The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1897-01-08

the Committee-The Democratic Idea
| of Tarif-Prediction as to the Issue
of the Next Presidential Campaign.
WASHINGTON. Dec Especial. -
the house is at work preparing new tariff
bill, just now the hearings are the chief
| subject of interest These hearings, which
ways and means committees always give
| as preliminary to the framing of a new
| tariff measure, serve to demonstrate in
| post striking way the conflicting notions
| about the whole tariff question held by
| American parties and by parts of the
American people. 1t is not for me to have
an opinion one way or the other on a ques,
ton of pure economics, but think can
| give you an insight into the methods pur-
| sued here and into the spirit of the men
who either favor or oppose such legislation
on protective lines. 1t goes without saying
| that the present ways and means commit
tee will prepare purely protective meas
| ure Revenue will be an incidental con-
| sheraton. In fact, protection with Incl
| dental revenue has been openly avowed
| by leading member of the committee as
| the principle which will rule him and his
| fellow Republicans in their work. On the
other hand, the Democrats declare for reve-
nue. with incidental protection, and thus
the issue is clearly joined.
The Republican Idea.
| In giving hearings to the representatives
| of various manufacturing industries the
| Republicans are true to their theory. They
| ~, Loxx oh
| protection any given industry needs to en-
| able it to compete successfully with its for
eign rivals. There is no better way, they
claim, than to call upon the men who are
in the business who know it's every detail
and changing condition, who know what
| fluctuations there have been in the cost of
raw material, in labor, in the use of labor
| saving machinery and new devices Hav-
| ing obtained all this Information, at first
| hand, of a practical and presumably wholly
reliable Sort the Republican idea is to go
to work and condense into schedules the
| reasonable demands of the manufacturers
! themselves. In this way, and in this way
| only, according to the Republican notion,
| can foreign goods be kept out of the market
1 to sufficient extent to give work and pros
| perity at home.
1t has happened in the past in the max
| ing of tariff bill that almost every de-
| mand or request or suggestion made by
| the representatives of the manufacturers
has been accepted by the committee. For
instance, the lawyer employed to represent
the interest of certain man ufacturers' as
ISOLATION has made bis argument before
! the committee and at the close of his speech
has said to the chairman:
sHere is a schedule which would be sat
isfactory to my clients. 1t embodies our
ideas of what should be done. I beg leave
respectfully to file it with the committee. !"
The chairman takes the document, hands
it to the clerk, it is filed away, and when
the time comes is turned over to the sub
committee having that particular industry
| in charge. 1t has CHANGED in the past that
when the tariff bill was reported it was
found to have in it the schedule submitted
by the manufacturers lawyer, without the
change of word, letter, figure or fraction.
Protection Policy.
Right here is where the Republicans
and Democrats, the protectionists and the
revenue reformers, join issue. The first
admit the method which l have indicated
is followed in the making of a new tariff
| law, though not without revision by the
committee. But they say it is all right
Their argument is that the men who are
engaged in these industries know what they
| need One manufacturer may be depended
| upon to keep watch of another and the
committee to check any exOrbitant de-
mand. In this way, they declare, the pol
icy of protection is made to do the most
possible good, giving manufacturers
chance to compete with foreign makers at
a reasonable profit, to pay good wages to
their men and to keep their wheels turn
ing and the smoke pouring out of their
factory chimneys In no other way, &C.
cording to the Republicans, can prosperity
be restored to this country. They are hon.
est and earnest about it and in the presen t
case mean to have the courage of their con-
victions
The Democrats and tariff reformers, on
the other hand, say this is an improper
method. They claim as matter of prin-
ciple that revenue should be the first desid-
eratum in the making of tariff bill, and
that if any protection follows incidentally
that cannot be helped and may even be
desirable or at least unobjectionable. But
the system of allowing manufacturers vir-
tually to dictate what rates of duty shall
be paid upon the articles they are interest
ed in, they claim, is wrong as a matter of
|
ton. 1t leads to great campaign funds
with which to debauch voters. 1t places
the government in a sort of copartnership
with all the manufacturers in the country,
giving them so much protection in return
for so much political influence and assist
ance. The Democrats who are genuine
tariff reformers claim this system is OF its
very nature such a one that 1T cannot be
honestly carried out. They ask: Where are
the representatives of the consumers!
Where are the men who must pay all the
prices which the tariff helps manufacturers
to fix?
With Us Always.
In this way these hearings which the
ways and means committee is now giving
serve to afford an object lesson in the whole
tariff question. On one side appears to be
lot of practical sense and on the other a
great deal of honorable conviction as to the
true function of government. Both sides
are honest, and both are earnest The
manner in wi ich the Democratic members
of the committee are cross questioning the