The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1911-12-28
SAYS
RATES TOO HIGH
Chief Executive Urges Downward
Revision of Schedule K.
MESSAGE SENT TO CONGRESS
Document UphoIds Protective PrineI'
pie But at the Same Time Most
ArdentIy Supports Recommen-
dations of Tariff Board.

Washington.@Pres Taft trans
mitted to congress the report OF the
tariff board on schedule K Accom-
panying the report, the chief execu-
tive sent to the national legislature
the following message:
To the Senate and House of Representa-
tives:
In my annual message to congress. De-
cember, 1909, / stated that under section
2 OF the act OF August 5, 1909. l had ap-
pointed a tarlff board Of three members
to cooperate with the state department
in the administration of the maximum
and minimum clause OF that act, to make
a glossary or encyclopedia OF the exist
ing tariff so as to render its terms intel
ligible 10 the ordinary reader, and then
to investigate industrial conditions and
costs OF production at home and ABROAD
with view to determining to what eN-
tent existing tariff rates actually eXem-
plfy 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 l believed these In
vestigations would be of great value as
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 a bill creating a permanent tarin
board of five members, of whom not
more than three should be of the same
political party, passed each house, bu'
failed of enactment because of slight dlt-
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 K in De-
cember, 1911.
Presidential Appointments.
Therefore, to carry out so far as lay
within my power the purposes or thls
bill for a permanent tariff board, l ap-
pointed in March, 1911, board of five,
adding two members OF such party afhli-
alton as would have fulfilled the statu-
tory requirements. and directed them to
make n report to me on schedule or
the tariff act in December of this year.
In my message of August II, 1911 ac-
companying the veto of the wool bill.
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, 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 a 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 DO 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 inhlct upon great
industry the evils of continued uncer-
tainty.
Advocates Reduction Of Rates.
I now herewith submit report of the
tariff board on schedule K. The board Is
unanimous In Its findings. On the basis
of these findings I now recommend that
the congress proceed to a consideration
Of this schedule with a view to its revl-
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. l. e., ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS to
exclude wools Of high shrinkage 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 SO 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
uab BILE material for manufacturing, and
| which cannot be imported in the grease
| because of their heavy shrinkage. Such
woods. II imported, might be used to dis
place the cheap substitutes now in use.
To make the preceding paragraph lit
| tie palmer, take the instance of a hun
dred pounds of flrst-class wool imported
under the present duty. which Is IL cents
a pound. That would make the duty on
the hundred pounds SILL 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 80 per cent. as some wool does.
| then the duty in such case would
amount to $11 on 20 pounds of secured
wool. This, of course. would be prohibi-
tory. If the wool shrinks only 50 per
| cent, 1t would be 81 on so pounds Of
wool, and this Is near to the average of
the great bulk Of woods that are imported
| from Australia. which is the principal
source of our imported wool.
These determinations could be over
| come by assessing a duty in ad valorem
terms, but this method is open to the OBJ
| lection first, that 1t increases adminlstra-
tive difficulties and tends to decrease
revenue through differentiation; and.
second. that as prices advance, the ad
valorem rate increases the duty per pound
at the time when the consumer most
needs relief and the producer can best
stand competition: while II prices de-
cline the duty Is decreased at the time
when the consumer is least burdened by
the price and the producer most needs
| protection.
Method That Meets Difficulty.
Another method Of meeting the diff
Guilty Of taxing the grease pound is to as
cess a specific duty on grease wool In
| terms Of its secured content. THIS obVi-
ates the CHIEF evil of the present system.
| namely, the discrimination due to d!Her-
ent 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 without
| great expense.
The report shows in detail the difficult
ties involved In attempting to state in
| categorical terms the cost of wool pro-
| duction and the great differences in cost
/ as between different regions and different
| types Of wool. 1t In found. however. that
taking all varieties in account, the aver
age cost of production for the whole
| American clip iS higher than the cost in
the chief competing country by an
amount somewhat less than the present
duty.
| The report shows that the duties on
! noils. wool wastes. and shoddy which are
Little Truthseeker.