Evening star., 1932-05-12
TARIFF TAX FIGHT
/ OPENED IN SENATE.
Minority Report Filed by
Walsh in Opposition
to Duties.
Continued From First Page.)

tive revenue yield OF these proposed
tariff taxes is negligible"
Asserting that it was doubtful wheth-
or the tariff taxes would benefit do
mestic producers and that they might
well adversely affect domestic con-
s,Imers. the minority report declared
that no argument had been advanced
in favor of these taxes that was not
presented and rejected by Congress In
framing the Smoot-Hawley tariff act
of 1886" 1t was declared that these
taxes would work injury to our foreign
trade and our foreign relations.
Increased Costs Predicted.
Taking I'D the import taxes one by
one the minority report says that the
proposed duties on petroleum products
would compel the consumers in this
country to pay s73,212.o00 annually in
Increased prices for fuel oil" The re-
mort said, too. "on the question OF the
effect of the tariff on the price
of oil and gasoline to the Amerl-
can public, since the domestic pro-
duction of gasoline is so far In excess
mort of gasoline so relatively trivial
I3.s2I 900 barrels of gasoline were I'M
ported in 1881 as compared with CO.
mestic consumption of 397 ,905,0o0 bar
rels). the extent to which tarlH on
gasoline will increase the price to the
domestic consumer is perhaps deoat-
able"
The proposed duty en- coal and coke
the report said, "is utterly prepoSter-
GUS" -.
According to the Department OF
Commerce figures, we exported io'ooo'
259 tons of coal and coke IN 1881 ana
n ratio OF
l6 TO / in favor of our exports, con-
tinued the report. "The total proouc-
tion of coal and coke in the United
states in 1881 was 459,7l6,104 tons, so
that our imports of 836,76 tons repre-
sent less than one-fifth Of per cent OF
our total coal and coke production.
Motive Charged.
The one objective of the proponents
of this tax. according to the minority
report. is the hope Of displacing 600,ooO
tons of imported anthracite coal now
sold in New England with an equal
amount of Pennsylvania anthracite.
The report admitted the distress OF
the American copper INDUSTRY, Win
copper now selling in New YORK around
6 cents a pound as compared with an
average price for the last 80 years, ex-
cludinr war wears, of lab cents. 1t
pointed out that the world is suffering
from huge surplus of copper and that
the question at issue was whether the
erection of a tariff wall against foreign
copper will in the long run benefit the
country.
The bill as repodted carries cop
Der tariff" continued the report, "at
the rate of cents per pound. The con-
tention that despite such a duty for
eiRn copper still will be dumped in this
market and pay duty from which the
Government will derive tariff revenue
is, In our judgment, unconv1ncing. On
the question Of the benefit OF the pro-
posed duty to the American copper In
dustrv. we are inclined to subscribe to
the views of those who oppose the duty
and who contend 1t will do more harm
than good"
Lumber Levy Attacked.
The report attacked the proposed i'm
port tax on lumber Of So per 1000
feet on rough lumber. 1t said:
IF the Tariff Commission found no
justification for increasing the tariff
duty on dressed lumber above the pres
ent rate of q dollar, there can be no
sound argument In favor Of rough lum-
ber being given q duty Of $3 per 1000
feet. especially when 1t is admitted that
there Is an element Of labor that enters
into the cost of dressed lumber as
compared with rough lumber. The
Tariff Commission found that the diff
ference in total cost Of producing
rough humber in Canada and America
was IL cents per 1000 feet"
In conclusion the minority report
said: THE log-rolling methods which
have resulted in the incorporation Of
these particular tariff items-for these
items yield no income to the Govern
ment worth considering be In
defensible even III the committee We're
considering general revision OF the
tariff, but to resort to the trades, ex-
change of votes and on-again-of- -again
performance that characterized the in
corporation of these items in an emer-
gency revenue measure is an exhibition
that will raise serious question in the
public mind concerning the capacity OF
representative governments to function
promptly and without selftntereSt in a
great emergency. Perhaps the least
said about the performance the better.
We doubt if even the 'victors' are par
4; ,,roa1l nf their hanfiu0rS -