THE NEW TARIFF.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXIII, Issue 10034, 22 January 1896, Page 3

THE NEW TARIFF.

Is all that can be desired—from a Government point of view. It is also all wrong and ill-advised— an Opposition point of view; and it will be generally conceded that the man has not yet lieen born that can construct a tariff which will not provoke i idicule from the common or garden observer. However, something had to be done, and it whs only to be expected, after the provincial tour of the Commissioners, that it would be something funny. But it was really touching to follow the said Commissioners on their round, and watch the sublime self-sacrifices offered by the "successive suggestors." One man would come along and say that he was "running a factory 1 ' (we will say) for the tinning of garfish, and while not wishing anything out ut the way, would suggest a duty of 350 per unit, ad vol. on tinned fish of all kinds. It is only natural that this should be followed by another patriot who had a large stock of second-hand coffin-plates, and in the pure love of his country,_ and for the sake of the revenue, he would think it desirable that a tax of, say, seven shillings an ounce should be put on all this class of imports. Anything apparently for their country's good, while one of the main sources of revenue last year v.'as derived from the duty paid on the large and ever-inoreasiug shipments of Vanity Fair Cigarettes, which Imva steadily made their ; ww into publwfaywr, .