Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1904-05-19
SENSIBLE TARIFF REFORM.
Democratic Party Would Revise Those
Schedules Which Now Shelter
Monopolies.

ASPoSASuh anu OIL
Bressmen have been busy all the win
ter trying to make the voters believe
mat If the democrats are successful
hey will at once inaugurate free rude
by repeating the Dingley bill. In the
zrst place even If the democrats elect
their candidate for president and a ma
1ority of the house of representatives,
the senate would still be republican, even
If the democrats carried the legislatures
OF all the doubtful states that elect SEN
ators who will take their seats on March
4, 1905. The republican majority of the
senate will probably oppose any tariff
reform, but will surely vote down any
radical proposition, SO that bugbear is
disposed of.
In the next place, the democrats, when
In power, however much they would like
to remit taxation, must raise enough
revenue to carry on the government,
and more than half the receipts must
come from duties and imports. When
the supreme court decided that an in
come tax, as levied by the democrats in
1894, was unconstitutional, that decision
shut out all possibility of reducing the
tariff below what would raise enough
revenue for the government, honestly
administered. There are only two other
methods of taxation, the internal rev.
enue and direct taxes, according to the
population of each state. The latter
tax would be unfair, because unequal,
and could not, therefore, be considered.
To increase the internal revenue taxes
Is unpopular, and to impose new taxes,
such as those collected during the Span
ish war, would meet as much opposition
from the republican senate as tariff re-
form would, for their friends, the banks
and other corporations, would pay their
share, and that would be heresy to the
republican leaders. 1t remains, there
fore, to arrange the tariff taxes SO that
they will burden the taxpayers as little
as possible, and yet produce enough rev.
enue.
There are several schedules that would
doubtless receive heroic treatment if the
democrats had full power. The high
protection the trusts now enjoy, and
that gives those corporations a monop-
oily of the American market, would be
repealed or greatly modified. Those ar
ticles which are sold by the corporations
cheaper abroad than here would be the
first to be cut down, so that the fear of
competition would force the trusts to
reduce their prices. The steel trust is
the most conspicuous of the trusts that
is sheltered by the tariff, and the duty
on nails, barbed wire, steel rails, and,
perhaps, some other products would be
greatly reduced, and even in extreme
cases placed upon the free list. Cultiva-
tors, plows, axes, table knives, horse
shoe nails, sewing machines, harness
snaps, meat choppers, borax, %gunpowder,
raisin seeders, rakes, sad irons, saws,
shovels, sugar, and numerouso other prod
ucts are sold for export from 10 to 100
per cent. cheaper than the price paid
by our own people. Such inequalities 1t
will be the duty of the democrats, when
intrusted with power, to reform.
1t has been suggested by one of the
most clear-headed democrats in the
country that to prevent the disturbance
to business that might result from gen.
eral tariff reform, separate bills be
passed reducing the duty on products
that an exorbitant profit is charged for.
That programme would not disturb any
business but that of the particular trust
affected, o require other taxes to be
imposed to, provide for a deficiency iu
the revenue, for there is no revenue
from such articles now, there being COM
paratively non imported, 1t must be re-
membered that the republican leaders
have, by allowing the trusts to dictate
the tariff schedules, built up an enor-
nous monopoly in many products, and
it will require care, time and caution
for full reform and to release the peo-
pie from the tariff tax and high prices
that are now SO burdensome.
No sensible man supposes that the
democrats would wish to disarrange the
business of the country; they have as
much interest in prosperity as repub-
licans have, and those corporations that
are doing a Legitimate business need fear
nothing. but eXcresences must be re-
moved, excuses r%etrenched and abuses
remedied. That will be the programme
of democratic tariff reform.