Daily Kennebec journal., 1894-06-07
The Bill Of Sale.

In an exhaustive article on the senate
bill under the above headline the New
York Tribune says: The general result
of the many provisions in the senate has
been an advance of only 2.60 per cent in
the average rate of dnty since the bill left
the finance committee. The average on
all dutiable articles was then 3d. Is per
cent, against 35 50 per cent in the bill as
it passed the house and 49.5 So per cent in
the law now in force. As it stands, the
bill would make the average rate on
dutiable articles So 75iper cent-only 1.23
per cent higher than the house bill. The
house would have taken off almost a
third of the present average rate, and the
bill as it stands would take off more than
quarter. Men who look no further are
prone to question whether the present
rates cannot be reduced in that proper
ton without serious harm. The decep-
tion lies in the increase of about $50, ,00O,-
600 in the articles included as dutiable
There are now dutiable $40O, 900 900 in
value of the imports in the fiscal year
1898. while the pending bill would make
reduces the r-.te on the whole it necessarily
TS0uCcS Cuc Tdtc IuuCu IAOIC Ou tuC dT
ticles now dutiable.
The best idea of the real effect of the
bill, apart from its gifts to trusts and
blackmailers, may be gained by compari-
son Of the more important schedules The
sugar schedule may be omitted entirely,
since it has nothing to do with the pro-
tective character of the tariff, and the
tobacco and spirit schedules may be
omitted for the same reasons. Under the
present law the duties in the wood sched-
ule are insignificant, and those on paper,
books and pulp are of minor consequence,
though cut down sixth by the pending
bill. The amount of duties received un-
der each other schedule last year, the
rate of present duty on articles now dutia-
BILE in each, and the rates proposed in the
house bill. the bill reported by the senate
finance committee, and the present bill
are thus compared:
Duties. Nick. House. F.C Pend
Chemicals. 5 6,l32, $50 32.04 25.09 25.l2 24.4
Earthen and
glassware. l2,1Ol, ,662 5l.46 34.37 37.l3 3733
Metals and ..
mfrs. ..... 27O9,537 5s4s 35o6 1852 a26
Agricultural II, ,494, 1892 Piss 22.3S 1852
Cotton mfrs II l,333,605 s5.25 3S.45 3S.45 1892
Flax and
hemp mfrs 1s,761,353 1900 30.5l 3O35 34l
Wool mfrs. 36,4is.667 1888 1913 $500 Alb
silk mfrs. a,3l0. .2259s 1886 45.13 44.l6 $3.50
Sundries.... 1898, ,2;6' 27.OO 1928 2l.37 22l2
In the largest schedule the duties on
woolens are reduced more than half by
either of the Democratic bills, notwith-
standing the cases of favoritism which
are part of the purchase money. In the
cotton schedule, notwithstanding other
.,,Io g., 90 -
average of duties would be nearly 30 per
cent lower than it is now. In the metal
schedule the steel beam and other monop-
olies have their jobs, and yet the general
reduction of rates is nearly a third. In
earthenware and glass, and also in chem
icals it is about a fifth; the agricultural
duties are reduced more than quarter;
the duties on linen and other products of
fax and hemp nearly 30 per cent, and the
duties on gloves, buots and shoes, but
tons and other articles in the sundries
schedule nearly fifth. Little change is
made by the different revisions in the
silk schedule, duties being redIced abOu
q seventh.
The observer who wishes to Judge
whether these reductions are consistent
with the safety and prosperity of indus
tries must still bear i'll mind that the ex-
ceptional favors granted to trusts and
blac ckmailers greatly swell the average of
rates in each class, and thus hide the
actual reduction of duties on other articles
in the same schedule. The comparatively
few articles on which duties ranging from
so per cent upward are proposed are, as
rule. somewhat largely imported under
existing laws, so that calculations based
upon supposed repetition of the same i'm
ports make the proposed revenue from
these appear relatively large. while many
other articles not largely imported under
crescent duties count for little in the
official estimate of rates. although the re-
duction of duties on them 10 so great that
they would be heavily imported. 1t is
not only bill of sale, but the outrage
GUS inequalities in treatment accorded
to different branches of the same indus
try would make it, as competent Demo
cratic critics declare, immeasurably
worse from their point of view than the
Mckinley law, much as they dislike that
measure. .ts
IL -- :.
The pnyz1e S01ved.