Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1913-04-08
Plan of Democratic Party
Will Make Sweeping Re-
ductions in Many Sched-
ules as They Now Stand.
RAW WOOL TO BE r..
FREE OF ALL DUTY
Big Cut in Sugar With
Duty Entirely Removed
in Three Years; Income
Tax to Make Up Cut.

-
Washington, D. c., April RE
moval of all tariff from many articles
of food and clothing; broad reductions
in the rate of duty on all necessaries
of life; an increase of tariff on many
lhxuries and a new income tax that
will touch the pocket of every Ameri-
can citizen whose net income exceeds
$4,000 are the striking features of the
new democratic tariff revision bill,
presented today to the house.
An attempt to widen the foreign
market for American goods and to en-
courage reciprocity treaties with all
foreign nations is embodied in the new
tariff bill introduced today, in a clause
empowering the president to grant
Pavors to any nation that gives mutual
concessions to the United States.
The reciprocity clause takes the
place of the penalty clause Of the pres
ent tariff law. The clause designed to
open wider the markets for American
exports throughout the world is as fol-
lows: @ E..s5
"That for the purpose of readjust-
ing the present duties on imports into
the United States and at the same
time to encourage the export trade OF
this country, the president Of the
United States is empowered to nego-
tiate treaty agreements with foreign
nations wherein mutual concessions
are made looking toward freerer trade
relations and further reciprocal .expan-
lions of trade and commerce"
Such reciprocity agreements under
he new law, would have to be approx
ed by congress before becoming effec-
tive. j." "@
In statement accompanying the
bill, Chairman Underwood declares
that under the Payne law the United
States had attempted to expand our
commerce by force. .,. ..-
I'VE went to the nations of the
world with the demand that they stand
and deliver or we would punish them"
he said. MANY years ago this system
of expanding trade and commerce was
abandoned by the enlightened nations.
The only true course that can be pur-
sued to expand our foreign trade along
rational lines is through mutual con-
sessions that may prove beneficial to
both of the contracting parties, free
from coercion" t.sIt ...
Another concession that would be
made in the new bill is designed to en-
courage American shipping. A con-
cession of five per cent would be made
in all tariff rates on goods brought to
this country in American-built ships
owned wholly by American citizens.
Restrictions on Philippine Island i'm
ports practically are removed by the
new bill. and important changes In the
method of enforcing customs laws are
provided, following out the recon-
mendations made after recent investi-
cations of the customs.
Sugar would be free of duty in
1916, the bill proposing an immediate
reduction Of Is per cent and the re-
moval of the remaining duty in 1916.
Raw wool would be made free at
once, with a correspondingly heavy re-
duction in the tariff on all woolen
goods. o..
Placed on Free List.
All these other articles are put on
the free list, namely: %
Meats, flour, bread, boots and shoes,
lumber, coal, harness, saddlery, iron
ore, milk and cream, potatoes, salt,
swine, corn, cornmeal, cotton bagging,
agricultural implements, leather, wood
pulp, bibles, printing paper not worth
more than 211 cents per pound, type
writers, sewing machines, tyesetting
machines, cash registers, steel rails,
fence wire, cotton ties, nails, hoop and
band iron, fish, sulphur, soda, tanning
material, acetic and sulphuric acid,
borax, lumber products including
broom handles, clap-boards, hubs for
wheels, posts, laths, pickets, slaves,
shingles. 5a.e
These principal items are taken
from free list and taxed: a
Rough and uncut diamonds and pre-
cious stones, furs, coal tar products,
10 per cent; volatile oils, rs per cent;
spices, from 1 cent to 2 cents per
pound.
Chairman Underwood Of the ways
and means committee in his statement
accompanying the new tariff bill gave
the following comparative table to
show reductions in tariff duties made
upon necessities In each item both
the present tariff and the proposed
Cnpfir,lod IN ps pe