Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1893-04-15
MAKERS OF THE TARIFF,

A Little Light on the Old Jobbins
Methods of the Republicans.
Theoretically congress made Til,
tariffs. But it has been a good MANY
years since congress did anything more
than to ratify what men not in con.
yress wanted the tariff to be. Con.
grcss quit making its tariffs in
1857, and it has jobbed the business
out pretty nearly I've since. 1t did
undertake the work in 1872, when it
passed what was known as the little
.aritf bill; but it did it so bunglinply
that it actually reduced the taxes, and
the other fellows took it out of the
hands of congress and restored the
rates in 1875, and have been running
The business ever since. To be sure, in
1882 congress felt that something must
be done to appease the people, who
mad begun to growl u little; and so,
not being competent to do the lob
themselves, they let President Arthur
appoint a commission to fix up the
schedules for them.
This commission was almost wholly
composed of men who had been maxi
ing tariffs for congress, but thev
thought the taxes could be cut down d
per cent. without hurting ANYBODY,
and so reported. But the other fellows
rallied to the defense of their Job, and
when the commissions bill came ont
OF all the committees it had to 90
through, including the final conference
committee, the rates were higher than
ever.
Then came the bill that William Me-
kinley is popularity supposed to have
made. 1t bears his name, and he had
to stand all the kicking it caused, and
he was plncky enough to take it all and
complain a bit, although he knew
that he was as innocent of its provi-
lions as was Ben Harrison. Everybody
knows enough to read now knows
that it wasn't Mckinley OR his commit
tee who made his bill, but it was the
old job lot of fellows who have
been making tariffs for the republican
party for overthirty years who made IL.
Glassman told the commutee lust
the tariff should be on glassware.
the committee wrote it out and mt
it in the bill. And Mr.. Wool came md
lold them how much he wanted the tax
70 be on wool; and his relative, MIR.
Woolens. followed on his heels and said
he wanted cloth to be taxed. And
SO the procession went on down
through all the schedules, and if any.
body wanted anything taxed all he had
70 do was to tell the committee how
it should be and it was done. And
about all that the committee did was
o say That n. o. p, which means all
'ther articles not otherwise provided
or should pay an ad valorem tax of
.orty-hve per cent. That is the way in
which these tariff bills have been made
'lnce the blessed year of our Lord 1881.
1t tool the people of the country a
ong time to find this out. II was not
lone openly until within recent years
den used to think that It would look
'ad If people interested in having heavy
axes laid on foreign goods should be-
nown to be deciding how much those
axes should be; v the manufacture
RS felt shame-faced about 1t. But
ice becomes a virtue if you look at It
long, and of late years the commit
ees have given notice when they would
1t, and have asked ell who wanted the
axes fixed to come and tell them what
hey wanted. Then the people cam to
Understand at last how their taxes
we're made, and they rose and smote
hese modern Philistines hip and thigh.
nd drove them and their president and
enators and representatives out, and
ut 10 q new lot Of men to make their
Ariifs st Paul Globe.