Democratic Sentinel, Volume 12, Number 9, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 23 March 1888 — TARIFF FIGURES. [ARTICLE]

TARIFF FIGURES.

The Duties on Necessaries Outrageously High Under Our Present System. All the Way from 50 to 164 Per Cent.—How the People Are Tax-Ridden. Some Figures to Which Every Consumer Ought to Give Careful Attention. To the Amer can People: '1 hose of you who for more than a score of years have been accustomed to read my letters on tariff reform will do well to read and study the tariff table I give below, compiled from official returns of 1886. This table is indeed a pyramid. My object is to show the enormous high duties exacted by the American tariff on articles of necessity, and then you may judge whether Macdnff’s answer to Malcolm does not exactly fit our “untitled tyrant, bloodv-sceptered” tariff system: aktici.es on which a duty of 100 per cent. AND OVER WAS EXACTED IN 1686. Per cent. On tannic and tannin 163.75 Acetate of lead 133.07 Sautonine ltk>.l3 Common window-glass over 24x30 inches. lub. 83 Plate glass over 24x60 inches 147.43 Iron beams, girders, and joists 113.91 Ingots, cogged, blooms, or blanks 121.89 Galvanized wire smaller than No. 10 ahd not smaller than No. 16 100.00 Wire cloth smaller than No. 16 and not smaller than No. 26 103.34 Wire cloth smaller than No. 26 100.13 Horseshoe nails 103.8 i Varnish of spirit 106.23 Scoured clothing wool 119.43 Cleaned rice 112.46 ARTICLES THAT PAID A DUTY OF 93 PER CENT. AND OVIR AND NOT 100 PER CENT. IN 1886. Copperas 91.27 Common window glass, 16x24 inches 92.89 Hcop-iron thinner than No. 20 98.97 Corn or potato starch 93,58 Sugar above No. 13 and not above No. 16.. 91.89 Common woolen cloth costing 61 cents per {kiund 91.95 Woolen manufactures costing not over 80 centß per pound abroad 91.47 ARTICLES THAT PAID A DUTY OF 80 PER CENT. AND OVER AND NOT 90 PER CENT. Bicarbonate of soda 88.(3 Common cylinder window glass, 10x16 inches, used in the cheapest houses.... 80 73 Hoop-iron, 8 inches or less in width 85.81 Sheet-iron, No. 20, wiro gauge 81.30 Litharge (a lead paint). \ ] SO.^l lied lead paint 8124 Whiting aud Paris white ....'.'.. I'. 89.38 Woolen dress goods costing cents a square yard abroad 82.18 Woolen shawls costing 67)<j cents a pound abroad 87.00 Manufactures of wool or worsted valued not over 30 cents per pound 83.82 Steel rails at the average cost of 1836-’B7. BJ.OO ARTICLES THAT PAID A DUTY OF 70 PER CENT. AND OVER AND NOT 80 PER CENT, Boracic acid in crude state 70.13 Bleached cotton cloth costing 5 cent's sauare yard 70.13 Colored cotton cloth costing 6 cents square yard 76.88 Iron less than one inch wide 70.30 Sheet-iron thinner than No. 25 and not No. SW 76.50 Sheet-iron thinner than No. 20 and not No. ‘24 74.55 Sheet-iron, Anaker class sheet-iron 77.81 Iron or steel railway wheels 72.84 Pig-lead " 74.65 Lead-pipes, sheet, and shot 70.60 Orange mineral lead (paint) 71.03 Unoleaned rice 71.72 Baw sugar up to No. 13 70.00 Washed clothing wool 74,97 Scoured com bing wool 73.58 Woolen blankets costing 26 cents per lb.. 73 39 Woolen blankets costing 65 cents per lb.. 71.64 Common dru/gets 7140 Woolen cloaks ana dolmans 71.84 Flannels costing not over 30 cents per lb. 70.62 Flannels costing not over 40 cents per lb. 71.12 Flannels costing over cents 8Q per 1b....! 72.66 Woolen hosiery costing not over 30 cents a ooien yanre valued above 60 cents and

not over 80 cents per pound 70.04 ARTICLES THAT PAID A DUTY OF 60 PER CENT. AND OVER AND NOT 70 PER CENT. Blue vitriol (sulphate of copper) 65.29 Glycerine, refined 66.40 China porcelain, decorated 60.00 Peanuts, not shelled 63.00 Boiled or hammered iron, lx% inch. .... .. 63 04 Sheet iron, thinner than No. 20 and not No. „25 6 3.3 8 Galvanized wire, smaller than No. 5 and not No. 10. 66.00 Wire rope, No. 10 and not No, 16 61.04 Wire rope, No. 18 and not No. 26 63.38 Cast-iron pipe of every description, 66.00 Tiles over fourteen inches long 60.68 Umber and umber earth, dry 63.23 Washed raw wool 65.92 Wool blankets, valued above 30 cents and not over 4u cents a pound 67.96 Wool blankets, valued above 40 cents* ana not over 60 cents per pound 68.40 Wool blankets valued above 80 cents a pound 63.38 Woolen cloth over 80 cents a pound 68.57 Mixed woolen dress goods costing 15 cents square yard 67.85 Mixed woolen dress goods costing 34 cents square yard 60.60 Flannels costing 40 cents a pound 65.00 Flannels costing 69 cents a pound OSA69 Wool nats costing less than 60 cents a pound 65.24 Wool hats costing 60 cents and not over 80

