The Congressional Globe, Volume 13, Part 2: Twenty-Eighth Congress, First Session Page: 489
viii, 784 p. ; 25 cm.View a full description of this book.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
April, 1844.
28th Cong 1st Sess.
APPENDIX TO THE CONGRESSIONAL GLOBE.
489
The Tariff—Mr. Wright.
Senate.
paper hangings, paying an ad valorem duty of 35
per cent.; and the residue, $14,428, paid specific
duties, ranging from 16 to 97 per cent. The duties
were specific upon almost all articles of paper, and
WJie entirely prohibitory upon a very large propor-
tion of them, there being no importations. The
a\ erage imports of paper of all kinds, for the six
years, was $150,G85—showing a falling off, as com-
pared with the one year, under the present law, of
71 per cent.
The duties upon leather under the present law are
mostly specific, and upon the actual importations of
the three quarters ranged from 13 to BO per cent.; but
the whole importations only amounted to §237,217,
being at the rate of $316,289 per year. The average
value of the importations for the six years was
$805,349; those for the one year, under the present
Jaw, being 60 per cent, less than that rate. Here,
again, a large share of the duties are entire prohibi-
tions.
Raw and undressed hides and skins were free of
duty previous to the passage of the present law.
The average importations for the six years were
$3,130,435 per year, and for the one year under the
present law, which imposes a duty of 5 per cent.,
$3,104,095—being a falling off of less than 1 per
cent., as compared with the six years. This may
serve to illustrate the trifling prohibitory power of
so low a duty.
He would only weary the patience of the Senate
by the examination of a single other article—iron;
but its various descriptions, and the great variety of
its manufactures, would medio that examination
somewhat tedious.
The rate of duty actually paid upon the importa-
tions for the three quarters of bar iron, manufac-
tured by rolling, was 77 per cent.; and the value of
the importations was $511,282; being at the rate of
$681,709 per year. Upon hammered bar iron the
rate of duty was 32 per cent., and the value of the
imports was $327,550; being at the rate of $436,733
per year. Iron in pigs paid duty at the rate of 72
per cent., and the importations were valued at
$48,251; being at the late per year of $64,335. The
average value per year for the six years, of the im-
portations of the rolled bar iron, was $2,252,174; of
the hammered bar iron, $1,597,249; and of the pig
iron, $276,743; thus exhibiting a diminution of the
trade, upon a comparison of the six years with the
one, of 69 per cent, in the first, 72 per cent, in the
second, and 76 per cent, in the third article.
Of the various manufactures of iron paying speci-
fic duties, which, calculated ad valorem, ranged from
11 to 137 per cent., the value of the whole imports
for the three quarters was $282,038; equal to a rate
pei year of $37G,050. The importations of the va-
rious manufactures of iron paying ad valorem rates
of duty ranging from 20 to 30 per cent., were valued
at $773,479; both classes of these imports amount-
ing to $1,055,517; being a rate per year of $1,407,356.
The average importations per year for the six years
of all these manufactures of iron, was $1,498,830—
showing a diminution of the trade in these articles of
but 6 per cent.
He was well aware tjaat these comparisons did not
form a perfect standard by which to judge of the
influence of this law upon the foieign trade of the
country The importsof the fouith quarter of the last
year may have been larger, in proportion, thad were
those of the three first quarters, upon which his calcu-
lations had been based; and to that extent, the results
would vary from the fact. He believed the impora-
tions of the last quarter of that year were beyond
the average; but he had them not, specifying the
values of imports of each article, so that he could
use the information. Then, the period he had taken
for the comparison had been one Of great unsteadi-
ness in trade, as the aggregate importations for the
several years had clearly shown. The first of these
years, 1837, was that m the early part of which the
great crash come upon the bloated credit system of the
country, when all the banks suspended specie pay-
ment, and general disorder prevailed throughout all
branches of business. Regularity and steadiness
were not yet perfectly restored, since those extreme
revulsions, and it was far beyond his power to tell
what influence predominated over the trade of the
country, for any single one of those years.
