THE TARIFF.

The third lecture on the "History of the Tariff Legislation of the United States" was given last night by Mr. Taussig before his usual large and attentive audience. The first tariff mentioned was that of 1832, which virtually annulled all the abominations of the tariff of 1828. This tariff was planned by John Quincy Adams, the leader of the Republican party at that time. All the tariffs after this were the results of party feeling. The tariff of 1833 was a compromise act between the two parties, and was arranged by Clay and Calhoun. Its purpose was to bring all duties to twenty per cent. ad valorem. This is probably the poorest tariff passed by any nation. The Congress which came in in 1842 put in a new tariff, entirely different from that of 1833. The Whigs being then in power, passed a bill for the levying of very high duties, and the bill was prompted through party feeling entirely. The tariff of 1846 was a free trade tariff, and it was framed by Robert J. Walker, Secretary of the Treasury. Thus specific duties were shown to be better than ad valorem duties, on account of the easiness of collection. In 1857 there was a general reduction from the tariff of 1846, in order to lessen the revenues of the country, which were overflowing. This was the last tariff act passed before the civil war. The faults of specific duties Mr. Taussig explained to be as follows: They weigh heavier on the cheaper than the better class of goods made of the same material; although prices rise and fall, the amount of duties remains the same, so that the per cent is continually varying; they are used to conceal the real weight of the duty from those who are unacquainted with the values of the dutiable articles. The ad valorem duties are theoretically more equal and just, but yet the tendency of all countries is to drop them. The faults found are: The difficulty of correct judgment by custom officers; the danger of fraud in concealing the true value; the competition of different ports in order to obtain more trade by appraising he goods lower. In this country, the lecturer explained, the ad valorem duties was the system sought by free traders in preference to specific duties.