The Republican journal., 1898-04-14
Our Washington Letter.

| WASHINGTON, D. c., April II, 1895
| The Dingley law in its first half veal
| makes good record as to its effect upor
importations as we'll as its earnings in the
matter of revenue. The official figures Of
the Treasury Department covering the
first six months of the Dngley law and
comparing its operations with the CORE
spending six months of the preceding
/ wear under the Wilson law are now for the
first time accessible. They show, to begir
with, falling off in the importation OF
articles produced by the farmer. In the
animals the importations during the
first SIX months of the new law amounted
in value to sS1, LOG, 723, while in the cor
responding six months of the preceding
year under the Wilson law the importa-
tons of that class of articles amounted to
S104, 623, 800, thus showing reduction of
more than s23, 600, 600 in this class of arti-
Giles, most if not all of which is produc-
ed by the farmers.
Another class of citizens who have been
equally benefited by the operations of the
new law are those employed in manufac-
turing industries dependent upon manu-
features. One evidence of this is found
in the fact that the Importation of manu-
featured articles fell from 800, $50, $50 I'M
der the Wilson law to $50, $40, S64 under
the Dingley law. These figures relate, as
do those quoted above, to the first half
years operations of the Dingley law com
pared with the corresponding six months
of the preceding year under the Wilson
law.
Thus it will be seen that while the i'm
portation of articles of farm production
fell off 50, 600, 900, the importation of
manufactured articles fell off over go
600, 900, the percentage of reduction being
in each case about the same, and the two
classes Of citizens, the farmers and those
dependent upon manufactures, being thus
benefited in like proportion.
Another evidence of the increased ac-
tivity which the law has brought to our
own manufacturers and their employees is
evident in the increase i'll Importation of
raw material under the Dingley act. In
its first six months the importations of
raw materials for use in manufacturing
amounted to 800, -, SO, while under the
Wanted Wilson law whose author and
supporters were special advocates Of the
free raw material idea, the importa-
lions of raw material amounted to only
so, 5S3 81 in the corresponding months
OF the preceding year
That the new law is operating especially
in the interests of the farmers and those
dependent upon the manufacturing indus
tries for their employment is thus clearly
shown; first, in the reduction in importa-
ton of articles OF food and live animals
which fell off 20 per cent. second, in the
reduction in the importation of manufac-
tured articles which compete with home
industries, the reduction 10 this case being
about the same; third, in the evident in.
crease in home industries by reason of the
increased demand for raw material for
their use in manufacturing: fourth, in the
greater prosperity among the producers re-
snlting from the increased activity among
manufacturers, and increased earnings
among their employees, as is shown by the
general advance in prices received by farm
ers for their products.
The following table shows the reduction
in importations of leading articles of farm
production, the first column being the
amounts imported under the Dingley law
from August /, 1897, to February l, 1898,
and the second column the amounts i'm
ported under the Wilson law from August
!, 1896, to February /, 1897. one-half year
in each case, the corresponding months
being chosen in order to make the com
paIiSon an absolutely fair one.