The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1913-09-28
LEAD AND ZINC TARIFFS.

We are glad to SEQ that in tho CON
| ference between tho two Houses of
| Congress, the Senate s. proposal with
RS against the action of the House.
| This gives tariff rate on lead ore of
three,quarters Of cent a pound, as
against the House proposal Of half a
cent a pound. This is a gratifying
gain for the lead miners, and will be
received accordingly, though the rate
is even thus placed much too low. II
is satisfaction to note that neither
House OF Congress proposed to put the
duty upon lead on an ad valorem basis,
for the Indictment to fraud which
would be fostered by an ad valoreD
duty ia plain. 1t needed no argument,
even in House where ad valorem
duties generally prevail, to show that
an ad valorem duty upon lead would
be a pcrilous proposition. A specific
duty is the only way to insure any
sort OF honesty in the enforcement Of
the tariff on lead.
But tho Senate gave way on the zinc
tariff, and allowed tho House rate Of
10 per cent ad valorem to prevail. Wo
do not understand why either House
should have desired to put the zinc
thrift on an ad valorem basis, as 1t
Is perfectly clear that the same incite-
ment to fraud would be fostered by
this ad valorem duty, rs would be
I,,&--
lead. A specific duty should have
been agreed upon for zinc, precisely ae
was agreed on as to lead. It may be
true that it Is not so easy to swindle
the custom house in zinc as In lead,
but undoubtedly the two metals being
80 much alike and being as a rule fig
ured on about the same basis 30 far
as production and handling arc con-
cerned, it Is perilous to have ad val
orem duties upon either. Still, the
difference in the views Of the two
Houses on the zinc tariff were not so
great as to call for much friction. The
House insisted on 10 per cent ad val
orem: the Senate wanted 1875 per cent.
The House wins, and the duty on zinc
is put at 10 per cent. Tt is not enough,
and it is wrong basis on which to
levy the duty. This will no doubt
appear when the returns come in, and
Senate, supposing the country to be so
afflicted in the next Congress, we may
fairly look for an amendment with re-
epect to the tariff on zinc.
Advices from the Canadian border,
from the Canadian side of
the Minnesota border, indicate that
the Canadian farmers are ready to
send large quantities Of grain and
produce across the line when the Demo
cratic bill is made a law, since then
such products will be admitted free of
duty. It will be remembered that last
year the farmers of Minnesota, Wis
consin, Michigan, North Dakota, and
farmers generally Of the old North
west, were hot against the reciprocity
agreement with Canada, which had
been negotiated by President Taft.
Under that agreement this country
would have received reciprocal advant-
ages in the matter OF imports and e1-
ports; but under this Democratic bill
the farmers Of the old Northwest are
put on the same basis that they were
in the reciprocal agreement, without
any compensating benefit whatever.
Under reciprocity, which they 30 fierce
ly condemned, this country would have
had the advantage Of the Canadian
market On the same terms that Canada
would have had the advantage Of ours.
Under this tariff legislation, however,
our markets will be open to Canada and
we shall get no compensating benefit
from Canada whatever. It is all free
gift TO Canadian farmers, and Canada
can exact what tariffs she pleages as
against the United States and its peo-
pie. This is the sort Of thing the
farmers Of the Northwest voted for
last year. They are getting it, and If
there is any complaint they should re-
member that they have nobody but
themselves to blame.