The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-06-11
IVER AT s A. M.
. Danger Height of
THE REVENUE FEATURE.


The Republicans at Washington are
having a hard time over the revenue
feature of their tariff bill. We have
been told right along that the treasury
deficit was the moving cause of this
extra session and its work. The coun-
try could not wait until December for
tariff legislation, not because the poor,
dear manufacturers wanted anything,
but because the government must have
more revenue. No later than a few
days ago a high Republican newspaper
authority assured US that it was i'm
possible to take up the question Of cur
rency reform until, by tariff legislation,
We should have stopped the deficit-8nd
secured money enough to pay our bills
And now comes forth the fact that,
having piled duties mountain high on
everything in sight, both senate ana
house are in a qran99;;..llty as to where
this ir7encJ shall come from The
house bill, as it was sent to the SEN
ate. was, on its face, an act for the
perpetuation of deficit. On no basis
that could be figured out could the
duties imposed have produced enough
cash for Uncle Sans needs as deter
mined by a congress that increases
appropriations in time of profound
depression, when economy should be
the rule
There is, at least, this much to be
said for the senate finance committee,
that it did consider both branches of
the question, and made an effort to
add to crazy McKinleyism certain pro-
visions that would keep the treasury
out of bankruptcy. Senator AIdrich
laid special stress upon this feature of
the committees work, admitting that
the protective system is not a revenue
getter, and that the country would
nave to look hereafter to some other
source for the money necessary to paw
appropriations. With this in view the
senate committee proposed an addition
al tax on beer, a tax of 10 cents pound
on tea and some additions to the tobac-
co duties All of these, if reports from
the capital be correct, are in fair way
to be abandoned. The same pressure
that put into the tariff bill high duties
for powerful and favored interests is
erecting from that bill these other taxes
nat were intended to be laid for rev.
-Tiue. The tea importers and merchant
dave voice, as we'll as the iron and
steel men, and there is also a whole
some fear on the part of congress of
n hat the consumer will say when he
:inds that the old cry of "a free break
last table" means a heavily taxed tea
table. The great brewing interest of
tie country, with an enormous capital
lerg6lX English behind it, is not less
tenac.Ous of it's interest than the trusts
Therefore, one by one, the senate is
admitting that it must recede from its
position, and is restoring the bill to
more nearly the shape in which it came
frc-n the house.
This is almost the inevitable result
If this bill represented the wishes Or
the interests Of the people, the revenue
feature would have first place, and all
other considerations would be merely
incidental. Representing, as it does.
the combined power Of capital engaged
In protected interests, it must yield in
all it's parts to their demands. 1t will
be remembered that even the ros, es-
Inmates Of the senate committee, which
are likely to be quite as far out of the
way as those Of Secretary Carlisle pred
icated upon the enforcement of the new
act q surplus of only little over 81
100000 for the next fiscal year. It is
certain that receipts will fall far be-
low that. The customs returns for the
last three months are no measure of
what will come into the treasury here
after. There have been enormous i'm
portations in anticipation of higher
taxes, swelling the income for the
morths of March and April to big fig
ures Already these have fallen off
heavily; and, under the Dingley bill.
our imports are certain to dwindle to
such an extent that a deficit equal to
that of the current year, at least, is