The Globe-republican., 1902-11-20
States, and Members or the Fifty
Seventh Congress:

States, and Members OF the Fifty
Seventh Congress:
I'VE, the undersigned. citizens,
taxpayers and business men of the
United States, believe that any whole
sale revision of our tariff schedules
inadvisab1e. such action is sure
to seriously disturb business cond1-
lions and cripple many business en-
terprises. But realizing, as we do,
that it is only question of time when
some changes must be made In these
sch edu1es, to provide for such
changes we respectfully and most
earnestly petition you to enact, with
out unnecessary delay, such leslsia-
ton as may be necessary for a BIZ
partisan and permanent tariff COM
telllgently assist congress to make
such changes in our tariff and reci-
prOcity laws, from time to time. as
may be found necessary
Busy men are apt to sign and re-
turn this petition without stopping to
think that it contemplates the crea-
ton of something which we already
have and do not need The country is
low provided with tariff commission
that is both permanent and bi-parti-
SAN AS a matter of fact, we have
two tariff commissions of this BIZ
partisan character. First, the House
Committee on Ways and Means and
the Senate Committee on Finance.
acting separately at first and after
ward concurrently, and having full
charge of all tariff matters. Second,
and auxiliary to this, have the
Board of United States General APP
praiserS, a permanent body of BIZ
partisan (supposed) tariff experts,
composed of five Republicans and
four Democrats-that is to say, fiv+
protectionists AMI four free traders
holding Office for life, during good
behavior, and subject to removal only
for cause and by death.
The two committees of Congress
are made up for the most part of men
who have made the tariff a special
study and hence are familiar with it's
relations to the industries and the
trade of the country taken as whole
and also taken in all its parts They
are men who know, for example, that
a protective tariff must be uniform
and fair in it's operations; that you
must not deprive one interest of pro-
lection for the benefit of another in
terest which retains its protection.
Along these and parallel lines these
men have framed all our tariff laws,
and just as the committees have had
protection free trade majorities, SO
have they framed protective free
trade tariffs In short, a permanent
bipartisan commission taking it's
1 overs and its instructions direct
from the people, and from no other
source.
Not a bad sort of tariff commission
one would think. One of it's very best
features is to be noted in the fact
that this permanent bipartisan tariff
commission lets the tariff alone for
years together and never touches it
at all save when ordered so to do by
the votes of the people In this way
business and industry and trade go
along with certainty and safety. They
know where they are att all the time,
Should we improve this if had
additional body of bipartisan ire
sponsib1es who, as Andrew Carnegie
expresses it, would have to be doing
something with the tariff all the
time?
commission, which we already have,
the United States Board of General
Appraisers, these functionaries, some
CT them protectionists and some FREQ
traders, afford a splendid example of
the idea of bipartisan responsibility
as worked out in tariff matters. They
often reverse themselves, and are
still oftener reversed by the courts
You never know where to find them.
Their rulings have been SO varied, so
confusing, in many cases so ridicu-
1ous, so essentially and so character
istical1y "bi-partisan'' that Congress
has for some time past had under
serious consideration the passage of
q Dill IeS1SIaC1nS Inem out OF once.
Originally constituted to serve as an
Intervening Quasi-judicia1 body which
should tighten the 1abors of the regu-
lar courts, this bipartisan tariff COM
mission has muddled and messed
matters as to add materially to bust
ness uncertainties and the labOrs of
the regular courts.
We would suggest that business
men. before signing the New York
Commercials petition, should ask
themselves
what is to be gained by the crea-
ton of third bipartisan tariff COM
mission that shall have no final iuris-
o1ction or authority, and whose func-
tons shall consist in part in volun-
teering to Congress advice which
Congress does not need and will not
heed, together with the continual
stirring up of things which had bet
ter be left alone until Congress gets
ready to stir them up2''
Would not the proposed perma-