The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1893-12-02

WILSON'S STATEMENT,
Ihs Chairman OF tho Ways and Means Com.
nittee on the Tariff Bill,

Ths Chairman OF ths Ways and Means Com
nittee on the Tariff Bill.
WAsHINaToN, Nov. 27.-Mr. Wilson,
chairman OF the ways and means com
mittee, prepared the following state
ment which was given out this morn
| ing:
"the democratic members Of the
committee on ways and means haye
felt as none others could feel the mo
mentous responsibility resting upor
them and the surprising magnitude
difficulty and delicacy Of the dnt,
assigned them of framing tariff BIZ
for nation of 7o,Ouo, 900 people. The
bill they We're called on to reform is !,
vast and labyrinthine system Of elias.
taxation, the elimination of eighty
years control OF the taxing power by q
few great interests, gathering in thei,
train host of petty toll gathersrs.
1t was carefully framed to pre-.
vent as long as possible wha. Its autho,
called my monireying with the tariff,
by which he meant any successful etfort
OF the .seople to undo or to lessen the
bonnties which its beneficiarics were
permitted to write therein in their own
words and their own figures. Is
transferred to the free list
proper and fruitful revenue
articles where most of the taxes paid
by the people were received by the
present government and greatly in.
creased the rate on those articles where
all or most of the taxes paid by the
people went into private Golfers. And
1T was girded about by many defenses,
cheif among which are swept and gar.
nished treasury and swollen, colos,
sal scale of permanent expenditures.
Such are the conditions that confronted
us at the threshold of the work. The
committee have welcomed information
on and counsel from every trustworthy
source and while they do not expect
their bill to escape Just criticism
in all of its details they dc
present it to the country as the
result OF the most patient, anxious toi ]
and OF an honest desire to discharge
their duty, purged of all taint of local
and partisan favoritism or prejudice
Its main features are two.
i. The adoption whenever it seemed
practical of ad valorem instead Of
specific duties.
=. The freeing from taxes of those
great materials OF industry that lie Mt
the basis of production.
Specific rates of duty are obiectiona-
ble for these reasons: They frequently
conceal Il rate of taxation too enormous
to be submitted to if expressed in nd
valorem terms, us the duty of 8 cents
on 100 pounds of salt in bulk, which
amounts to over so per cent on a
common necessity of life. They always
bear heavily on the common articles
used by the masses, and lightly on the
expensive article used by the rich, as n
tax of $50 on all houses would be little
Or nothing on the great mansion and
very high on the humble home. And,
contrary to common belief, specific
duties lead to greater frauds in admin
istration, for counting and weighing
Mt the cnstom house are done by
the cheapest and most easily corrupted
labor, while ad valorem rates are as
sesscd by the best paid aud most re-
sponsible appraisers. The ad valorem
system has worked well in practice, is
essentially the fair system because it is
tax on the actual value of the article
and was declared by Mr.. Clay him
self to be in theory and accord.
ing to every sound principle OF justice
entitled to the preference, and vindica-
tea by long trial.
s'rhe boldest innovation of the bill
is its large free list of raw materials.
Taxes upon production are double
wrongs. They gather and cnlminate
on the consumer of the finished product.
Tney hurt labor by narrowing
the market for what it
produces Coal and iron ore
are the foundations of modern indus
try. Material progress is measured by
the amount OF their consumption. No
other country can supply them as
abundartly or as cheaply rs we can.
No possible competition can interfere
with our American producers, few
miles in the interior of the coun-
try. Remoteness from tho sources OF
supply is in itself enough disadvantage
to any section of the country without
further burdens in tariff taxes. I'M
taxed coal, lumber, wool aud other
fibres must immensely stimulate pro-
duction in certain parts of our country.
The thin edge of American manufacture
ers has entered every country. With re-
lease from taxes upon their raw mater.
ials there is no limit to the growth ofour
foreign trade. This will more than
compensate the home producers of raw
material for any apprehended loss of
markets anywhere along the seaboard
Its incalculable advantage to labor is
apparent. in every great line OF
manufactures we can produce in six
months to nine months enough for our
home market. We can get rid of our
surplus only by foreign trade. As long
as we have taxes on the materials OF
industry we can not build up that
trade. Hence the other alternative oi
trusts to keep down production to the
home markets demands. The work.
ingmen can see whether his interest
is with system that represses
production and rcbs him
employment or with = system
that gives natural and healthy pay to
production and emancipates him from
trusts and like combinations of capi,
ful -