Montpelier examiner. [volume] (Montpelier, Idaho) 1895-1937, 1911-12-29
fAvORS LOWERING
OF TARIFF RATES
PRESIDENT TAFT. IN MESSAGE TO
CONGRESS. ADVOCATES RE.
DucTIoN OF DUTIES.
SCHEDULE K UNDER FIRE
In Communication to Congress. Chief
Executive Endorses Conclusions
Arrived at by the Recently
Created Tariff Board.

Washington.-In transmitting to
congress the report of the tariff board
en- schedule K the president accom-
panied 1t with the following message:
To the Senate and House of Representa-
tives;
In my annual message to congress. De-
cember. 1909. ] stated that under section
of the act of August s. 1909, / had APP
pointed tariff board of three members
to cooperate with the state department
In the administration of the maximum
and minimum clause of that act. to make
glossary OF encyclopedia OF the exist
ing tariff SO as to render its terms intel
lgible to the ordinary reader, and then
to investigate Industrial conditions and
costs of production at home and abroad,
with view to determining to what ex-
tent existing tariff rates actually exem-
plify the protective principle, viz: That
duties should be made adequate. and only
adequate. to equalize the difference in cost
Of production at home and abroad.
further stated that believed these in
vestigations would be of great value as a
basis for accurate legislation. and that
should from time to time recommend to
congress the revision OF certain sched-
ules in accordance with the findings of
the board.
In the last session of the Sixty first con-
gress bill creating a permanent tariff
board Of five members. of whom not
more than three should be of the same
political party. passed each house. but
failed of enactment because Of slight diff
ferences on which agreement was not
reached before adjournment An appro-
priation act provided that the permanent
tariff board. II created by statute. should
report to congress on schedule In De-
cember. 1911
Presidential Appointments.
Therefore. to carry out SO far as lay
within my power the purposes Of this
bill for a permanent tariff board, / APP
pointed in March. 1911, a board of five.
adding two members of such party affili-
alton as would have fulfilled the statu-
tory requirements. and directed them to
make report to me on schedule X Of
the tariff act in December of this year.
In my message OF August II. 1911. ac-
companying the veto of the wool bill. I
said that. in my judgment, schedule X
should be revised and the rates reduced.
My veto was based on the ground that.
since the tariff board would make. In
December, a detailed report on wool and
wool manufactures, with special refer
ence to the relation of the existing rates
Of duties to relative costs here and
abroad, public policy and fair regard
| to the interests OF the producers and the
manufacturers on the one hand and of
| the consumers on the other demanded
| that legislation should not be hastily en-
| acted in the absence of such Information:
that was not myself possessed at that
| time of adequate knowledge of the facts
| to determine whether or not the proposed
act was in accord with my pledge to
support a fair and reasonable protective
policy: that such legislation might prove
| only temporary and inflict upon a great
industry the evils of continued uncer-
| tainty.
Advocates Reduction Of Rates.
| / now herewith submit report of the
tariff board on schedule K. The board is
| unanimous in its findings. On the basis
of these findings l now recommend that
the congress proceed to a consideration
| of this schedule with a view to its revi-
sion and a general reduction of its rates.
The report shows that the present
method of assessing the duty on raw
wool-this Is. by the specific rate on the
grease pound, |. e., unsecured operates to
exclude woods of high shrlnkage in
securing. but fine quality from the
| American market and thereby lessons the
range OF woods available to the domestic
manufacturer: that the duty on unsecured
wool of 80 cents per pound is prohibtory
and operates to exclude the Importation
of clean low priced foreign woods of In
ferior grades, which are nevertheless val
liable material for manufacturing. and
| grease
because OF their heavy shrinkagn. Such
wools II imported. might be used to dis
place the cheap substitutes now in use
To make the preceding paragraph a HIT
tie palmer. take the instance of hun
bred pounds of hrst-class wool imported
under the present duty. which is II cents
a pound That would make the duty on
the hundred pounds 81. The merchan-
disc part of the wool thus imported Is
the weight of the wool OF this hundred
pounds after securing. II the wool
shrinks so per cent. some wool does
then the duty In such case would
amount to sli on 20 pounds of secured
wool. This. OF course. would be prohibi-
tory. II the wool shrinks only so per
cent. II would be $l1 on 10 pounds OF
wool. and this Is near to the average oil
the great bulk of woods that are imported
from Australia which Is the principal
source of our imported wool
These Determinations could he over.
come by assessing a duty In al valorem
terms but this method Is open to the OBJ
lection. first that It increases administra.
tive difficulties and tends to decrease
revenue through differentiation: and
second. that ns prices advance. the nc
valorem rate increases the duty per pound
at the time when the consumer mos
needs relief and the producer can bes
stand competition. while II prices de
cline the duty Is decreased N the tim,
Wnen the consumer Is least bu"1pned by
the price and the producer most need.
protection
Method That Meets Di'culty.
Another method of meeting the diff
: Guilty of taxing the grease pound Is to as
cess a specific duty on grease wool /,
terms of It's secured content This obyi
ates the chief evil of the present system
, namely, the discrimination dut to differ
! snt shrinkages. and thereby tends great
ly to equalize the duty The board re-
ports that this method is feasible In prac
tice and could be administered withou
great expense.
The report shows In detail the Difficult
ties involved in attempting to state Ii
| categorical terms the cost of wool pro
, duction and the great differences in cos
A. between different regions and differen
types Of wool II Is found. however, thai
taking all varieties In account, the aver
age-cost of production for the who'll
American clip 10 higher than the cost Il
. the chief competing country by a
amount somewhat less than the presen
D duty.
;. The report shows that the duties o
, noils, wool wastes. and shoddy. which ar
adjusted to the rate of IS cents O
. secured wool. are prohibitory In the sam
measure that the duty on secured woo
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