Birmingham state herald. (Birmingham, Ala.) 1895-1897, 1896-12-23

branch banks for the transaction of all
kinds of business not allowed except the
issue of circulating notes.
Taking up the question of revenue and
quoting figures and the yearly DELI
cheney, the secretary says:
But, unless our annual receipts are
increased by improved business condi-
lions, or our our annual expenditures are
reduced,a time will arrive when provision
must be made for additional revenue;
and, If, the expenditures of the govern
ment shall be increased by acts of con-
gress the necessity for such a measure
will arise earlier than the present situa-
ton seems to Indicate In view of this
possible contingency, 1t will not be inap-
propriate to submit few suggestions
concerning the general policy to be adopt
ed in making the provision to meet the
future necessities Of the government.
For more than century our tariff legls-
lation has been designed, to great ex-
tent at least, to accomplish objects other
than the raising. of revenue for public
purposes. The protection of capital in
vested in our native industries and the
protection of labor employed in the
United States, against the competition or
products of foreign industries and for-i
eign labor have been alleged as the par
amount objects in many. cases. and urged
as a justification for the progressive in
creases of tariff taxes and commercial
restrictions, when revenue was not
so high as to reduce the revenue. In
other instances, revenue duties have been
abolished in order that protective duties
might be retained or increased, and the
necessities of the government and just
principles of taxation have been subordi@
mated to the demands of special interests.
80 long as the income of the govern
ment from customs and international
taxes exceeded its expenditures, the fact
that protective duties were destructive of
oil a
who observed the practical operation of
the system, did not attract the attention
of the public generally, but the situation
has been materially changed since 1892
and hereafter it will not be possible to
sacrifice revenue to protection without
seriously embarrassing the fiscal affairs
of the government by depriving it of an
income sufficient to defray its necessary
expenditures. If the usual proportion of
this income is hereafter to be derived
from taxes on imported goods the pro-
tective theory must be abandoned al the
basis of our legislation upon the subject,
and well considered and consistent rev.
enue system must be substituted in its
place; and, in my opinion, this can be
done without material injury to any
trade or industry now existing in this
country" tss .f5
Whatever danger existed from foreign
competition, the secretary thinks, has
been reduced to, "a minimum or wholly
eliminated by the changed industrial and
trade conditions. This belief he elabor-
ates in an exhaustive argument, fortified
with statistics, and concludes that in
stead of increasing existing rates upon
articles now dutiable, 1t will be necessary
to resort to taxation upon various kinds
of importations heretofore exempted SIM
ply because they were not included with
in the scope of the protective theory.
The alternative will be, the secretary
thinks, the imposition of taxes in some
other form; but In either case he says
there are certain fundamental rules and
principles applicable to the subject,
which cannot be disregarded without in
Justice to the people from whom the
exactions are to be made. The first and
most important one is that no tax should
be laid except for public purposes, and
that all sums paid by the people should
be received by the government. Any
tax, whether impost or excise, which i'm
creases the cost of commodities to the
consumer beyond the amount collected
by the government, is unjust and indie
feasible upon any correct economic prin-
ciple. Taxation should not only be i'm
posed for public purposes alone, but 1t
should be limited as far as possible
to such articles as the people can
avoid the use of without impairing their
ability to earn a subsistence or increas--
ing the cost of any part of the materi--
ais on which they work, that is, on ar
ticles of voluntary, rather than on ar
ticles of necessary use; and all such
taxes should be so adjusted, when posi-
BILE, as to distribute the burdens of the.
government equally upon the people, ac-.
cording to their ability to bear them.
1t Is not claimed that absolute equality
in the distribution of burdens of taxa
ton can be secured in all cases under
any practical system that can be de-
vised, but gross inequalities can certain,
ly be avoided and they are much less
likely to result when revenue is made
the sole object of tariff legislation than
when the customs laws are framed to
accomplish other purposes.
when the true principles of taxation
are recognized and applied In our fiscal
legislation, there will be no difficulty in
securing an ample revenue for the sup
port of the government, in the exercise
of all it's proper functions without SUBJ
jecting our industries to injurious and
unnecessary burdens, or our trade to in
furious and unnecessary restrictions.
Although the number of purely revenue
articles has been much diminished by the
economic changes that have taken place
during the last few years, such articles
are still sufficient in number, and they
are and must continue to be imported
in such quantities, as to afford, under
moderate rates of duty, all additions to
the income of the government that flu
ture exigencies may prove to be neces-
sary; and, no matter what may be the
preferences of any part of our people
upon the subject, the necessities of the