The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1893-12-20

the Duties Rather Than Lowered Them.
Errors In Minor Details.
WAsHINGToN, Dec 19.-The majority
report on the tariff bill, presented in
the House today, was written by Chair
man Wilson. Following are extracts
from it:
1.-The American people, after the
fullest 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 un-
just in operation. They have decided,
as free men must always decide, that
the power OF taxation has no lawful or
constitutional exercise except for pro.
viding revenue for the support OF the
Government
Every departure from this principle
is departure from the tundamen tai
principles OF personal institutions and
inevitably works out gross inequality
in the citizenship Of a country. For
more than thirty years We have levied
tho largest part of our Federal taxes
IL SAOAoblOu VI tuIS Vltdl truGQ
we have reached in the existing tariff
an extreme and voluminous system OF
class taxation to which history may
be challenged to furnish any parallel
$50 many private enterprises have
been taken into partnership with the
Government; so many private interests
now share in the preroga,ive of taxing
100000 OF people, that any attempt to
dissolve this illegal union is necessarily
encountered by an opposition that
rallies behind it the intolerance OF mo.
nopoly, the power OF concent-a ted
wealth. the inertia Of fixed habits and
the honest errors of generation of
| false teachings.
The Bill Not a Complete Response
The bill on which the committee has
| expended much patient and anxious
labor is not offered as a complete re-
| sponse to the mandate Of the American
| people, 1t no more processes to be
purged OF all protection than to be free
of all errors in its complex and N anifold
details. However, we may deny the
existence OF any legislative pledge or Of
the right OF any Congress to make such
pledge, for the continuance of duties
that carry with them more or less &C
know lodged protection we must re-
cognize that great interests do exis
whose existence and prosperity it is nc
part OF our reform either to imperil OF
TO curtial.
1--WE believe and we have the war
rant OF our own past experience for be-
lieving that reduction OF duties will
not injure. but will give more abundant
life to all our great manufacturing in.
dustries, however, much they may
dread the change In dealing with the
tariff question, as with every other
long standing abuse that has inter.
woven itself with our social or indus
trial system, the legislator must always
remember that, in the beginning tenn
perate reform is the safest, having itself
the principle of growth.
Protection Has Always Shown IT'S Falsity
IA glance at the tariff legislation of
our own country ought to satisfy every
Intelligent student that protection has
always shown its falsity as a system of
economy by It's absolute failure to insure
healthy ana stable prosperity to manu-
facturers. 1t teaches men to depend on
artificial help, on laws taxing their
countrymen for prosperity in business,
rather than upon their own skill and
| effort
sit throws business out of its natural
channels into artificial channels where
| there must always be fluctuation and
uncertainty, and it makes o tariff sys-
tom the football of party politics, and
the stability Of large business interests
the stake of every popular election
None have ever recognized this t-uth
more fully than the wiser men who
from time to time have engaged in the
so called protected industries"
Demand for TarinlReform.
The report then says: "Although the
demand for tariff reform and for reduc
tion of taxes has, ever since, been a
burning and growing one in the
country, the protected Industries have
exacted and received from every Re.
publican Congress elected since 1874 an
increase OF their protection. occasion.
ally permitting the repeal or the lessen
ing of a tax that was paid into the
Treasury in order to keep away from or
to increase duties levied for their
benefit.
Protection left to it's natural mo
mentum never stirs shor; of prohib ition,
and prohibitory walls are always need
ing to be built higher or to be patched
and strengthened. A protective tariff
never has and never can give stability
and satisfaction to it's own beneficiaries.
Even II It's victims are too weak or too