The Ward County independent. [volume] (Minot, Ward County, N.D.) 1902-1965, 1909-07-08
Senator johnson Explains
NJ. N. johnson in Letter to T. E. Olssard Throws Sol
Light on the Tariff Bil--Ths is Good Reading.

:. E. Olsgard Throws Some
This is Good Reading.
armor plate, projectiles and a very
costly tool steel known in 1897.
It is interesting to note that under
the Dingley law iron ore carries a
duty of forty cents per ton, which
in the proposed bill is reduced to
cents per von, very ma
terial reduction, namely thirty-seven
and one-half per cent.
The cotton schedule Is almost as
Peepla have been led 20
believe by speeches made here and
copied in the newspapers that cotton
cloth is to be much more costly on
account of the tariff. The truth is
the rate is either reduced or left the
same as in the Dins,ey law On all
common cloth. The raise covers only
very small per cent. of the impor-
tations and is on costly, fancy weaves,
luxuries really, where importers
have seventy-five per cent of the
trade The impression has gone out
that the amendments of the proposed
bill apply to almost the entire sched-
ules, and that three-quarters of the
rates which are fixed in the Dingley
law have been increased by the chang
es proposed. AS matter of fact the
proposed amendments of the pres
ent bill apply to not more than ten
per cent of the entire cotton sched-
ule. Ninety per cent of the Dingley
rates are absolutely unaffected by the
bill reported from the Finance Com
mittee. The exceptions are rates on
certain classes of cotton yarns, which
are reduced below the existing law,
and certain amendments which have
been reported from the committee to
reduce the rates below those fixed by
the House. Some of the latter are
quite important in their character.
Space does not permit an extended
discussion of the cotton schedule and
l will content myself with saying that
the rates proposed by this bill are not
only lower than the rates intended to
be imposed by the act Of 1887; but
they are not excessive in themselves
or in comparison with the rates i'm
posed in other schedules. The cot
ton schedules of all former tariff acts
have imposed the lowest rates of any
of the schedules. The rates imposed
in this bill are not only less than any
other schedule in the act, except the
chemical schedule, but they are less
than the average of the whole act.
. We are making the best tariff law
ever and / am not worrying at all
about the way the people of North
Dakota will receive this bill when
they understand it correctly.
After heated debate a vote was
taken on the corporation tax amend
ment. 1t stood, ayes, SO; uayes, IL,
Eight of the eleven were Republicans.
The history OF the effort to adopt
on income tax this session and make
it part of the present bill Is very
interesting. To begin with, the su-
preme court of the United States has
declared the income tax unconstltu-
tional. In the face of such decision
Senator Bailey, of Texas, Democrat
introduced the income tax amendment
to the present bill. Then Senator
Cummins, Of Iowa, a Republican, IN
troduced another amendment, provld-
ing, as did Senator Bailey, for an In
come tax, but differing in many res
poets. One Of the most striking fea-
lures of Senator Cummins' amend
ment is that he exempted all corpor-
ations, large and small, from taxation.
During their speeches and discus
sions in support of their amendments
Senators Bailey and Cummins agreed
so that finally their amendments
were practically identical Senator
Bailey succeeded in persuading Sen
ator Cummins to include the corpor-
ations in his amendment. These two
senators agreed that the proper
course was to Immediately place the
matter before the supreme court OF
the United States and force them
to reverse their former decision.
The members of the Finance Com
mittee, the president, vice president,
members Of the cabinet and senator
Root got their heads together, and
proposed an amendment to the am
endment of Senator'S Bailey and Cum
Minis in the shape of the Corporation
Tax amendment.
The corporation tax amendment
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