Still, he thought these results might be safely re-
lied upon, as approximations towards accuracy, and
as establishing, beyond the power of question, the
prohibitory character of this law. As an additional
mode, however, of testing the same point, he had
made a tabular comparison between the importations
of 1812 and of 1843, taking the averages before ,
used, calculated from the three first quarters, as the
true importations of the latter year. He had pre-
ferred to make this comparison, because he was not
aware of any other visible cause, than the legisla-
tion of Congress, materially to affect our trade in
the latter year, which did not exist to the same de-
gree, and m equal force, in the former. Both were
years of serious depression in business and stag-
nation of trade; but he was not aware that, inde-
pendent of the influence of legislation, the latter
was more so than the former. At the commence-
ment of the first year, the duties, upon all the ar-
ticles he had examined, except raw and undressed
hides and skins, were 20 per cent, ad valorem, by
the provisions of the act of 1841; or near to, and
approaching that point, under the operations of the
compromise act; and at the commencement of the
second, the present law took effect practically. His
table included the articles he had examined above,
and no others, and was as follows:
a*
O
Name of auicles.
Importa-
Importa-
Diminu-
t_,
tions ol
tions of
tion.
A
1842.
1843.
re
pe{
Wool, costing more than 7
cents per lb.
$95,655
$72,927
$.22,723
23
Cloths, &c., paying 40 per
cent duty -
4,517,364
1,963,175
2,554,680
56
All cotton manufactures
0,.378,015
3,94?>,061
5,633,454
5S
Worsteds
2,9.>7,977
770,779
2,187,19b
73
Silks ....
9,480,331
3,623,347
3,S57,984
61
Carpetmgs
'200,SOP
212,413
49.896
17
Cotton bagging
421.804
141,755
2SU,069
66
Ulass •
558,509
155,740
402,769
72
Sugars ...
6,503,563
3,376.8-24
3,126,739
48
Molasses
1,94-2.57.5
1,513,093
429,482
22
Hemp, cordage, and sail duck
949,808
927,428
22,380
2
Paper
-48,067
42,907
5,160
10
Leather
912,585
316,289
596,296
65
Raw and undressed hides and
skms
4,067,816
3,104,095
953,721
23
Iron—
Bars, &c , rolled -
2,053,453
631,709
1,371,741
66
" not rolled -
1,041,410
436,733
604,677
5-3
In pigs
295,284
04,33>
230,913
7S
All other manufactures of
3,552,642
1,407,356
2,145,286
60
Here was the comparison, at one view, between
the importations for 1842 and 1843, of the articles
named, and the names of the articles; and the sums
would show that they constituted a heavy propor-
tion of all the dutiable imports, and the heaviest of
what are denominated the protected articles. He
had incorporated with these articles worsteds, silks,
and raw and undressed hides and skms, for a dou-
ble purpose; the first two to show the prohibitory
action of the bill upon articles not of the protected
class, and the last to show how much better the im-
portations kept up when the duty was very light, and
still what an effect was produced upon cheap heavy
articles by a very light duty. These articles, com-
pared with some of the others, would also show
how much more severely heavy duties affected the
trade in some articles than in others. Take the
worsteds. The duty under the act of 1841 was 20
per cent., and the present law has raised it to 30 per
cent. The trade has fallen off, in the single year,
73 per cent. Take the silks. They were at 20 per
cent, under the act of 1841, and range from 1G to 65
per cent.; but average, upon the actual importations
of the three quarters of 1843, only 32 per cent. Yet
the trade has fallen off 61 per cent. The duties up-
on woollens, cottons, iron, sugar, and other of the
protected articles, are much higher—some of them
more than double these rates—and yet the trade has
fallen off less.
Still, the rate of diminution of the trade, upon the
most of the articles named, whether the comparison
with the one or the six years be taken, was most
marked and severe, and could not fail to be alarm-
ing to the commercial interest.
These comparisons showed the futility, as a stan-
dard of judgment, in reference to the influence of any
tariff law. of general averages of the duties upon all
the dutiable imports, and much more of such an av-
erage upon all the imports, free and dutiable. Such
comparisons are made to assume the more fa-
vorable appearance, the more prohibitory shall
be the operation of the law under which they
aie made. Duties so high as to be entirely
prohibitory are not comprehended at all in
such calculations. To illustrate, by a strong
example, suppose every duty imposed was raised to
a rate of perfect prohibition, so that no dutiable arti-
cle could bo imported, and that all our foreign im-
ports were free of duty: then such a comparison
would show that our commerce, was not taxed at all
by duties, and yet the richest part of it would be
destroyed by a prohibitory tariff. So take, of the
articles above named, paper and undressed hides,
and make an average of them, and it will show a
very low rate of tax upon the combined importa-
tions, because the hides pay but 5 per cent, duty
and the import amounts to millions, while paper is
almost wholly prohibited—the whole imports being
less than $50,000 per year; and this, although pay-
ing duties varying from 16 to 97 per cent., consists
of the articles of paper paying the lightest rates, and
which can, therefore, come in.
