The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1910-04-07
TAFT'S TARIFF PRAISE
IS BACKED BY FACTS
Treasury Figures Bear Out State
ment That Revenue Is Increased
and Average of Duties Lower.
LIGHT ON BAY STATE VOTE
Study of Presidents Address and
Its Statistical Basis Interesting
as Bearing on Foss Victory.

President Taft said in his speech
| at Providence:
Seven months OF the new tariff law
have proved:
J. 1t is the best revenue getter we
| ever had.
,. 1t has by the returns shown that
! it has the largest free list
3. 1t has shown that the rates of
the Dingley bill have been materially
reduced.
The Treasury Department. with facts
and figures. bears out what the Presi-
dent has said
The Fourteenth Congressional dis
trict of Massachusetts elected Eugene
n. FOss to Congress and by the act
took exception to the Presidents
speech and to the facts and figures
given out by the officials of Secretary
MacVeagh's department.
When Mr.. Taft made his speech on
the operations of the Payne-Aldrich
tariff bill he had authority for every
The bureau of statistics had supplied
him with information to the effect
that the average rate of duty paid
on all imports for the last six months
was 21.O9 per cent ad valorem and
that the average rate for the same six
months for the four preceding years
under the Dingley law was 2403 per
cent
The information from the bureau of
statistics was accurate, and IL shows
as far as figures can show when thus
used that there has been a downward
revision of the tariff
The President said that as a rev.
enue getter the Payne-Aldrich law
was the best the country ever has
had.
From the Treasury Department it is
learned that in the six months from
August to February 5 last the GUS
toms receipts amounted to s166, OO2,-
1854.
During the most nearly correspond
ing period of last year for which the
figures are available the receipts were
s139, 003,076.
Reasons for Increased Revenue.
On the face of things this shows
that the Preside ats words concerning
the revenue getting qualities of the law
were true.
The Treasury Department officials 1
will not express a definite opinion con-
corning the reasons for the increase
in revenue under the new tariff law
1t Is possible that prosperity has in
creased importations and it is also
possible that the reduction of duties
on certain articles has so stimulated
importation that even with a less sum
to pay on each hundredweight or each
gross, as the case may be. the demand
for foreign-made goods has been so
great that the governments income
under the lower duty has been greater.
1t will take the study of months and
scrutiny of each class of imports
to prove whether prosperity or the re-
duction in rates on certain articles has
given Uncle Sam his increase of in
come.
The figures of the Treasury Depart
ment back up the President in what
he has had to say about the usefulness
of the Payne-Aldrich tariff bill, but
with the different interpretations that
men and parties put on figures it is
possible that this difference in inter-
probation may account for the result |
of the election in the Fourteenth Mas
sachusetts district.
Eugene n. Foss, tariff revision Re
publican, who was elected on the Dem
ocratic ticket, is responsible more than
any other one man for the w-tariff |
sentiment among the Republicans of
Massachusetts. He believes in reci-
procity and in tariff reduced to a
point just low enough so that wages
of American laboring men will not be
endangered.
Mr.. Foss was elected on a platform
embodying his beliefs. which have just
been outlined. and he was elected on
the day following the speech on the
tariff made by President Taft at Prov
idence.
The officials of the Treasury Depart |
ment say that the President had right !
and reason on his side when he put
forth his tariff utterance.
The voters of the Fourteenth Mas |
sachusetts district by their action seem
to have shown that they think. not
wthstanding the excellencies of oper-
alton of the Payne-Aldrich law.
measure with lower duty figures would |
operate better still.
The new tariff law has had thus |
far a comparatively short lease of life. |
When it is a year old it will be pos
sible to draw more definite conclusions |
concerning its efficacy as a revenue |
getter and as a measure that shows a
real reduction in rates over previous |
measures.
In the meantime there will be Con-
gressional elections. and perhaps it |
will be shown by the majority of re-
suits that the Massachusetts election |
was in a sense abnormal
Florida Wonders.
&..1 III