They cry, BLESS you, no! the for
eigner pays the tariff taxes!"
No one will doubt that if the for
eigner does pay the tax it is great
thing for we Americans; although if
the people of this country can levy
and collect our taxes off the people of
othe countries, it is trife singular
that the nations of the earth have
never discovered it.
Let no man believe that the for
eigner pays the tariff tax. Some of
our people, it is true, can be fooled
all of the time, some can be fooled
part of the time, but all of our peo-
pie cannot be fooled all the time; and
the sleeve of preparation is being
slowly rolled up the arm of indignant
voters, and wise is the high tax party
if it provokes not the blow.
Make a red line there, Mr. Editor.
Any man who remembers what he
reads knows that large part of the
foreign goods entered at the customs
houses of our country are owned by
the great merchants of the United
States, because bought in the markets
of the world.
Our largest wholesale firms in New
York, Philadelphia, Boston, Chicago,
and a score of other cities, keep agents
in the old world who buy and consign
to them, and when the goods reach
this country these firms pay the tariff
taxes, and receive from the iobbers
the price of goods plus the taxes; the
jobber from the retailer receives the
price of goods plus the taxes, and
then you and | (the consumers buy
them of the retailer, paying profits,
costs, taxes and all. Why, just the
other day the Commissioner of Customs
laid before the House of Represen-
taUives statement showing that
American manufacturers of tin-cans
made from imported tin-plate had
drawn from the Treasury ONE MILLION,
SEVEN HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS,
which they (the American manufact-
urerS) had paid to the Customs House
as tariff taxes. The cans were made
here and tten exported. Does this
look like the foreigner was paying the
tax?
Another statement from the Com