Take the actual importations of the three fiiat
quarters of 1843, further to illustrate the fallacy of
this standard of averages. "Appendix D, Nq. 2,"
before referred to,. is a table of these imports, pay-
ing ad valorem duties under the present law. At
the foot, the amount of imports will be found to be
$16,684,875, the amount of duties paid, $4,153,68613,
equal to the average rate of 24.89- per cent,; not
a very high rate of duty for many articles. The
rates of these duties fixed by the law upon-the arti-
cles named in this table, will be found to range from
1 to 50 per cent., these rates being the extremes of
the ad valorem duties imposed by the law. Yet the
articles before examined, which pay ad valorem
duties, hides and skins excepted, comprise $2,277,368
less than half this amount of importations, and pay
$113,850 51 more than half of the whole amount of
these duties, averaging the rate of 36.11 per cent.
This shows that an average of the ad volorem du-
ties, by themselves, furnishes no standard by' which
to judge of the weight of the tax upon a large por-
tion of the imports embraced in the calculation.
Take then "Appendix D, No. 3," which is a table
of the actual importations, paying specific duties;
and the amount of importations of this character will
be found to be $12,494,340, the duties actually paid
upon them $6,300,449,12, and the rate, calculated
ad valorem, to equal 51.15 per cent, upon the whole.
Here is an entire class of importations of more than
$12,000,000, paying duties to more than one half
their entire value in our markets, at the time the
duty is imposed. Yet average all these dutiable im-
ports together, those which pay ad valorem, and
those which pay specific duties, and what will be
the result? The entire amount is $29,179,215, and
the entire amount of duties paid is $10,544,138 25,
being only equal to36.13per cent.,almost exactly the
average before given for almost one half of the ad
valorem importations. This is an exhibition of the
average argument upon dutiable importations.
A single example of its application to the whole
importations, free as well as dutiable, and he would
leave this topic. The dutiableimportationsof the three
quarters, as just stated above, amounted to $29,179,-
215. The free importations, for the same period,
amounted to $35,574,584, as see "Appendix D, No.
1." Those sums, together, make the whole importa-
tions of the thiee quarters, amount to $64,753,799; and
the whole amount of duties paid upon these import-
ations was $10,544,135 25; only equal to the rate
ad valorem of 16. 28 per cent. Here, then, would the
gentlemen say, who rely upon these averages as a
standard of judgment—here, is all the tax upon our
trade, 16 per cent.; and can any reasonable man
complain of that? And yet it is shown, upon the
face of the very papers from which this average cal-
culation is drawn, that one entire class of importa-
tions pay duties to more than half their value; that the
whole dutiable importations pay an average rate of
more than 36 per cent.; and that the trade, in large
and important classes of articles, has fallen off 50,
60, 70, and more, per cent, in the first year's opera-
tion of the law; thus exhibiting a prohibitory power
much more startling than the high jates of duties
paid.
These compaiisons must show, to the satisfaction
ol' every mind, that general averages arc most de-
ceptive guides, and that averages of the rate of
duty, even upon any two articles of import, much
more upon selected classes, may be made to convey
the roost erroneous impressions; and they must
have led to the conclusion, which it was his object
to establish, that the only useful or truthful com-
parisons were those which compared the duties paid
upon each important article of import with the
value of the importations of that article.
He had already alluded to his comparative exam-
inations to show that different articles of import,
would bear very different rates of duty, with the
same proportionate effect upon trade, and that the
same rate, applied to till articles of import, would
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This book can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Book.
United States. Congress. The Congressional Globe, Volume 13, Part 2: Twenty-Eighth Congress, First Session, book, 1844; Washington D.C.. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth2368/m1/499/: accessed March 28, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.