The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-05-12
ContempIates His MutiIated Bill
With Sorrow.
REVENUES DIMINISHED
INSTEAD OF INCREASED
ONLY FIVE HUNDRED AMEND
MENTS TO RATES.
A Sharp Fling at the Senate For It's
Method of Abrogating the Ha-
waiian Treaty-Insinuates That
1t Is Not Straightforward-Delay
Will Prove Disastrous.

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 con-
scented to make regarding the bill since it
was amended by the senate finance COM
mittee was made by him today TO the
Associated Press. Mr.. Dingley was re-
quested to give some statement as 10 the
probable additional revenue that would
be yielded the first year by the senate
tariff bin. as well as by the house bill,
and he spoke as follows:
1t must be borne in mind that there is
no such bill as yet. What is improperly
spoken OF as the senate bill is the house
bill reported to the senate by the finance
committee. with certain amendments
recommended What the senate bin will
| be when that Eody shall have made it.
no one can as yet say.
While the amendments of the house
b.ll recommended by the senate finance
committee (about 700) appear TO be null
utudinous. yet about 200 of them are
mainly verbal, such as amending the
/ spelling of asbestos by substituting %
Ior no. leaving about 800 which change
rates. This is about the number OF
amendments to the Mckinley bill adopted
! b. the senate of 1890. and of these 500 a
| large proportion involve nothing OF con-
/
amendments which are important not
only on revenue. but other grounds.
= DO not propose now to speak of these
proposed amendments except as they ef-
feet revenues. The effect of these amend
nents as whole outside of the amend
ment imposing duty on tea for two years
/ and hall and the amendment increasing
tne lnrrnai revenue on beer a cents per
barrel for the same period, and the in
crease proposed on tobacco and cigar
cites. VIII produc less revenue fhan would
he -afE QH fx-f 1,-1T
the amendments returning to the free
lists argots. certain acids and oils paint
5Hgs ana Statuary, precious stones, etc.
lose more revenue than could he obtained
ducing the duty on clothing wool and in
creas-ng the duty on carpet wool would
also reduce the revenue.
''rhe amendment increasing the duty
on opium from 81 to IS per pound would
Tot increase the revenue, in the judgment
of the administrators of the law VINO in
that So was the point which would yield
the largest revenue.
THE proposed duties on hides would in
crease the revenue SOnleW hat or course
the estimate of IN Increased revenue
from sugar through an abr0gation of the
treaty with Hawaii has nothing to do
witt 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 committee
DID not even consider the question Of
= for granted that if it was considered
deS--abie 10 abrOgate this or any other
treaty il would be done in the straight
forward manner provided by the treaty
itself.
'rhe fact that the senate finance COM
mittse recommended an ad yalOrem duty
or sugar apparently a little higher than
the specific duty of the house bill does
rot insure a larger revenue as past eX-
De-ience with ad valOrem duties has
SHOWN In our judgment the revenue
ule (settlng aside the question OF abrOgat-
ing the Hawaiian treaty. would be larger
than under the senate amendments The
proposed temporary duty on tea would
increase the revenue although not 50
much the first year as estimated. because
of the large stocks on hand and the snort
stock that would be maintained with the
knowledge that teas would soon go back
TO the free list. and the proposed increase
of internal revenue taxes would also in
crease the revenue TO the extent estt-
mated
But the other proposed amendments
would as 4 whole diminish rather than
increase the revenue.
Some criticism has been made of the
estimates of the ways and means com
mittee 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 revenue that might De
the first year. were based on the
assumption that the Dill should become a
aw on or before May /. The committee
~ its report expressly says that while
there could be no question that the house
bill would nj any event Weld sufficient
revenue to carry on the government and
cave a surplus the two years of its Oper-
alton. which nobody even now contra
iictS and probably sufficient for the first
year If il should he promptly put in force,
ret # there should be a delay in its en-
ictment beyond MAY l. aRuciDatory i'm
1Ortations would inevitably cause a Sc
-iouS inroad in the prospective revenue
or the first year Here is what the COM
Mite said on this point:
What the actual revenue would prove
o be in the year following the enact
nent of the proposed measure into law
s of course dependent upon contingencies
which cannot he fOrecaSted with any ap-
roach to certainty. and will therefore be
ubject 70 varying estimates. Undoubted-
V the contingency which would exert
he largest influence in diminishing the
revenue wOuid be delay in the
,aSsage of the proposed bill. in conse-
Iuence of which there would be large i'm
lortations of such articles as wool.
voolen goods. sugar. etc. on which it is
proposed 10 increase the duty
II the ways and means committee had
opposed when they made their state
nent on March Is that the bill would be
elayed as long as row seems probable
hey would have said that such delay
7ould inevitably result in largely nullify-
lg the revenue qualities of the bill the
rst year through importations of wool.
ugar ard othe- articles before the new
utieS could go into force unless such
etTOactive provision as was placed in the
III by the house could be maintained.
he anticiDa tory inDOrtatiOnS of such
rticles. arrived and on their way. exceed
ne fears of the ways and means COM
littee when they urged prompt action by
ne house to prevent a loss of revenue
0r the first year.