Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1897-07-08
Pushing It Along.

to within / cent of the House rates on
| first and second class wool and TO Det-
| ter than the House rates ON th1rd-ciasS
wool. The other agricultural features
of the bill have been so amended as
| to restore the very satisfactory House
rates, and the sugar schedule has been
so adjusted that the most fault-hnding
| OF the Democrats cannot complain OF
it.
That all this has been done in Sen
ate in which the Republicans are in an
absolute minority is remarkable phe-
| nomenal, indeed. Seldom, If ever, has
q tariff bill been enacted with only one
branch of Congress controlled by the
party in power in the White House,
| and when this follows close upon a
| campaign Of so much bitterness as that
of last fall it is wonderful. And yet
| this is being accomplished in less time
after the Inauguration than ever be-
| fore happened since the very first Con-
gress.
Piling In Foreign Farm Products.
The rush of foreign goods into the
country to evade the increased duties
which the new tariff law is expected
to impose seems likely to continue up
| to the very day upon which it goes into
effect. The June receipts Of the Treas
ury have averaged over million dol
| lars day, and the indications are that
| the .importations this month will be
heavier than in any preceding month,
except those Of April, which were more
than 100 million dollars in value. The
| May importa tons were in round num-
bers eighty million dollars in value, and
| it is probable that those Of June will
considerably exceed those Of Last
month. The predictions made by
Chairman Dingley months ago that the
| importers would have nearly a years
supply of certain classes Of foreign
| goods in the market before the new
tariff act could go into effect seems
likely to be realized. The importa tons
of March, April, May and June of this
year average about eight-five million
dollars per month, while those Of the
corresponding months Of last year aver
age but little over fifty-fve millions per
month.
The effect Of this enormous importa-
ton of goods upon which duties are to
be collected under the new law will be
| felt the moment that act goes into eff
feet by suspension Of importations Of
that class of articles and a consequent
/ falling off in the customs revenue. Ihe
customs receipts in April Of the present
year were more than double those Of
the corresponding month Of last year
and those for May and June have near
| ly kept pace with those Of April. 1t is
to the articles which will pay high
rate Of duty under the new law that the
| importers are giving their attention
now, and the consequences will be that
the class Of goods from which the great
est revenues are expected under the
new law will have accumulated in this
country in such enormous quantities
that importatiOns of reYenue-prOduc-
| ing articles will almost entirely cease
when the new act goes into effect, until
| the stocks Of these goods now lying in
warehouses by hundreds Of millions Of
dollars in value shall have been ex-
hausted.
| A statement just issued by the Treas
ury Department covering the importa-
tions Of the month Of April gives some
| idea Of the abnormal importat tons now
| going on and the effect they will have
upon the revenues when the new law
| goes into effect. While there has been
a disposition on the part of Democrats
| to assume that the tariff on agricultur-
al productions is a humbug and does
not affect importaions at all, 1T is never
theless a fact that 13O,838 bushels Of
| wheat were imported in April Of the
present year against 3,431 in April of
last year and that the quantity Of bar
ley imported in April, 1897, is double
| that Of 1896. Another striking Illus
tration in regard to farm products is
found in the fact that while the class
Of cattle which now is and is likely
to remain upon the free list has not in
creased at all in importations, the
number Of dutiable cattle imported in
April, 1897, was nearly five times as
| great as in April, 1896, being in num-
bers 62,84o, against 13,411 in April Of
last year. In the item of crude TARTAR"
now upon the free list, but likely to be
placed upon the dutiable list by the
new law, the April importations more
than doubled the corresponding month
Of last year. The quantity of chicory
root imported in April, 1897, in view of
the prospective imposition Of a duty
upon 1t, was nearly six times as much
as that imported in April, 1896. The
prospect that certain grades Of raw cot
ton are to be placed upon the dutiable
list is already being felt, the April I'M
portations being nearly ten million
pounds, against six million pounds Of
last year. The prospect that hides
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