Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1914-09-09
TAKING OUR PEOPLE
TO BENEFIT EUROPE
Revenues Under Underwood Law
$3O,OOO,OOO Short; "War
Tax" Necessary
ShccinI to The 1,clcgrath

Philadelphia, Sept 9.-Imports to
the United States under the operations
of the present tariff law for ten
months, to July 81, increased S102,-
47S,621, according to a table of the
Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Com
merce. In the same period, as shown
by figures from the same source, du-
ties paid on imports decreased $780,
10000. which is more than 80 per
cent. of the deficiency which the Ad-
ministration. preparing to levy special
taxes, attributes to the European war
y gain in imports. it was pointed
out by manufacturers, was to be eX-
pected under the lower duties inn
posed by the Underwood bill, but, said
a producer of worsteds: I'VE did not
look for any such decreased revenue
as would necesstate taxation above
that provided by the income tax law.
Had deficiency occurred under
duties such as were levied by the
Payne-Aldrich bill, it was asserted, we
would have the satisfaction of having
produced in our mills, with American
la Dor, larger part of the manufac-
lures accounted for in the increase
of more than 500, 600, 900 in imports.
AS the matter stands, we have not
made the goods, our work people do
not get the wages, and we are more
than S30,000,000 short in revenue,
which is to be made up by further
taxing our people. This is charged to
the war account
An Amazing Expense"
William It. Tilden, president of the
Union League and president of the
William T. Tilden Company, Inc, yes
terday described the revenue def
cheney as an amazing expense. IF
the President was sincere, he said,
"he was fooling himself when he at
tributed this remarkable deficiency of
more than $3O,000,000 to anything di-
rectly or indirectly pertaining to the
war.
THE previous tariff he continued.
mot only provided large revenue, but
what was more important, put even
larger sums in the hands of the peo-
pie to spend as they saw fit"
Not only has the income through
the customs house to the government
grown less, but in addition there is an
reduction of the purchasing power of
the people.
1T has always seemed to me
strange that the American voters, to Il
man, could not comprehend the fact
that the man who sent merchandise to
this country paid the duty-not the
American people. 1t is so easy to
learn, for the reason that whenever
the United States reduces duty, the
foreigner Immediately secures higher
prices for his goods.
"The President, good man as he
is" added Mr.. Tilden, always has
been a theorist A theorist, to be use-
full, must at the same time be prac-
tical. Unfortunately, he has never
been willing to listen attentively to
the opinions of such citizens as knew
from experience about the problems
which he has been compelled to con-
front He has not only run riot him
self in connection with theories, but
through the patronage of his high
office he has apparently forced his
party in Congress-in both houses
to follow those theories, willy nilly.
every dollar of decrease of in
come must necessarily be made up by
taxation of our own people, inasmuch
as the customs house is the only place
where we can tax the foreigner"