The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-03-23
TARIFF THE THEME
IN The HOUSE
Continued from Page u


be one of the two of the present las
which are differentiated from most o
the others and made in the main pro
tective. Thus iron ore, pig iron, stee
rails, structural iron and most othe
forms of the common iron and steel re
main in the pending bill as fixed in TIL
tariff of 1894. Tin plate, whose manu-
facture was so successfully established
under the tariff of 1890 by the duty o.
two and one-fifth cents, is increased
from the one and one-fifth cents duty
of the present law to one and one-hal1
cents, which it is believed will prove as
protective as the higher tariff of 1890
now that the industry has been so sue
cessfuliy accomplished.
The same is true of the cotton sched-
ule, which has been left as placed in
the act of 1894, for the most part, with
some needed advances on fine goods.
In all other schedules, the rates pro-
posed in the pending bill are between
the rates of the tariff of 1890 and the
present law.
FROM THE FREE LIST.
There have been transferred from the
iree list of the tariff Of 1894 to the du-
tiarle list of the proposed bill not only
wool, lumber, salt, burlaps, bags, cot
ton bagging and cotton ties, which
should never have been made nom
opium, asphaltun, paintings and
statuary, straw ornaments, etc, which,
under existing conditions, ought to
contribute something towards the
much-needed additional revenue.
So far as possible. the aim has been
TO avoid exclusively ad valorem duties
n articles which have been VIGOROUSLY
undervalued, and thus failed to pay the
duties intended-a loss Of revenue
which has been more serious than ever
under the present tariff in which. out
side of the metal and cotton schedules,
almost exclusively ad Valorem rates
prevail. The better class of importers
have united with manufacturers and
administrators of the law in asking for
this. Piece goods in the silk schedule
and some embroideries have, for the
first TIE been given exclusively spe- |
cific rateS-a desideratum which was |
earnestly recommended by both Secre- |
taries Manning and Fairchild several |
years ago. In many cases where exclu-
sively ad valorem duties are impracti-
cable, because of the variable character
of the goods, compound duties have
been devised which so minimize the ad
vaiorem feature as to take away a
large part of the inducement now Of
fered to undervalue.
While it is difficult to compare the
rates of a tariff almost entirely ad va
loreDl with a bill whose rates are so
largely specific as the pending measure
yet the fact that the new duties in this
bill are higher than those in the act Eof
1890, and nearly all, outside of the
schedules referred to- are lower, and
that two important schedules are for
the same as the duties of the present
law, clearly show that the actual aver
age rates of the proposed bill are lower
than those of the tariff of 1898, and
h c-f.a fIor o~;f |
the average precentum
Id valorem duty under the pending
dill on the present reduced prices will ,
appear TO be higher than the present :
aw, and a deal higher than that of the =,
let of 1890.
Percentum averages are always mis- :
eading when estimated on a changed !
,asis. Thus duty Of so per cent I'M :
POSED on an imported article valued at !
% cents abroad and SOC. here, making
0 cents difference of cost of produc-
ion, becomes a duty of so per cent Z
vhen the foreign and domestic cost are !,
ach reduced 70 cents, but the duty is
till 80 cents.
A CHANCE TO JUGGEE. il
Again, different specific or compound
uties imposed by lines of value al
Iays give a rich opportunity for jug
ling with the percentages. For ex- .
nple, if a duty of 70 cents is imposed ~
Il an article valued at between 81 and -
and rs cents on the same kind of u
rticle valued above 81, and so on for 70
igher lines, then the uncandid per- ~
entage manifestor, shutting eyes to ~
lie fact that the importer will adapt "
Is goods so as to fall slightly below a.
lie lines erected, proceeds to declare =
lat duty of over 20 per cent has -
cen placed on an article valued at y,
.05, when, as a matter of fact, any a.
PODS anywhere near 81 that will come
under the Is cents duty viii he those ~
alued at about 80; so that, in point Of ~
ct, the actual duty is less than 40 60,
IT cent. ~
It is because of these facts that il 81
IS been found difficult to so compare oi
ties under two tariffs of SO different r.
character by ad Yalorems so as to s -,
AXE the comparison acceptable or %
tisfactory. The average ad valorem ~.
dutiable schedules under the act of " ",
10 on the basis of imports of 1898, ~
Is 1917 per cent, and with the lower 70
ice of 1896 it would have been at 20
lSt 81 per cent; but this was with oil
gar on the free list and liquors Z 81.
nts less than III the proposed bill ~,
sugar and liquors had borne the ~,
me duties as under the act of 1890, We
d prices had been as low in 1893 as Nv
1896, the average duty under that ! We,
! would have exceeded so per cent | 90
der the act of 1894 The average Of Of
ty in 1896 was 40 per cent but this | ~,
s with sugar at only 40 per cent mr.,
d tobacco, liquors, laces and silks $50
less than either in the 90
Of 1890 or the proposed bill I'm ;r
the average duty under i've
act of 1894, if sugar, tobacco, bo,
1OT, silks and laces had borne the of
ne duty as in the proposed bill, n.
uld have reached at least A per
t. The average duty under the pro sne
ed law, with the high duties on sug- o'cl
and luxuries, is estimated by the nro
'erts at 81 per cent. 20,
,educt sugar, and the average duty
uld be 81 per cent; deduct sugar.
aeeo and spirits, and the average a
y would be 1885 per cent, and de- abo
It sugar, tobacco, spirits and wool, viii
the average duty would be only Al SOL
ce9t. enc.
he report of the committee on WAYS i iey'
means set forth the fact that the mai
ding bill has not only restored the the
visions of the tariff of 1890 as to re- and
'ocity, under which our trade was ridI'
successfully entertained, but has ex- M ~
led that policy. AS the gentleman snee
n Illinois (8fr. Hopkins), who has the
tally devoted his attention 10 this mill
;ect, VIII hereafter explain in de- Dinl
what is proposed, I will leave that the
resting step to him. CO
THE PROBABLE REVENUE. for
lie inquiry naturally arises as to bill:
{ will be the probable annual rev -,
derived from the proposed tariff Par,