The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1911-09-28

it became my bounden duty TO with
hold my approval of the bill.
Schedule X had been in force so
lon2 and its percentages were so high
in many respects that | had not hest
tated in times past to say that it
ought to be reduced, and TO explain
how it came not to be reduced in the
Payne bin as it ought to have been.
But il is n thing to know that a
schedule of this sort is too high, and
ii is a very different thing in such a
complicated schedule 10 know upon
what items the reductions should be
maze and how great the reductions
o':,ht to be.
The Farmers Free List.
The free-list bill was called the
Farmers free list" for the purpose
of giving al impression that it was
passed TO compensate the farmers
for some sort of injury supposed to
| be done by the Canadian reciprocity
treaty. This reason was finally repu-
dated by the leader OF the Democ-
racN on the floor of the House of Rep
resentatives, and is certainly not true.
There was nothing in the Canadian
reciprocity bin ma required any
compensation TO the farmers, for in
a very short period after actual ope-
ration it will appear that they, as
we'll as everybody else, have been i'm
proved in condition by our larger
trade with Canada. But the bill was
framed and ame to me in a form
calculated to mislead as TO its effect.
In the first clause all agricultural I'M
pleMents were declared to be free,
and a great many we're named. These
! same implements We're named in the
Payne bill, and were made free in
that bin from any country which per-
mitted our agricultural implements
cd TO England the market of the
United States for agricultural implo-
mcnts. AS a matter of fact, the
price of agricultural implements in
America is cheaper, as shown by a
report of the Bureau of Trade Rela-
~tionsof the State Department., to the
American farmers than to any farm
ers in the world. England is the one
country that exports agricultural I'M
plements to any great extent, and so
: successful is the competition against
her in this country of American agri-
cultural implements that practically
very few have come in from England.
This first clause, therefore, of the
frce-list bill offers no boon TO the
farmers at all although apparently
drawn for the purpose OF inducing
thom to think so. 1t does contain
some Very general words at the close
of the specially mentioned articles
which by Interpretation might be
made to include $50 different articles
used on the farm, but used in other
vocations also. And these articles
the hammers. the tools, the cutlery.
and the machinery of various kinds
are now dutiable under the metal
schedule. To admit them un3er this
l~clause would be TO destroy entirely
the symmetry Of the metal schedule
and produce such a confusion as ser
lousy to interfere With the admins
tration OF the tariff act.
Defects in Bill.
"Another clause provides for the
admission OF b~arbed-wire fencing
free, and then all Wire and other
material which could be used fol
fencing, and includes wire rods and
wire rope. To let in ~barbe3-wire
fencing alone would be unimportant
to producers, but the framing of the
amending clause is such tina if it were
to go into law it would have a serious
! effect upon the metal schedule and
would utterly destroy the principle
which was followed in it's framing
and would make free of duty some OF
the most highly wrought articles I'M
der the metal schedule not used by
farmers at all Then there is a
clause admitting jute and cotton bag
! ging free, and materials from which
made, which would allow common
cotton cloth to come in free for any
purpose, although under the cotton
amended by this Congress, cotton
cloth is to pay a certain amount OF
duty. The bill also puts boots and
shoes OF all kinds on the free list. 1t
did not put on the free list. except
some kinds Of leather, the materials
which went into shoes. In
other words, it put on the free list
the finished product and continued
the tax on raw materials. This would
be such a burden on u manufacture,
ers that its injustice must appeal tc
everyone. The fact is that unGer the
Dingley bill imported shoes We're tax.