CONGRESS. (THE TARIFF MEASURE.) 



191 



NAYS Abbott, Anderson of Mississippi, Andrew, 

 Jankhead, Barnes, Barwig, Bland, Blount, Boatner, 

 5reck(mrid"e of Arkansas, Breckinridge of Kentucky, 

 Jrickner, Brookshire, J. B. Brown, Buchanan of 

 Virginia Buckalew, bullock, Bunn, Bynum, Camp- 

 >cll Candler of Georgia, Carlton, Caruth, Caterings, 

 Jate Chipman, Clancy, Clarke of Alabama, Clements, 

 Clun'ie Cobb, Compton, Cooper of Indiana, Oothran, 

 Covert! Cowles, Grain, Crisp, Culbertson of Texas, 

 ,'ummings, Dargan, Davidson, Dibble Dockery, 

 Junphy, Edmunds, Elliott, Ellis, Euloe, Fitch, 

 ?ithian, Flower, Forman, Fowler, Geissenhainer, 

 Jibson, Goodnight, Grimes, Hare, Hatch, Hayes, 

 leard, Ilemphill, Henderson of North Carolina, 

 Herbert, Hohnan, Hooker, Kerr of Pennsylvania^ 

 vilirore, Lane, Lanham, Lawler, Lee, Lester of 

 Georgia. Lester of Virginia, Lewis, Magner, Maish, 

 Mansur, Martin of Indiana, Martin of Texas, Mc- 

 Adoo, McCarthy, McClammy, McClellan, McCreary, 

 McMillin, McRae, Mills, Montgomery, Moore of Tex- 

 as Morgan, Mutchler, Norton, O'Ferrall, O'Ncall of 

 ndiana, O'Neil of Massachusetts, Outhwaite, Owens 

 of Ohio, Parrett, Paynter, Peel, Pendleton, Pening- 

 ;on, Perry, Pierce, Price, Quinn, Eeilly, Eichardson, 

 Robertson, Rowland, Busk, Savers, Sency, Shively, 

 dinner, Spinolu, Springer, Stewart of Georgia, 

 Stewart of Texas, Stockdale, Stone of Kentucky, 

 Stone of Missouri, Stump, Tarsney, Tillman, Tracey, 

 i Tucker, Turner of Georgia, Turpin, Venable, Walker 

 iof Missouri, Washington, Wheeler of Alabama, Whit- 

 ling, Wike, Wiley, Wilkinson, Willcox, Williams of Il- 

 linois, Wilson of Missouri, Wise, Yoder 144. 



NOT VOTING Alderson.Allen of Mississippi, Biggs, 

 Blanchard, Boothman, Brunner, Carlisle, Forney, 

 Frank, Haynes, Hopkins, McKinley, Morrow, Oates, 

 IPhelan, Randall of Pennsylvania, Kogers, Stahl- 

 !necker, Turner of New York, Van Schaick, Whit- 

 ;thorne, Wilber, Wilson of West Virginia 23. 



The Tariff Measure. On April 16, 1890, 

 Mr. McKinley, of Ohio, introduced the bill "to 

 equalize duties upon imports and to reduce the 

 revenues of the Government " which is common- 

 ly called by his name. It had long been under 

 consideration in the Committee on Ways and 

 Means. 



The measure was brought up for discussion 

 May 7, arid it was determined to limit general 

 debate to four days, and then allow eight days 

 for consideration, section by section, under the 

 five-minute rule. 



In opening the debate Mr. McKinley said : 



" If any one thing was settled by the election 

 of 1888, it was that the protective policy, as pro- 

 mulgated in the Republican platform and here- 

 tofore inaugurated and maintained by the Re- 

 publican party, should be secured in any fiscal 

 legislation to be had by the Congress chosen in 

 the great contest and upon that mastering issue. 

 I have interpreted that victory to mean, and the 

 majority in this House and in the Senate to mean, 

 that a revision of the tariff was not only de- 

 manded by the votes of the people, but that such 

 revision should be on the line and in full recog- 

 nition of the principle and purposes of protec- 

 tion. The people have spoken ; they want their 

 will registered and their decree embodied in pub- 

 lic legislation. 



" The bill which the Committe on Ways and 

 Means have presented is their answer and* inter- 

 pretation of that victory and in accordance with 

 its spirit and letter and purpose. We have not 

 been compelled to abolish the internal-revenue 

 system that we might preserve the protective 

 system, which we were pledged to do in the 

 event the abolition of the one was essential to 



the preservation of the other. That was un- 

 necessary. 



" The bill does not amend or modify any part 

 of the internal-revenue taxes applicable to spirits 

 or fermented liquors. It abolishes all the special 

 taxes and licenses, so called, imposed upon the 

 manufacture of tobacco, cigars, and snuff, and 

 dealers thereof, reduces the tax upon manufact- 

 tured tobacco from eight to four cents per pound, 

 and removes all restrictions now imposed upon 

 the growers of tobacco. With these exceptions 

 the internal-revenue laws are left undisturbed. 



" From this source we reduce taxation over 

 $10,000,000, and leave with the people this direct 

 tax which has been paid by them upon their 

 own products through a long series of years. 



4i The tariff part of the bill contemplates and 

 proposes a complete revision. It not only changes 

 the rates of duty, but modifies the general pro- 

 visions of the law relating to the collection of 

 duties. These modifications have received the 

 approval of the Treasury Department, and are 

 set forth in detail in the report of the committee, 

 and I will not weary this committee in restating 

 them here. A few of the more important changes, 

 however, are deserving our attention. 



" There has been for many years a provision 

 in the law permitting the United States to im- 

 port for its use any article free of duty. Under 

 this provision gross abuses have sprung up, and 

 this exemption from duty granted the United 

 States has served as an open doorway to frauds 

 upon our revenue and unjustifiable discrimina- 

 tions against our own producers. 



" Not only has the Government imported sup- 

 plies from abroad, but its officers, agents, and 

 contractors have been held to. enjoy the same 

 privilege, which has been exercised to the injury 

 of our own citizens. The result has been that 

 supplies imported by contractors for govern- 

 mental work have, in many instances, been in 

 excess of the demand for such public work and 

 been applied to other and different uses. 



" This provision of law has been eliminated in 

 the proposed revision, and if approved by the 

 House and Senate and the President, the Gov- 

 ernment, its officers, agents, and contractors, will 

 hereafter have to pay the same duties which its 

 citizens generally are required to pay. Your 

 committee have been actuated in this by the be- 

 lief that the Government should buy what it 

 needs at home; should give its own citizens the 

 advantage of supplying the United States with 

 all of its needed supplies, and that the laws which 

 it imposes upon its own people and tax payers 

 should be binding upon the Government itself. 



" The committee have also fixed a limit upon 

 the amount and value of personal effects accom- 

 panying the passenger returning from foreign 

 travel to $500. It has been too common for 

 citizens of the United States visiting other coun- 

 tries to supply themselves not only for their im- 

 mediate uses but for future uses and for the uses 

 of their friends, and there has heretofore been 

 no limit to the amount and value of foreign 

 articles which could be brought in free of duty 

 under the designation of " personal effects " if 

 accompanied by the returning passenger. 



" The practical effect of this provision was 

 that the wealthy classes who were able to visit 

 distant countries secured exemption from the 