cents a pound 60.39 Wool bats costing over eO cents a pound.*.". 00.79 Woolen hosiery valued above 30 cents and not over 40 cent 3 a pound 68.80 Woolen hosiery over ij cents and not over 60 cents a pound 69.20 Woolen hosiery o. er 60 oents and not over 80 cents a pound 68.86 Woolen hosiery valued over 80 cents a pound 60.37 Woolen hosiery valued at 30 cents and nos over 40 cents a pound 63.80 Woolen hosiery valued over 40 cents and not over 00 cents a pound 69.25 Woolen hosiery valued above 60 cents and not over 80 cents a pound 68.26 Woolen hosiery valued over 80 cents a pound 60.37 Woolen shawls valued over 80 cents a pound 63.17 Woolen shawls, wholly or partly wool 60.37 Woolen yams costing 30 cents and not over 40 cents a pound ;... 67.00 Woolen yarns costing over 40 cents and not over 60 cents per pound 68.22 Woolen yarns valued over 80 cents per pound 67.57 Manufactures of wool exceeding 60 cents per pound 60.14 Worsted goods valued above 30 cents and not above 4') cents per pound 68.83 Worsted goods valued above 4J cents and not over 60 oents per pound 67.91 Worsted goods valued a ove 80 cents per pound 61.75 Zlno, in sheets. 67.65 Zinc, old metal fit only for smelting 69.00 ABTICZ.ES THAT PAID A DUTY OF 50 FEB CBNT. AND OVEIt AND NO r 60 PEB CENT. Licorice paste used in manufacturing tobacco. 57.49 Cotton yam valued at over 60 cents and not over 70 cents per pound 51.69 Cotton yam valued at over 80 cents and not over #1 per poun 1 54.02 Cotton yam valued above Si a pound 50.00 Spool thread 55.23 Common cotton cloth costing 8 cents or less a square yard 53.90 Common cotton cloth exceeding ICO threads and not costing over 8 cents a square yard 50.28 Common cotton cloth exceeding 100 threads costing 8 cents and not over 10 cents a square yard J 54.38 Common cotton cloth exceeding 200 threads valued at 10 cents or less a square yard. 51.15 Common cotton cloth, bleached, valued at 12 cents or less a square yard 50.71

Plain white crockery, not painted ot ornamented. 55.00 All other cldna or earthenware 55.00 Jute bagging, used for cotton bags 54.06 Honey 53.55 Pig-iroa. ...' 57.73 Scrap iron 5 >.BB berap steel. 51,65 Bar iron, rolled, leas than 7-16 inch in diameter 51.65 Bar iron Bar of steel costing less than 4 cents a pound 52.27 Bar of steel costing over 4 cents and not over 7 cents a p >und 53.96 Sheet steel valued not over 4 cents a pound 52.29 Sheet stqgl valued over 4 cents and not over 7 cents a 1 ound 50.75 Steel wire smaller than -\o. lu and not No. 16 fO.IS Pen-knives, poeket-kuives. and razors 50.10 Files and rasps 4 in.hes in length and under 52.61 Files and rasps over 4 inches and not over 9 58.66 Files and rasps over 9 inches and not over 14 53.16 Nuts sud washers made of steel or iron... 57.14 Spikes of wrought iron 5L14 Kailway fish-plates 56.41 Rivets and bolts ; 51,32 Old lead fit for melting 53.88 Bough marble 53.90 Marble, veined and dressed. Croton oil. 52.25 Sulphate of barytas soioo Ultramarine 53.77 Wood pencils 56.77 Paddy or uncleaned rice 51.02 Castor beaus ‘ 50.54 Manufactures of silks 50,00 Raw wool, class 1, clothing wool 53.50 Balmoral valued over 83 cents per yard.. 58.09 Brussels carpets 59.03 Patent velvet carpets , ’ 55^53 Saxony and Wilton 55 00 Tapestry. soiae Beady-made clothing 53,91 I purposely atop this pyramidal tariff swindle at a duty of not less than 50 per cent It will the better show the tax-rid-den people the oppression of the swindling system. I have, of course, omitted in this table to mention the duties on luxuries, such as wines, spirits, tobaccos, cigars, perfumery, etc. I have omitted even kid gloves. I included silk beoause the use of it is now so universal in every household in this country that unless the tariff system makes a nation of paupers of this happy land, silks are no more of a luxury than any other moderate-priced article of clothing. This is well understood In every household. You must either make up your minds to sweep away the internal revenue tax and give the people free whisky and freo tobacco, and keep the tariff as it is intact, or you can refortn the above robbery by cutting down the tax on clothing and necessaries and tax the drunkards on their whisky, and even beer, although you may remove the tobacco tax. And now, in conclusion, I wish once more to call your attention to the most vital fact, namely: When you are told that this high duty, all the way from 50 per cent, to 150 per cent., as contained in the above, is necessary on account of the higher wages paid here, such assertions are the most misleading and false. And here let me prove it from the census returns of 1880, a year of highpriced wages: “In 1880 the total production of manufactured goods in the United States was, in value, $5,369,579,191. Wages paid to produce the above were $947,953,795, which is less than 18 per cent of the production.” Now it is plain if our manufactures are protected 18 per cent and the foreign pauper labor would be entirely gratis that we would then be even as far as wages go. But, as foreign labor costs something, any protection over, say, 20 per cent, is simply for the enrichment of monopoly. And when such a protection is carried higher even than 50 per cent then it becomes simply an oppressive tax robbery, and the workingman is made the excuse of the impudent lie that such taxes are necessary for his protection. J. 8. Moore.