The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1893-12-21
ON THE NEW TARIFF BILL
THE MAJORITY PRESENTS A RE-.
PORT ON THE MEASURE. :.
ArEun1nets in Favor Of the New
Bill, and Reasons why, in the
Opinion of the Majority, the Meas.
ure Should Become 1, Law.


Bill, and Reasons why, in the
Opinion of tlne Majority, the Meas.
ure Should BECOME IL Law.
Washington, Dec. 2O.-The majority re-
port of the ways and means committee
on the Wilson tariff bill says:
The American people, after the full
est and most thorough debate ever given
by any people to their fiscal policy. have
deliberately and rightly decided that the
existing tariff is wrong in principle and
grievously unjust in operation. They have
decided as free trade men must always
decide that the power of taxation has no
lawful or constitutional exercise except
for providing revenue for the support OF
the government.
The bill Oh which the committee has
expended much patient and anxious labor
is now offered rs a eenrlyte response
to- the mandate of the American people.
1t no more processes to be purgcu OF all
Clotecti than to be free of all errors In
it's complex and manifold details. How
ever we may deny the existence OF any
legiSla tive pledge, or Of the right Of any
congress to make such pledge, for the
continuance Of duties that carry with
them more or less acknowledged protec-
ton, we must recognize that great in
terests do exist whose existence and pros
pcrity it is no part of our reform either
to imperil or to curtail.
We believe and we have the warr'llt
of our own past experience for beheVlng
that reduction Of duties will not injure,
but give more abundant life to all our
great manufacturing industries, however
much they may dread the change. In
dealing with the tariff question, as with
every other long-standing abuse that has
interviewer itself with our social or in
dustrial system, The legislator mist al
ways remember that, in the beginning,
ten perate reform is safest, having in
itself the pr;,. ciple Of growth.
Our own experience and that of other
countries has shown that decrease of
tariff duties Immediately operates such
an enlargement of con merce, of produc-
ton and consumption, as rapidly make
up any apparent loss of revenue threat
| ened by those reductions.
A most important change in the bill
proposed from the present law will be
| found in the general substitution Of au
| valorem for specific duties. This must
always be characteristic Of the revenue
! tariff levied upon a large range of arti-
cles, especially when they include the
plain necessaries of life.
1t is the purpose of the present bill to
repeal In toto section : of the tariff act
| of Oct. /, 1890, commonly, but most err
! 1oneously called its reciprocity provision.
| That act placed sugar, molasses, coffee,
; tea and hides on the free list, but au-
| thorized the president, should he be salts
! fled that the government of any other
| t/lDS Il
duties upon the agricultural or other
! products Of the United States, which he
ujght deem recjprocally unequal and Ia
reasonable, to suspend the provision I'M
der which these articles were admitted
into this country free. This section has
brought no appreciable advantage to
| American exporters and is not in inten-
| ton or effect a provision for reciprocity
but for retaliation.
We have made a reduction of about
one-third in the iron and steel schedule
beginning with free ore, and a duty Of
q IL per cent on pig iron. We have re
ported a scale Of duties considerably be-
low those Of the existing law, graduated
! according to the degree Of manufacture
which should bring benefit to the con
sumner without calling for any halt il
the imperial. progress Of that great III
| dustry in our country. The duty upO1
! steel rails has been put at % per CEN
which, &C :ording to the reports of ou7
! department Of labor, quite compensate!
for all difference in the cost of proluc
tion in this county and abroad
In the sugar schndole we should hav
Fl eferred to wipe out at a single 1egis
! lative stroke the existing bounty system
We believe it to be contrary to the spiri
J Of our institutions and can conceive O.
no circumstances under which we SHOULD
have advocs ted or approved its introduc
ton into our laws.
Duties upon imported tobaccos, lea
suitable for cigar wrappers, which wcr
erl cneously advanced by the act of 1880
have been placed at such figures as, afte
careful Investigation, were deemed like
~ to produce most revenue t
the treasury, but this object ha
not alone decided the rates
Their amount is so high that \
domestic producer need claim that Their
is not abundant protection, and to spare
.. for his produce in them.
To the farmer of the country we hav
given untaxed agricultural implement
!. | and binding Irvine, and untaxed cctto
ties for the additional reason in the latte
! case that cotton is the largest cxpcr
, | of this country sold abroad in Compel
: | ton with the cheap labor of India an
, Egypt, believing that it was sufficient flo
: | the private tax gatherer to follow til
: | farmer in the market in his own countr
and not to pursue him into all the mai
, kets of the world.
: AS cotton bagging can be used only one
y ! we have thought it st to extend til
, drawback system to such bagging mad
= of jute butts when Used upon our e1
ported cotton. a privilege which the e.,
porter of wheat Can already now enjoy
coupled with the furthe" advantage thu,
the same bags may be used for successiv
, expectations of grain.
In the schedule Of spirits. wines an
> other beverages the changes may b
: slight and with view to production {
. il creased revenue from these very prope
v sources of rev ,luc taxation.
The majority report is signed by IT,
Democratic members of the committee
The Republican members will hereafte
submit a minority report attacking tt
=, Wilson bill and majority report