Evening journal., 1905-07-26
GENEROSITY LED
TO U. S. DEFICIT
Uncle Sam Has Been Open
handed With Its De
Tendencies
IMPORTS ARE ADMITTED FREE
Special 20 The Evening Journal
BY William Wolf smith.

Washington. ID. c., July 25-ln con-
sidering the deficit in the National
Treasury it may be Wen to take ac-
count Of the fact that it is largely
ohargeaIble 10 the open-handed gener-
osity which Uncle Sam has exhibited
toward the dependencies acquired from
the Spanish war
For instance. last year there were
imported from Porto Rico 259, ,2S1. 6O7
pounds Of sugar free OF duty on which
the revenue would have amounted to
S4.4O6. 9S7 From Cuba we imported
2.si955S ,402 pounds under a reduction Of
% per cent Of the Dingley tariff which
virtually put 5639ll $50 pounds on the
free list, on which the los of revenue
amounted TO $S,4S2,l12. From the Phil
ippines we imported 6l.570,6l2 pounds
on which we collected only 20 per cent
Of the Dingley rate, hut as we remit
ted the whole amount collected. S769
$50, 10 the Philippine government. the
percentage does not figure. In addi-
tion we imported 736 1892 pounds
from Hawaii on which the duty had
it been collected would have amounted
10 S12.52O,3 1858. This totals up to S26,179
045. or a couple of million dollars more
than the deficit for the last fiscal year.
No one criticises the free and open
manner In which this country has put
its hand into its pocket 10 benefit the
sugar planters of these foreign possess
sions or dependencies. but It lis well to
remind the people occasionally that
charity costs money as well as public
buildings and battleships and the de-
ficit is not wholly charge able TO Con-
gressional extravaganza.
In this connection my attention has
been directed 90 one of the sources of
the immense profits of the Standard
Oil Company. We often heard It stated
that petroleum is on the free list but
sc is not generally known. ] take a..
that petroleum is only free provided
that II there be imported into the
United States crude petroleum or the
products of crude petroleum produced
IN any country which imposes "A duty
on petroleum or its products there
shall be levied, paid and collected. "a
duty on said crude petroleum or dts
products SO Imported equal tothe duty
imposed by such country" Al last ac-
counts IL appears that there were
duties levied on petroleum by 124
countries with 595 different duties. 1l8
of which were on refined. 1O5 duties
on crude petroleum and 377 duties on
the products OF petroleum. IL is well
known and generally admitted that the
by-products IN refining petroleum pay
an the expense OF refining and leave
handome profit and this being the
case in Russia as well as in the United
States. it is claimed that refined RUS
sian oil can be imported into this
country at cost OF two cents per gal
lon. Russia levies a duty of "a frac-
tion over eleven cents per gallon ON
srehned petroleum which operate ex-
clusively against the STANDARD oil
Company
A raternalstic government. how
ever. under the provision Of the Ding
ey Act quoted evies the same duty
Of eleven cents against Russian oil and
in favor Of the Standard ON Company.
II is said the Standard Oh Company
is now selling refined petroleum at four
cents per gallon for export In bulk.
which Ii is enabled to do largely be-
cause the duty of eleven cents thus
imposed keeps Russian oil out Of this
market At the same time. the domes-
tic consumer is charged from ssven "a