The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1897-05-12
DINGLEY ON THE TARIFF.
The House Chairman Discusses the
I.z. Senate Amendments.
THEY WOULD REDUCE REVENUES.
Mr.. Dingley Points Out Where, in His
Judgment, the Bill as Amended by
4 the Senate WIN be Loss Beneficial
Than the Original Measure.

Judgment, the Bill as Amended by
the Senate VIII be Loss Beneficial
Than the Original Measure.
Washington, May 1.-THE first state
ment which Chairman Dingley, of the
ways and means committee, whose
name is borne by the new tariff bill,
has consented to make regarding the
bill since 1t was amended by the senate
= finance committee was made by him
yesterday to the Associated Press. Mr..
Dingley was requested to give some
statement AS to the probable addition
al revenue that would be yielded the
first year by the senate tariff bill, as
well as by the house bill, and he spoke
as follows:
at must be borne In mind that there
Is no senate bill yet. What is improp-
erly spoken of as the senate bill Is the
house bill reported to the senate by the
finance committee, with certain amend
ments recommended. What the senate
bill will be when that body shall have
made 1t no one can as yet say.
while the amendments of the house
bill recommended by the senate finance
committee (about 700) appear to. be
multitudinous, yet about 200 OF them
are mainly verbal, leaving about 900
which change rates. This Is about the
number of amendments to the McKin-
ley Dill adopted by the senate in 1890,
and of these remaining 500 large pro-
portion involve nothing of consequence.
There are, however, many amendments
which are important, not only on rev.
enue, but other grounds. I do not pro-
pose now to speak of these proposed
amendments except as they affect rev.
enue.
"The effect of these amendments as
a whole-outside of the amendment
imposing duty on tea for two years
and a half, and the amendment in
creasing the internal revenue tax on
beer A cents per barrel for the same
period, and the increase proposed on
tobacco and cigarettes is to produce
less revenue than would be yielded by
the house bill. For example, the
amendments returning to the free list
argols, certain acids and oils, paint
tngs and statuary for private use, and
reducing the duties on liquors, to-
bacco precious stones, etc, lose more
revenue than could be obtained by the
duty on tea.
1.-THE amendments reducing the duty
on clothing wool and increasing the
duty on carpet wool would also dimin-
ish the revenue. The amendment in
creasng the duty on opium from Sc to
IS per pound would not increase the
revenue, in the judgment of the ad-
ministrators of the law, who informed
the ways and means committee that
SS was the point which would yield
the largest revenue. The proposed duty
on hides and further amendment
would increase the revenue somewhat
"Of course the estimate OF an IN
creased revenue from sugar, through
an abrogation of the treaty with Ha-
wall has nothing to do with the tariff
legislation, for this could be done as
well by accepting the house sugar
Schedule as the sugar schedule pro-
posed. The ways and means commit
tee did not even consider the question
Fof abrogating this treaty, because they
Z soUs-.t for grantee that If 1t was con-
gidered desirable to abrogate this or
other treaty 1t would be done in
re straightforward manner proposed
y : the treaty itself. The fact that the
hte finance committee recommend
\ valorem duty on sugar appar-
p little higher than the specific
of the house bill does not insure
Fger revenue, as past experience
Nad vaIorem duties has shown. In
Ndgment the revenue from sugar
ythe house sugar schedule (set-
aside the question of abrogating
j Hawaiian treaty. would be larger
s1n,o he tn
"Thc proposed temporary duty on tea
would increase the revenue, although
not so much the first year as estimated,
because Of the large stocks on hand
aud the short stocks that would be
maintained with the knowledge that
tea would soon go back to the free
list; and the proposed increase Of in
tsrnal revenue taxes would, also, in
crease y , revenue to the extent esti-
mated But the other proposed amend
mer' would, as a whole, diminish
rather than increase the revenue.
"Some criticism has been made on
the estimates of the ways and means
committee as to the revenue that would
be produced by the tariff bill as 1t
passed the house. These criticisms
overlook the fact that the ways and |
means committee estimates Of the reve- |
nue. that might be expected the first |
year were based on the assumption |
that the bill would become q law on |
or before May l. The committee in |
their report expressly said that while |
there could be no question that the |
house bill would in any event yield |
sufcientorevenue to carry on the gov |
eminent and leave surplus the Sec |
end year of it's operation, and prob
ebly sufficient for the first year If it |
could be promptly put in force, yet il
there should be a delay in its enact
nent beyond May l anticipatory i'm
portatons would inevitably cause
serious inroad in the prospective reve-
nue. for the first year"