The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1874-07-21

THAT clause of Speaker Blaine's letter to
his constituents in which the authority OF
the President and Senate to make treaty
which will affect the revenue of the nation is
combated. has aroused discussion of con-
stitutiona law and federal policy respecting
The limits of the treaty-making power
Among the journals which took issue with
Mr.. Blaine was the New York EVENING Post
Which did so in an extended and moderate
dated at Bangor appears in the Post of Sat
urday. The writer addressing himself to the
Post says:
If correctly understood, you maintain the
right of the President and the Sena g, by treaty
making power, to regulate for any period of
time the duties on imports. In the proposed
treaty of reciprocity the plan is to have GER
tain scale of duties Canadian articles for
one year. aud thereafter importation to be free
for twenty-one years. If thus on Canadian ar
ticles why not on English. and then on French.
aud then on Germ "a? And if the President
and two thirds of he Senate agree, why under
thu power you claim for them, eht they NOT
make treaties of this kind to continue for a
hundred years, thus depriviug the next three
generations of all power over the revenues OF
the country?
The writer next cites cases where an ap-
preparation of money was required to carry
out the provisions of treaties, and in every in
stance the bill appropriating the money orIgi-
mated in the House of Representatives.
Having established this point, he argues that
the treaty-making power 1.-THE President and
two-thirds of the Senate )have no more power
to regulate the revenues by treaties than it
has to originate bills appropriating money to
carry out treaty indeed, not so much, for
the Constitution expressly declares that Gall
bills for raising revenues shall originate in the
House of Representatives" The writer fur.
ther claims that the founders Of the govern
ment designed to keep the power and mode
OF raising taxes in the hand, of the people,
The people vote only in the House of Repre-
sentatives while the state,v vote in the Senate
The people are not re presented in the Senate
simply because twenty-five states having two
thirds of the Senate, embrace a population o.
but three-eights of that of the whole country.
puts the case TO the Post:
Do You seriously contend that these senators,
constituting twOthirds OF the whole BODY auG
yet representing states that contain only nj
nority of the people of the country, have the
right by treaty to agree to the admission of
English, Canadian, French and German fa-
brcs free of duty for the next generation, and
thus deprive the House of Representatives OF
the right to originate any bill of revenue in
volving tariff on imports from those coun-
tries? If SO, the House would be confined to
Internal taxes as the only mode of raising reve-
nue., and we should witness the singular specta.
Gle of a minority of the people acting through
an alleged constitutional power in the Senate
absolutely controlling the majority and pre-
venting the exercise of plain power conferred
on the House.
The Post promises at an early day t, re-
new the discussion of this very important
topic.