Omaha daily bee., 1903-04-03
TRADE NEEDS THE TARIFF
Secretary Root Scores Those Who Seek to
Abolish Protective Duties
WOULD GIVE FOREIGN FOR HOME TRUSTS
Result Would he TO XIII American
Industry and Promote Outside
Prosperity at Expense of
United states.

BOSTON, April 2.-speaking tonight at
the annual dinner OF the Home Market club
Secretary Root dealt with the democratic
demand for tariff revision. He said in part:
A useful but trying class of our fellow
citizens has recently turned It's attention
to the protective system. If we had been
a free trade country they would have been
protectionists. AS we have long been pro-
tectionist country they are free traders.
To them are Joined the members of the
democratic party who desire a change in
administration and certain good men who
urge real revision Of the tariff which
they believe will make IL a better protective
tariff than # is now.
am not going to argue the question Of
protection and free trade. The second ad-
ministration of Cleveland is not so COM
pletely forgotten yet that that question
needs to be argued in this country now.
Next, 1 assume It to be true that the peo-
pie are now enjoying a period of extraor-
dinary and unexampled prosperity, ana l
assume that we do not want tnat prosperity
to end.
should Keep Successful Law.
II a law is working well as a whole. COM
mon sense requires that we should endure
some faults, even though they be serious,
rather than destroy the general good eff
feet by constant tinkerlng.
make and change tariff laws without dis
cussion or delay, but 14,OOO000 voters can
not. The effect of this unnecessary discus
siUn furnishes the chief rea son why revl-
sion should not be undertaken until IL be-
comes a real necessity The moment the
discussion begins, uncertainty begins, with
the manufacturer, the farmer, the mer-
chant.
A second consideration is that you can
not set rid of trusts by revising the tariff,
unless you are ready to reduce the duties
on the classes of manufacture in which the
so-called trusts are engaged to such an
extent as to put an end TO all American
manufacture. When that happens, as
trusts are the feature of the day in for
elgn countries, free trade and protection
list alike, you will have substituted the for
eign trusts for domestic trusts, and the
prosperity of foreign workmen for the
prosperity of American workmen.
The question is whether there are really
existing evils TO be cured as great as the
evils TO be endured from the long and
difficult process of revision. In determin-
ing when and how that process shall be
undertaken, two cardinal rules should be
observed.
First 1t should be done only when con-
gress Is as free possible from the dis
fractions and temptations Of an active po-
Htical campaign.
Second, the tariff should be revised by
Its friends Whatever principle the people
Of a country wish to have embodied in a
tartn law, the men who believe in the
principle should frame the law. II the
American people are ready to abandon the
principle G; protection and face the crash
and downfall of our present prosperity,
which would Immediately result, then they
should hand the revision over to the demo-
cratic party, and that is the meaning of
the men who are crying revise the tariff
in order to destroy the trusts"