The main features of the tariff history of the United States in the years after the Civil War were that the internal taxes were almost entirely swept away and the import duties on purely revenue articles similarly abolished, while those import duties that operated to protect domestic industries were maintained, and in many cases increased. Efforts were indeed made to reduce the tariff duties, but met with strong opposition, and in the end were almost completely frustrated. The decade immediately following the war brought about the gradual transformation of the high taxes levied on all commodities for revenue purposes into a system of high duties almost wholly on protected commodities. This transformation met with much opposition, not less in the Republican party than in the Democratic party. The opposition led to a general revision in 1883, which, on the whole, served rather to put things in order than to make any change of policy.
The tariff system as revised and codified in 1883 would prob ably have remained unchanged for many years had it not been for an unexpected turn taken by political and financial history. In the second half of the decade 188o-9o, a continuous large surplus in the Treasury directed attention to the state of the revenue, and gave strength to the protests against excessive taxation. In addition, the Democratic party, which had long been committed, though in a half-hearted way, against the policy of high protection, was brought to a vigorous and uncompromising attack on it through the leadership of President Cleveland. In his presidential message of Dec. 1887 he attacked the system in unqualified terms. The Republicans, as is almost inevitable under a party system, championed the policy opposed by the other side, and declared themselves in favour of the consistent and unqualified further application of protection. The protective question thus became the main issue in the presidential election of 1888, which resulted in the defeat of the Democrats. In the next ensuing session of Congress, the Republicans passed the McKinley Tariff Act. It advanced duties materially on a con siderable number of commodities, both raw materials and manu factured articles. A further step towards consolidating the pro tective system was taken by abolishing the duty on sugar, mainly a revenue duty. For consistency in maintaining the protective principle a direct bounty was given to the domestic producers of sugar in Louisiana. Another turn in the political wheel brought an abrupt change four years later, in 1894. President Cleveland,
defeated four years before, was now again elected, and the Dem ocratic party came into power, pledged to change the tariff system. Accordingly the tariff act of 1894 was passed, known as the Wilson Tariff, bringing about considerable reductions of duty. The measure, however, was less incisive than its chief sponsors had planned, because of the narrow majority commanded by the Democrats in the Senate. The most radical change was that the duty on wool, typical among the duties on raw materials, was completely abolished, and with this came a great reduction in the duties upon woollen goods. A duty was reimposed on sugar, chiefly as a means of securing needed revenue, but at a less rate than had existed before 1890 ; the bounty of 1890 was abolished. The next election in 1896 brought still another turn, the Republicans being once more brought into power under the leadership of President McKinley. At the extra session which President Mc Kinley called in 1897, almost the sole measure considered was the tariff act, known as the Dingley Act. This reimposed the duties upon wool, on most qualities at the precise rates of 189o, on some qualities at even higher rates. Necessarily the duties on woollens were correspondingly raised, and here again made even higher than they had been in 189o. The tariff act of 1909, amend ing that of 1897, did not appreciably change the situation. It made certain reductions in duties, such as the rates on hides, wool tops and various iron and steel products; but except in the case of hides, the reductions were in most cases more nominal than real. The net result was to leave the general height of the tariff at much the same level as had previously ruled. At the next presi dential election in 1912 the Democrats, for the first time since 1892-4, gained control of both the executive and legislative branches of the Government. Immediately the Democratic leaders began the revision of the tariff law. In the act of 1913 most raw materials, including raw wool, were placed upon the free list ; the complicated schedules that had grown up in the Republican tariffs were largely scrapped; and the effective protection upon semi-manufactured and wholly manufactured articles was markedly decreased. Sugar was to be admitted free. But the abolition of the sugar duty was not to take effect till 1917; by that time the great war had set in; and under the war conditions, the duty was retained, though at a lower rate than that of 19o9.