The new North-west., 1897-03-26
DINGLEy TALKS TARIFF
DEBATED THE BILL AT GREAT
LENGTH IN THE HOUSE.
Ii Was Prepared in the Interest Oi
the Protected Interests,
He Says. 5--".

Washington March 22.-In the house to
day the reading of the tariff bill consumed
a little over two hours, so it was 1913
before the leader of the majority, Mr.
Dingley, was recognized to open the de
bate. Mr.. Dingley usually has some dir
ticulty in making himself heard. but to
day he spoke with great deliberation ant
his tones were ringing and clear.
Mr. Dngley began by stating that con
gress having Eeen convened in extra ses
sion, the facts that led to the issuance q
the presidents message were that the
governments revenue during the pas'
four years had been insufficient to NEE;
expenditures to t 'e extent of more thar
$780, 600, or an average of $50, 10000 pei
annum; that this deficiency will continue
to grow under existing conditions; that
the deficiency had been met by borrow
ing, that is, by bond sales; and that this
has promoted distrust, intensified and
prolonged through the run on the treas
ury, and weakened business confidence.
This deficiency of revenue, said Mr.. Ding
ley, has nearly all arisen from a falling
off of revenue from duties on imports,
and not from a decline of revenue from
internal taxes.
In revising the tariff the committee, he
said had endeavored to discard mere the
ories and addressed themselves to the
framing of q practical remedy at least in
part, for the ills which have for SO many
months overshadowed the country.
1t is condition, and not a theory,
which confronts us. Our problem is to
provide adequate revenue from duties on
imports to carry on the government. No
economic policy will prove a success un-
less it shall in some manner contribute to
opening up employment to the masses of
our people at good wages, with the pur-
chasing power of the masses restored.
Then, and not until then, will prices cease
to feel the decreasing effect of undersell-
ing, and the prosperity of our people rise
to the standard OF 1892. The past four
years have been enlightening, especially
to candid investigators of economic prob
lens. 1t has been the favorite assump
ton of some theorists that revenue and
protection in the same tariff schedule are
impossible.
Mr. Dingley then gave some statistics
relative to the importations and tariff on
wcolens and said that by placing wool
on the free list the treasury lost $21 ,o000o0
revenue, and the farmers $50, 900 per
year, and that this country had not been
able to increase it's exports of manufact-
ured wool. 1t had been claimed, he went
on, that the price OF clothing had been
reduced, but this was only in appearance,
because people had been deprived of work
and wages and found it harder to buy
clothing than before. The new schedule
would aid the wool-grower increase man
ufactures and Ultimately increase the
revenue.
Speaking of the sugar schedule, Mr..
Dingley said it would increase revenue
and encourage the sugar producing in
terests in the country.
1.-THE duty on sugar proposed Is spe
cific according to the polariZscopc test
of the degree of the saccharine matter"
he said. Commencing at l per cent per
pound for sugar and advancing not more
than Is degrees and increasing the duty
,tt, =. I, ,tf,, n
make the duty on raw sugar Q00 degrees)
one and three-fourths cents. To this Is
added one-eighth of one cent for such
sugar above No 16, Dutch standard, in
color (refined sugar., making the duty
1875 cents. ...
ed on all sugar imported from export
bounty-paying countries is the protec-
ttion which, it is believed, will maintain
the refining industry here, notwithstand-
ing that the present difference of one
eighth and a 40 per cent all round duty,
is double that proposed. This will be
the only differential between raw and re-
fined sugar, because if the retiner uses
sugar of less saccharine strength than
100, as he must, it requires proportion
'ately more of such sugar to make a
pound of refined sugar.
Continuing, Mr.. Dingley said that the
so per cent increase in hemp and flax
was made both in the interest of rev.
enue and because there was a great
promise of home production
AS to other increases of duty in the bill
Mr.. Dingley said:
'.For the most part otherwise the in
crease of duties in the pending bill over
the Mckinley bill have been in the sched-
ule of paragraphs covering luxuries." "
Mr.. Dingley the. briefly touched upon
some schedules which had not been ma
terially changed from the present law.
;,orl ,Ial irnr .to
ton.
"In all other schedules" continued Mr..
Dngley, "the rates proposed in the pend
ing bill are between the rates of the
tariff of 1890 and the present law
Speaking of the average rate of the
proposed tariff, he said: Deduct sugar
and the average duty would be 54 per
cent; deduct sugar, tobacco and spirits
and the average would be 1885 per cent,
and deduct sugar, tobacco, spirits and
wool and the average duty would be only
Al per cent
Mr.. Dingley discussed at some length
the advalorem and specific systems, and
presented figures showing how disadvan-
tageously the adValorem system worked.
He then presented the estimates as to
the probable revenue that would be raised
by the bill, which were given in his re-
port, with the supplemental statement
that the second year would be Increased
$1,000 100000 in revenue. In closing, Mr..
Dingley said:
cit must be obvious from any point of
view that prompt action by the two
houses of congress is Indispensable to
secure the revenue which the pending
bill, without regard to party affiliations,
are asking for action. Business awaits
our final decision. With this great ques-
tion of adequate revenue to carry on the
government settled favorably by such an
adjustment of duties as will restore to
to71r urbo hos hna
dered to others during the past four
years, with restored confidence in the
future, there is reason to believe that
gradually and surely there will come
back to us the great prosperity which we
enjoyed in the second decade prior to
1S93 and which the greatest of living
English statisticians SO strikngly eulo-
gized when he said in 1892 that it would
be impossible to find in history any par
allel to the progress of the United
States in the last 10 years "
When he had finished the republicans
applauded for fully minute, the CALLER
les joining in the demonstration.
The old cavalry leader of the confed-
crates opened for the opposition. Mr..
Wheeler opened with Inc statement that
the bill had been secretly prepared by
the II members of the committee of ways
and means, and framed almost in the
language of the petitions presented by
protected interests. Since the star cham
iber measure came to light on last Mon
day, he said the conservative press of
the country had denounced it in unmeas
pff of hn