The times and democrat. [volume] (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1881-current, 1910-07-30
Robbed by the Tariff.

~. J.
II the voters CT this district would
study the tariff and see for them
selves how they are plundered by
it for the benefit Of the trusts. Mr.
Lever would not insult them by tell
ing them he had no apology to make
for voting for a duty on lumber, by
which the people of this country are
held up and robbed of over one hun
dred million dollars each year by
the huge lumber trust. He, justifies
his we're ny saving that the tax puts
-,st,r ...i..i.n dollars in the public
t.rasury. If the people was posted
on the tariff Mr. Lever would not
have offered any such fiimsy excuse
for breaking his pledge.
There is hardly tariff schedule
that does not. pay as much or more
into the public treasury than the
lumber schedule in proportion tc The
amount it taxes the people for the
benefit Of the trusts. This shows
the absurdity of CHASING the lum-
Der schedule as a revenue schedule.
The Republicans themselves make
uo such pretense. Neither did the
agents of, the lumbe trust who lob
bied the duty through congress. They
wanted a protective duty on lumber
and they got it. The so-called Dem
,ocrats who voted for it knew they
were voting for protective duty
To show how the people are rob
bed by such, revenue schedules as
the lumber schedule, We will illus
trate by the cotton hosiery schedule.
For a good many years the stocking
industry had prospered in this couh-
try. Figures presented to congress
listed dozen or more factories that
made more than doubled their net
worth under the operations OF the
Dingley law. But when the tariff
making was On last year these be-
seiged. congress for an increase,
claiming that their principal compe-
titors, the Germans. had developed
to point. where their competition
menaced the American industry.
Turning to the figures, however, it
will be seen that the importatioCs
amounted 10 only about II per cent.
of the tota; used in America.
;. The duty was raised so that the
ordinary stocking retailing at IS
cents a pair pays duty Of seven
certs. The average foreign price for
these is s1O0 a dozen pairs. The
duty and freight and insurance add
90 cents a dozen. If there was no
duty the importer could lay these
down in this country at IS cents
less a dozen than it now costs him,
and the consumer could buy them
for Is cents instead OF 25 cents per
pair. About 81 per cent. Of this
tax goes to the manufacturer, while
about thirteen per cent. goes into
the treasury of the United States
In other words, out Of every one dol
lar tax paid by the people for cotton
hosiery thirteen cents goes into The
public, treasury while 81 per cent
goes into the pockets of the cotton
hosiery trusts:
Now 1t would be absurd to call the
cotton hosiery schedule revenue
schedule: It was levied purely as
protective FAX the. same as the
lumber tax was levied. We do not
know whether Mr.. Lever voted for
the tax. on, cotton hosiery or not. To
be consistent he. should have done
so, because the cottoa hosiery sched-
ule brings more money to the public
treasury than the. lumber schedule
does. If the: lumber schedule is a
revenue schedule, then the cotton
hosiery schedule Is more Of reyen-
ue schedule. AS matter Of fact,
neither of them are revenue sched-
ules. but the tax was. levied on luln-
ber and on cotton hosiery so as the
trusts thai. control, them. could ex-
tract. millions of dollars out of tie
pockets OF the people without Civ
ing them anything in return.