The Washington times., 1909-03-26
MORE FACTS ABOUT TARIFF
AND COST OF LIVING.


printed an analysis of one part of one
schedule in the Payne tariff bill, to
which the attention of every woman
IS earnestly urged. 1t will mean some
lhing to the woman OF the family; .
great deal, in fact 1t will not mean
ynuch to the man, because the man
doesn't concern himself save in gen
rral way about the detail of what hap
pens to the family revenue. He knows
1t goes to run the household; but the
part which represents his wife's al
lowance for running the house is a
mystery which he hasn't the courage
10 inquire about.
So appeal is made here to the inter
est of the women in this explanation
of the new duties which are imposed on
pepper and all kinds of spices, on cocoa
md its preparations, chocolate, etc. 1t
may interest even a mere man to know
shat this country uses about sixty mil
lions of pounds of various spices year.
9'he names of many of them he may
never have heard before; but he uses
them, and he pays for them; they en-
ter into his daily regimen; his wife
Will tell him, If he Will ask her, that she
knows all about them. and that if he
didn't get them regularly he would dis
cover that the cook was scandalously
incompetent. That's about all man
could be expected to know about such
n thing. But this article is addressed
10 the women; they know.
The Payne bill imposes a tax of 80
per cent ad valorem on pepper, the
most used OF all the spices; and as TO
most of the other spices, the bill adds
30 per cent ad valorem tax TO the
specific duties. That means that by
the time the various people who handle
the spices get their profits, interest, etc,
put of the transaction, the spices viii
cost the consumer Just about twice as
much as they would cost if there were
mo taxes at all on them.
Let it be remembered that spices
are not grown in this country. Our
nearest approach to it is the justly
famed wooden nutmeg OF Connecticut;
bnd If the Connecticut nutmeg isn't
taxed in the Payne bill, it IS pretty
good evidence that the committee didn't
find it edible. it got TO pretty much
everything else that could be eaten
with any comfort. There is no home
sndustry to be protected. in spices; the
proposed duties have no other purpose
than raising revenue They viii bring
tn some millions of revenue, and viii
cost the consumer probably twice as
much as they net the Government. But
sll of 1.-THE revenue TO the Govern
Nlent. and also the additional profits
which the dealers must claim because
81 the increased investment they will
tie forced To makc-wiIl come out Of
the people
Spices. indeed, were set down as lux
uries. The housewife viii not regard
them as such. She uses them every
day; every housewife in the land uses
them. Every man requires them, though
BIC doesn't perhaps know he gets them
until his supply Is cut Off There is no
possible excuse for adding this tax at
this point.
This is an illustration OF the faIlacy
and the political weakness Of the
Payne bill. In general, the measure has
much 10 commend IT, But these i'm
positions Of new charges against the
very elemental factors in the cost of
oaily living, are wrong. They should
he opposed by every woman IN the
land, and the women should line up
the men to demand from Congress the
withdrawal of these impositions.
1t cannot be too often or too en-
pbatically repeated, that departure
from the slogan of the untaxed break
fast table viii prove bad economics for
the country and bad policy for the
party which is guilty of it. The Re
publican party IS thoroughly commit
ted 10 that policy. II has blazoned the
declaration Of its adherence 10 the free
breakfast table on so many campaign
banners that il cannot now afford TO
pull. down that flag 1t viii turn over
one of It's most effective tariff argu-
nents to its opponents the minute it
turns that motto 10 the wall
Let it not be forgotten by the men
making this tariff bill, that the Con-
gressional election Immediately follow