New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-11-28
STATEMENT.
far TELEGRAPH TO THE rRIBUxE.l

Washington. Nov. 27.-The majority Of the
Committee on Ways and Means. after toiling In
secret more than two months. to-day graciously
consented to submit the results OF It's labors %
the minority, and also to spread them before
the country accompanied by q carefully pre-
pared written statement and argument In do
fence Of the bill. This statement was furnished
to representatives Of the press associations even
before the bill itself was made public. Chair.
man Wilson and his colleagues seemed to realize
that the bantling was about to be subjected to
the buffetngs OF an unsympathetic world. ana
they were anxious that the excuses for its exist
ence should be heard before its features could
be studied and its deformities exposed. This
statement is substantially what the written ~
port Of the majority Of the committee. which II
to be submitted to the House OF Representatives
after that body reassembles, will be- and In that
sense II Is important. In some respects the
statement is true, and in others II widely misses
the truth and it Is calculated to mislead every
person who does not take the trouble to In
vestigate the facts FOR himself. The trouble 10
that the bill which 1t Is sought to DEFEND ana
apologize for is bad, utterly wrong and
vicious in theory and irretrievaby bad In fact
and in detail, that any statement in support
OF 1t must necessarily be misleading and full Of
faults and errors.
The Dill Is a long one, ana time VIII De TeQuito0
to analyze its provisions and compare them with
the existing law but certain general features at
once attract attention. AS has been repeatedly
asserted in these dispatches. every specific rate
Of duty has been wiped out as far as practicable
and ad valorem rates have been substituted
This alone is enough to condemn the measure.
In the metal schedule specific rates are retained
in only two out Of sixty-eight paragraphs and
fho thing iS In a greater less de-
gree In all the other schedules except those re-
lating to tobacco and liquors. In the statement
he gave out to-day Chairman Wilson said that
specific rates had been discarded as far as prac-
ticable because they were deceptive and would
not be tolerated II expressed In percentages. ana
he mentioned the duty Of cents on 100 pounds
of SALT which he said was over so per cent a.
valorem, as case in point Well the majority
placed salt on the free list but rice, upon which
the existing specific duty Of cents pound 10
equivalent to about 9S per cent, Is retained on
the dutiabIe list at a specinc rate OF I cent
pound, which 10 equivalent to about ~ per cent
Again, some Of the ad valoren1 rates fixed by the
majority Of the committee will be higher than
existing specific rates unless the new rates cause
undervaluations, as will probably be the case.
For example. the majority proposes duty OF 70
per cent ad valorem on blacksmiths hammers.
SledgpS wedges, crow DdIS anu pdSh eooiS "a "oAs
or STEEL The existing specific rate OF 2k cents .
pound is equivalent to about 10 per cent ad
vaorem.
TRULY BOLD INNOvATION.'
THE boldest innovation Of the bill" says
Chairman Wilson, "is the large free list OF raw
materials" An examination Of the additions
proposed to the free list will persuade every
body to agree that the innovation" Is OF the
boldest whether or not they agree that coal
and coke cotton gins, cotton ties. mowers
reapers iron ore, salt, sawed lumber, wool.
binding twine copper in plates, ingots. bars and
pigs. lead ore when disguised as silver ore.
ploughs. harrows. horse rakes, harvesters, grain
drills. hatters' plush fax. hemp, tow various
chemicals and many other articles are properly
classified and described by grouping them under
the head of raw materials" The articles
which il is proposed to add to the free list as
raw materials yielded customs revenue OK
about Sl350O 900 in 1892. The following table
shows the names of the articles the existing
rates of duty and the amount Of revenue de-
rived from each article In the year ended June
On 1909.