The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1893-03-23
TO REFORM THB TARIFF.
The Reform Club of New York
Drafts a Measure.
A SYNOPSIS OF THE BILL.
TO BE Urged Upon Congress as Sub
stitute for Present Laws.
Crude Material in General Is Made Free
of Duty-SIlks and Woolens Placed
at 25 Per Cent-sIost Provi-
sions Made Free.

NEW YORK, March pa special COM
mittee OF the Reform club of this city has
completed the draft of bill which, when
perfected, viii be urged upon Congress as
a substitute for the present tariff laws
and the fuIfllment of the pledges under
which the Democracy obtained control of
the national government. The general
principles upon which the proposed tariff
is formed, in main, are as follows: Crude
material in general is made free of duty.
IN taking other articles the general object
mas been to fix such rates as would pro-
duce the largest amount of revenue in a
series Of years, consistent with large i'm
portations, the purpose of obtaining the
largest revenue, however, to be limited
by consideration Of the welfare and ne
cessity Of the people at large and espec-
tally the poorer classes.
All duties are made strictly ad valorem,
except some of those which are levied as
compensatory for an internal revenue tax
on similar articles produced at home. In
order TO insure the present administra-
ton of ad valorem tariff it is essential that
the rates OF duty upon the great mass OF
articles should be kept at very moderate
figures. On other articles experience has
25 per cent. without offering dangerous
incentives to fraud. A few articles of
luxury may be excepted from the opera
tons OF these general rules.
All foreign articles which if made here
would be subject to internal revenue
taxes must Of course be subject to at
least equal tax. As TO liquors and to-
bacco the duty on them should be
made with a view of obtaining the
greatest possible amount of revenue
without any concern as to whether
we give or withhold protection
to domestic producers. Yielding in part
to the popular opinion that silk is lux
ury, we have placed silk manufactures
generally at 70 per cent. SILK yarns,
thread and sewing silk are placed at 20
per cent. and spun and thrown silk at 10
per cent, leaving raw silk free.
All forms of crude metal, not merely in
ores, but pig iron ingots and bars. with
the exception of iron and steel, are made
free of duty. The duty upon woolens and
worsted manufactures of every descrip-
ton is placed at % per cent. Leather
gloves and all other gloves except silk
placed at IS per cent. schedule. Tin plates
should certainly not be taxed more than
20 per cent. and perhaps not more than ID
per cent. Manufactures OF wood in its
most finished forms is placed in the 20
per cent. schedule, as are also buttons.
but some which partake in a mild degree
CT the nature OF luxuries are put in the 20
per cent. schedule while breadstuffs are
mostly made free. Potatoes are left sub
ject to a duty of Is per cent. Domestic
books could not be admitted without the
consent of the domestic publisher and
foreign books copyrighted here could not
be admitted at all. On the other hand
SO long as paper, binding materials and
machinery is taxed it is not just to make
competing books free. The demand for
revenue may 5urn the scale and 10 per
cent. will probably be the revenue duty.
1t would be exceedingly desirable TO
have no specific free list but make every
thing free which was not made expressly
subject to duty. All articles upon which
the revenue collected is too small to
pay for collection and upon which it is
not probable any more reduction of rates
would produce substantial revenue is
placed on the free list. The proposed
tariff would produce an immediate reve-
nue. Of S120, 000, 600 If not more.
If existing duty of one-half cent per
pound on refined sugar should be re-
tanned it is suggested that specific duty
of seven-sixteenths cent per pound might
be imposed on raw sugar, which would
produce an additional revenue of proba-
bly, S15, 000, 900 besides reducing the boun-
ty by g, 900. 0O0. To this. however, one OF
US is entirely opposed. and three express
no opinion. The amount of revenue
which would be produced by a duty SO
large as to make full discussion OF the
prOprlety OF tax necessary.