Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-03-09
THE TARIFF DEBATE,
CoHtsnued from First Pae..

Continued from First Pos.
holding terms Of tho United States courts in
Idaho.
Also bin requiring United States judges to
conform to the laws Of the state IN which they
are sitting In regard 10 the charging OF the
jury.
Also bill for the release OF all claims Of the
United States 70 lot 1s, section q governors
and Judges plan, tn Detroit
rHx rAnrrF DEBATE BEarSs
Tho morning hour having expired. on motion
Of Mr.. McMillin CTenn.), the House wen, into
committee Of the whole upon revenue bills,
Mr.; Blount (aa-) being designated as the pre-
siding officer.
Mr.. Mcmillan addressed the House as follows:
Mr.. Chairman, the last Congress imposed the
highest tariff taxes ever levied in this country.
It also made the most extravagant appropria-
tions ever made here in time OF peace. This
Congress was sent here to correct both evils.
The expenditures in the two years for which
the last Congress appropriated. besides the
deficiencies aggregated s1,o09 900, $40
per family annually, or more than S50o,-
DOC, 600 each year, about one-third OF all
the money in existence i'll the United States.
When we take from our currency the one hun
dred millions of gold held for redemption pur-
poses in the treasury, the reserves required in
the national banks and the different reserves
held from circulation in other ways we find
that these expenditures reached annually nearly
one-haH OF all tho money In actual cir
culation. Can thCro be permanent prosperity
while oue-half or even one-thiri OF all the
money has TO 60 through the hands Of fed
eral taxgatherer every year besides the taxes
for tho state. county and municipal purposes!
There is n remedy. Impose less taxes and
spend less money. That Is what this Congress
means and means to do.
Mr.. Chairman, the tariff law has now been in
| operation for one year and five months Where
are the beneficial effects that were to flow from
| iH Where is that magnificent price the farmer
and wool grower was to realize from III Where
are the increased wages the laboTing man was
to get9
The laborer has been forced to pay more for
| the roof that shelters him, for the hat that
covers his head and the woolens that cover his
| back. He has had to pay more for
tho linen he wears the hammer and
hoe with which he works Ye. his wages
| have not gone up 1 cent What benefit has in
creased protection been to him? 1t was passed
under the pretcnse OF a desire to benefit him,
yet while his wages stand still or go down.
what he, his wife and children consume has
| been increased In price Internationally.
| Hearings were had by tho ways and means
committee on the Mckinley bill Some farmers
and representatives Of agricultural associa-
tons camo before the committee. without q
single exception, so far AZ 1 now remember,
they testified that the value of farms had gone
down within the last six years all the way from
rs to 20 per cent
The duty on wool was in 1867 placed at II
cents a pound or unwashcd wool This IVES by
an agreement entered into between the Ma
tional Association Of Wool Manufacturers and
the Association Of Wool Growers, and they die
tated the terms to Congress. Ii was claimed
that this would foster tho sheep industry and
increase the value OF wool to the farmer. He
then went on to give statistics, and added:
The whole matter may be summed up in the
fact that after twenty five years OF experiment
with high rates of duty on wool, tie result has
BEEN reduction OF one-half in the number of
sheep in states east of the Mississippi and
Missouri rivers and reduction of about one
half in the price OF wool.
Nor have the results been encouraging to
wool manufacturers. They have been re-
stricted as to the quality of wool they could
afford to buy in the grease by the reason Of
| the tariff. They have been restricted in
markets substantially to their own country.
They have been forced to use shoddy as a sub.
| stltute for WOODEN goods. The rags that had
| already fallen from the backs of beggars in
other countries have been used as substitute
for wool.
Ho referred to tariff rate at the close Of the
revolutionary war and then down to the Nor
| ril tariff during the war, which he alleged
aided hundreds OF jobs and schemes. In REFER
ence to the sugar tax he said that the republi-
| cans removed sugar tax. which yielded eight
ninths Of its benefit to the treasury and but
one-uinth to the manufacturer, only 10
place many millions more than the sugar tax
| on other things where but one fourth of the
laws exaction went into the treasury and
| three-fourths went into the private cof-
| fers of favored manufacturers. MIR. Chairman,
when reflect that the twelve million pait,
On bounties on silks sugar, &C., has to be
raised by the imposition OF taxes on other
things where threc-fourths so into the manu-
facturer's pocket and only one-fourth into the
treasury, it will bs seen that the tax
is still burden Of forty-eisht mil
lions indirectly to the people, and
that instead Of their getting sixty
millions Of relief by this change of taxes they
have hardly obtained ten millions of net benefit.
The whole bill was characterized by a con-
scienceless favOritism for the few and mcrciess
oppression Of the many. In the consideration
Of the bill the manufacturer alone was favored.
The consumer was never considered, or il
considered at all it was only to ascertain how
much more taxes be could endure. The greed
OF the seller and not the need of the buyer was
the measure of the rate Of duty.
After general reference to the increase and
other taxes levied during the war and their
abolition he came to the subject of reciprocity
and the system Of rebates both of which he
condemned,
He attributed the destruction Of American
commerce to the high rates of duty heretofore
existing and growing higher with each con-
gressionGl act He claimed that the tariff was
tax and that the verdict Of the people in the
last election showed that they objected TO such
! burdens i'll taxation.
Mr.. McMillin closed his speech at five
minutes OF 8, receiving an ovation from the
democrats, and Mr.. Dingley took the floor in
reply.