The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1897-03-19

| cure an increase of revenue from duties
on imports substantially equal to what
has been lost, first, by the anticipated.
| and then by the partially realized, tariff
reductions made by the Act of 1894.
| TO SECURE PROTECTION.
| Another imperative duty resting on this
Congress is to SO adjust duties in such
a revision of the tariff to secure needed
| revenue to carry on the government as
| VIII better protect the many industries
| which have so seriously suffered the past
three years from unequal foreign COM
| petition, and from the consequent loss of
| purchasing power of the masses OF the
| people, upon which the demand for pro-
| ducts and the prosperity of every citi-
| zen depends.
| The Feasibility of uniting in tariff
| both revenue and protective qualities has
been aptly demonstrated by the results
| OF the protective tariffs in force from 1861
| to 1898. at which latter date the tariff
of 1890 was practically nullified by the
| anticipation of a revision on a non-pro-
| tective basis. The working of the wool
and woollens schedule of the tariff of
| 1890 on protective basis, and of the same
/ schedules in the tariff of 1894 on an anti
| protective basis is exceedingly inStruc-
| tive on this point.
| The importations of clothing wool in
| 1893, under the tariff of 1890, was about
wool about $36,000,000, mainly goods worn
1 by the well-to-do who think it the thing
| to wear foreign-made cloth and who are
| willing to pay the duties imposed upon
| woollens in 1893 the Government derived
! a revenue of about S44, 500, 600.
| The importations of clothing wool in
| the fiscal year 1896 exceeded l2i 0vu, 0OV
| poundS-three times as much as IN 1876
| and of manufactures of wool more than
| twice as many pounds in 1896 as in 1898;
and yet the revenue derived by the Gov
| ernment from this enormous increase in
| the imports of wool apd woollens in the
fiscal year 1886 was only S23 000, ,000-a loss
of s21. 900 from that realized in 1893
| In other words, by placing wool on the
| free list and reducing the duties on manu-
factures of wool the Treasury lost S21,-
| 100000 of revenue, our farmers lost
market for the S0,000,0 000 pounds of wool
| what they raised in 1861, as we'll as
nearly 10 cents per pound in price, IN
| per annum already on this one farm pro-
| duct, and our manufacturers. and their
| working1nen lost q market not only for
the goods which Increased foreign i'm
| ports had supp,anted, but also market
| for goods which the farmers and masses
| of the people were able to purchase in
| because of a loss Of employment and pur-
| chasing power.
Beyond this it has been demonstrated
| that by placing wool on the free list to
| the injury of the farmer and manufac-
| turer, who have not been thereby enabled
| to increase our exports of manufactures
case), and we have greatly increased the
use of shoddy by diminishing the pur-
| chasing power of the masses and thus
compelling them to seek the cheapest
REDUCTION OF DUTY ON WOOL.
Enlightened by this experience in revis-
| ing the tariff with a view of securing both
| revenue and protection to our farmers,
| we have restored wool to the dutiapie
| list at the same duty as it bore In the
tariff tariff Of 1890 @ @ cents per pound for the
washed condition, and a revenue duty of
| 81 per cent. on carpet woods below 13
cents and 50 per cent. above), and have
made the compensatory duties the equiv
alent of these duties so as to place the
wool manufacturer on the same basis as
| to materials as his foreign competitor
which Is necessary in order that the
| farmer may have a market for his wool
and have then given the manufacturer a
compound duty largely converted into
specifics equivalent to the 40 and 50 Der
cent ad va1oreIn duties of both the tariff
of 1890 and 1894
The wool and woollen schedule is sub
stantially that OF the tariff of 1890 except
that a few kinds of wool classed under
that and previous acts as carpet woods,
which have been largely used for cloth
ing purposes, and whose use for a pur-
pose not intended by the classification has
caused much irritation among wool grow
| erS, have been transferred from third
class to first-class WoolS; and the exclu-
sfvely ad valorem duties which have been
previously given the manufacturer as a
protection against his foreign competitor
| employing cheap labor, and which en-
abled the latter, by under valuation of
the wide variety of imported woollens,
whose value could not be definitely de-
termined, to avoid a large part of the
duty appearing on the face of the tariff,
have been converted as largely as possi-
bic into specifics equivalent to whatever
the present law processes to give.
We believe that the enactment of this
scheme into law will not only restore to
which has been so seriously injured by
free wool-our flccks having diminished
more than one-fourth since 1S92-but wall
also revive the wool manufacturing in
dustry, which has been so greatly Grip
pied by the tariff of 1894 and the loss of
the purchasing power of the masses of
our people Through lack of employment,
and will at the same time largely increase
the revenue from that source which, be-
cause Of the character a : Of ths be fine goods
ticajly derived from luxuries.
INCREASE OF THE DUTY ON SUGAR.
We have increased the duty on sugar
from the forty per cent. ad valorem Inn
posed by the present tariff on raw sugars
(now only $40 of one cent per pound on
| raw sugars polarizing 96 degrees on ac-
about IA cents when the tariff was on
acted in 1S94) to 1853 cents with counter
vailing duty on all sugars equivalent to
the net export bounty paid by any coun--
try in order to increase our revenue and
at the same time afford. sufficient pro-
lection to enable our own farmers and
planters to ultimately produce whatever
IL.
The product'Tn of cane sugar is a large
and, under proper protection, growing
industry now.
The production of beet sugar In at least
twenty y-uhree States of our Union, which
only seven years ago were regarded as of
doubtful promise, is mo longer an expert
ment but demonstrated success, with
such protection as we recommend, which
f5 less than those bountieS given at the
inception of sugar production by Germany,
France land other European countries
which NOW produce about two-thirds of
the worlds sugar.
The time has come when every effort
should be made to open up new crops to
our farmers and thus diversity and pro-
mote our Agriculture and no crop In
sight affords more hope of success or
greater advantages to the whole coun-
try. Even with the present low prices
of sugar we paid in the last fiscal year
to foreign countries about $73 900 900 for
our raw sugar, In addition to over Sill
000 900 paid to the Sandwich Islands for
sugars imported free of duty under our
treaty of reciprocity with that country,
and in the near future this sum will
new and valuable crop to our farmers
(who are finding the competition of Rus
sia and Argentine wheat serious draw
back is a boon which Congress should
not hesitate to give, especially at a time
when it can be done in the interest of
revenue.
RANGE OF DUTIES.
In revising the several duiable schedules
as rule the duties have been fixed at
points between the tariff of 1890 and the
present tariff. it having been found that
ON account of changed conditions in a
large part of the articles duties lower
than those of 1890 would be equally pro-