The Chanute times. [volume] (Chanute, Kan.) 1897-1913, 1909-03-26
THE TARIFF BILL.

pursuant to pre- election promises,
to revise the tariff.
That the tariff needs revision In
several spots seems to be denied by
no one. But a peculiar predica
ment confronls congress. They
are expected to lower the tariff
rates from which our revenue is
derived and still increase the
revenue.
The rantankerous clammerers for
tariff reduction seem to forget that
this country is running in debt at
the rate of about $roo, 700, 900
every year of the world and that the
princl a source of its income is the
revenue collected from the duty on
foreign imports. Arrangements
must be made at once to wipe cut
the deficiency already created and
to provide for sufficient income to
meet the ever increasing expenses
of rapidly growing nation.
A great deal of buncomb is in
dulged in on the tariff proposition
by the politicians on both sides of
the question.
1t seems but a simple proposition.
The government needs SO much
money every year ard every month
to keep up current expenses.
The articles on which it is usually
conceded to be proper to levy an
internal revenue lax, such as
tobacco, whisky, ETC., are now
taxed about to the limit and many
articles of import seem to be pretty
we'll burdeRcd with taxation, still
we are not receiving an income
adequate TO our expenses.
1t is rather a delicate matter to
regulate a tariff SO that it will raise
definite amount of money. If the
duty on a certain article is placed
beyond a certain point it becomes
prohibitive and the article will MOI
be imported at all, hence all revenue
is cut of from that quarter. Should
the tariff be exceedingly low large
quantities of the commodity are
liable to be imported and a greatly
increased revenue will result.
Now the delicats question fol-
congress to determine is just what
tax this article will stand and still
be imported and cost, duty paid,
about what the same article pro-
auced in America costs, tina,
American artiIens and laborers may
receive the highest remuneration fol
their toll. The free trade theory
advocated by some is simply q
delusioR and is not to be considered
as a national question.
But few Democrats any longer
contend for free trade. They ad
nit the necessity for a tariff duty
for revenue purposes. The English
idea of free trade tariff is to place
it heaviest on the essentials of life,
those things that the rich and the
poor alike must use, and that are
not produced at home in sufficient
quantities to supply the demand, If al
all, sugar. coffee, tea, salt, etc.
The American idea of a tariff is
that the things we c7nnot produce
should come in free and that the
tax on the essentials of life should
be low while the articles of luxury,
used by the wealthy classes. should
bear the greater share of the burden.
When congress gets through with
this tariff discussion a good many
saPhead congressman will have had
chance to air their ignorance of
the fundamental principles of the
American tariff and its application
and many politicians will have had
a chance to make grandiloquent
speeches to their constituents and
have them printed aud circulated a
government expense, but the tariff
schedule will remain, practically,
;1ta,, Tk.r. uv,II he ok.nn.. 49,