The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1896-12-24

collected by taxation, but was procured Nv
=! me issue Of bonds, for a purpose other thar
AFFECT the situation in the least .s5 71 2saa
| sEW nat is. most needed at present is nnts
more taxes, but more economy in q ppronrd-
Batlons and expenditures. The great increase
Z III the ordinary expenditures Of the govern
lnent during the last seven yea has hear,
4 without precedent i'll our history in lime of
Il peace, and presents subject which iInner,-8
h lively demands the most serious ccnsfdera.
& ton of congress. 80
s*8 4 u examination of the expenditures ann
#o OBJ Tor which they were made shows
tina during the first period of four Yea re-
1888. 1887, 1883 and 1S99-the n AVERAGE -
SnGal payments on accountzo civil and mis-
aceilanecus items We're $7S,262, O2O; on ac-
count of the war department, SIS. 96O.721:
, gu account of the navy department. S16.-
iS5S, oGS; on account sof Indians, Sc 1853 799:
j Oh account Of pensions, s$76,576 813. and on
account Of interest on rhe public debt, s4e.-
I Coz, 5i3, while the average amount Of ex-3s
pend1tures for the same objects during the
succeeding period of seven years was: For
civil and miscellaneous items, 500, $50. S65.
for the war department., S4e, 577 ,677: for the
navy department., $27, 1868, 1854; for Indians.
Hlo,3Oi,3l4; for pensions $135, 1861, and
!, lof interest On the public debt, $31, 213 34l III
n ne average annual excess Of expe lditures
Il curing the last period over the expenditures
Tor the same purposes during the first peril
% was: For civil and miscellaneous itema
SlS,olS,o4 for the war department. $1O,-s
Ol6, 9o6; FOR the navy depa rtment 1OO29..
s49S; for Indians, $3,945, SIS, and for pen-
sions, SOB 1o1 74s, the only decrease being IL
the amount paid for interest on the public
debt, which was 14,796, 211 less per annum
than during the first period I5Ss
IL dOeS not appear that there has been
any such necessary extension or substantial
improvement of our public service az to
JUSTLY these enormous increases in experdi-
in my int l.
situation which not only forbids the fays1
able consideration of measures calculated ---@s
augment our annual outlay, but which
vlously demands a thorough revision of our
permanent appropriation Jaws and the en-
forcement of strict economy in future annual &
legislation upon the subject.
But unless our annual receipts are in-
creased by improved business conditions or
our annual expenditures are reduced,
time VIII arrive when provision must be
made for additional revenue. and if the ex-
penditIrc of the government shall be in 4
creased by acts of congress the necessity
for such measure will arise earlier than
TIE present situation seems to indicate.
Protection
On the subject of protection in this cons
nection. the secretary says in part: So 81
long as the income of the government from j.
customs and internal taxes exceeded its 3
expenditures, the fact that protective du-
clearly apparent to all who OBJ ,rvcd the 81
practical operation of the system, did not
attract the attention of the public general
~, but the situation has been materially
changed since 1892, and hereafter it will
not be possible to sacrifice revenue to pro- 4
lection without seriously embarrassing the @
fiscal affairs of the government, by de-
prlvlng It OF an income sufficient to defray
Its necessary expenditures. If the usual ap-
proDriations of this income Is hereafter to
hn s{vy01 f,ox, 4o~v
the protective idea must be abandoned al
the basis of our legislation upon the subs
ject. and a well considered and consistent
revenue system must be substituted in It's
place; and in my opinion this can be done
without material injury to any trade or
Industry now existing in this country. The 81
danger of a large foreign competition Id
our home market, and the alleged injurious
effects of such competition upon the in-
terests of domestic labor, have not only
been greatly exaggerated in the past. but
are less now than at any time heretofore
and must continue to grow less hereafter
Y The number of our people in gainfuI occu-
pations increased from II 1892 O99 in 1880 to
% 735. 661 in 1890, gain of 5,343, 562; and
while the increase in all such occupations
during the! ten years was W3072 per cent,
the increase in manufacturing and mechan-
1cal industries, which are supposed to be Il
most subject to foreign competition, wal 81
40.13 per cent. A further and most gratiffr
ing evidence of our growing Industrial LoMl s
er Is to be found in the greatly increased
exports of the products of domestic manu-
facture, which now constitute, for the first
time in our history. more than one-fourth
the total sales OF all our sales in foreig4
markets. If these products were not at
least, equal inequality to similar products
Of other parts Of the world, and if the
prices at which they were sold were not as
low as the prices demanded by our foreign
competitors, they could not find a market
outside the limits of our own country
The expectation Of manufactured products
would not go on continuously year after
year at an increasing rate unless there was
a profit for our people in the operation, nor
unless the markets in Which they are sold
are In some manner benefited by giving q y
preference to the American article over like
articles produced elsewhere. The annual q.
Increases since 1892 in the quantities and
values Of exported manufactures. notWith- Z
standing the extremely low prices which #
have prevailed In all the markets of the E3
world. are without a parallel in our COM
mercial history, and furnish such conclusive
evidence of industrial power and a capacity
to compete successfully with the outside
world in production and trade as ought to
convince our people that protective duties
IN Imported goods cannot be hereafter juSM.
led or excused upon the plea that they are
for the encoura cement of capital
or the security of labor in this country.
With Revival In business
While revival Of business and return
70 more prosperous conditions would in-
crease the income of the government from
customs, under the existing rates Of duty,
On manufactured articles, it is reasonable
certain that the quantities and values Of
such articles hereafter imported will bs
less than they were before the depression
began, and that they will not In the future
under any rate that may be established
reach the proportions Of ten or fifteen
years ago. .E5sS g.$
II this view OF the subject is correct, it IL @
evident that new objects of taxation must
be included in our tariff schedules or the
attempt to secure the usual proportion Of
revenue from customs must be Abandoned
and some other method of raising means @
to support the government must be adopt
ed; but. whether revenues shall be raised
Dy* duties on imported goods or by the im-
position OF taxes in some other form. there
are certain fundamental rules and principles
applicable to the subject, which cannot be s
iisregarded without injustice to the people Isl
from whom the exactions are to be made. M
The first and most important one is that
no tax should be laid except for public purs
poses, and that all sums paid by the people
should be received by the government. Any
tax, whether impost or excise, which in
creases the cost of commodities to lie tDn.
p0VrrFNy