BoletiÌn mercantil de Puerto Rico. (San Juan, P.R.) 18??-1918, 1901-12-19

sition Of duty collected in Porto Rico to to
turned into the general fund Of the United
States treasury the court has noting to say.
That question has not been raised.
The court holds that there is no force in
the argument that imports into Porto Rico
from the United States must be treated for
tariff purposes as exports from Q state and 90
subject to provision of the constitution that
no tax or duty shall be laid ON articles
exported from any state. That provision, it
decides, relates solely to exports to foreign
country, and Porto Rico is not foreign
country.
The importance Of that decision lies not
in its application tU Porto Rico but in its
application to tie Philippines. Had the
court decided that the duties could not be
imposed constitutionally, then it eOuld have
been impossible for congress to have levied
duties in the Philippines upon articles im.
TO ted from the Ulit;d States. BY the
treaty Of peace imports into the iiPhiIppines
from Spain can be subject to no higher du-
ties than imports from the United States.
1t would nave been imposs bic to have col.
lected revenue in the Philippines from
customs duties to pay the expenses Of gov.
errment Of the islands and the expenses OF
government there would have been charge
On tls Treasury o. the United States. To
raise sufficient revenue in the Philippines
from internal taxation is out Of the question.
The burden would be greater than the is
lands could bear.
The Foraker law ID constitutional in
every respect. What is true Of Porto
Rico 10 true also Of the Philippines. Con.
, gress is empowered to legislste for the
Philippines exactly as it sees fit in all
matters Of revenue. II can pass laws for
the Philippines exactly as if it were the
legislature OF the Island, and can give
tkem revenue system of their own. 1t
was decided by the Supreme Court in the
decision handed down last spring that con
gress could impose duties on articles i'm
ported into the United States from Porto
Rico. That applies also to articles imported
from the Philippines into the United States.
The decision in the fourteen diamond rings
cases amounts merely to this:
The United States will have to refund
tie duties collected under protest on arti
cles imported from the Philippines since
the signing Of the treaty of peace. Those
duties amount in oil to less than $2,000,-
600. No more duties can be collected
uotil congress enacts legislation fixing the
tariff for the islands. One OF the first
acts of congress will be the passage OF a
law establishing civil government in the
Philippines and imposing tariff on i'm.
ports into the islands and exports from
them to the Un ted States. The tariff now
in force by military order will remain until
congress shall act. That is tariff on goods
imported into the Philippines from The
United States.
NOT the least merit OF the decisions in
the insular cases, in the opinion of men
like Senator Spoonsr, is that they settle
for all time the right of the United States
to dispose of acquired territory as may
seem best. The Philippines may be gov.
erned AZ territory or IS territories;
protectorate may be established they
may be ceded to the people of the islands
and SO made Independent, or they mag be
csded toa foreign power and so alienated
1t is not expected that any Of the latter
devices will be regorted to, but it is
recognized that IN time to come any one Of
them may be desirable, and it is felt to be
Of the utmost Importance that the United
States should have free hand.