Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1904-05-12
LOOK TO IOWA MEET
INTEREST ACUTE THROUGHOUT
NATION IN COMING REPuRLl.
GAN CONVENTION.
Expect New Tariff Plank viii BE
Adopted - Contest, If There Be One,
VIII Be Largely On Theoretical
Question.
[BY H. J. MAHIN.1
Washington Bureau Of the Courier.
Washinqton, D. c., Nav fl,

[BY H. J. MAHIN.l
Washington Bureau Of the Courier.
Washington, p. c., May II.
Republican leaders look forward to
the republican state convention of
Iowa with more interest than that of
any other state in the union.
The platform is the point about
which all interest centers.
AS has been stated heretofore the
tariff will probably be the dominant
issue of the coming campaign; it is
going to have close race with trusts
but will probably carry off the palm.
In the light Of recent events the Iowa
platform will undoubtedly have some
thing to say about the tariff and what
it will say is awaited by party leaders
with intense interest.
There has been a sort of indefinite
under current floating about in Wash
ington for some time which gave out
the impression that the republican
party intended to do some tariff tink-
ering after the election. Lately, how
ever, there has arisen a very strong
sentiment In opposition to this pro-
posed action and denying that it was
ever considered.
1t is understood that the majority
of the Iowa delegation before they
left Washington cwere Of the opinion
that it would be impossible to attempt
any reaffirmation of last years plat
form at the convention this year. Most
of the delegation admitted that an en-
tirely new tariff plank would be neces-
sary. bob" Cousins in his speech
to HIS convention last week uttered
the keynote of the new movement. He
then warned his hearers that he was
afraid that some good republicans
were beginning to be somewhat affect
ed by the storm of democratic clamor
that had arisen against the tariff and
were in danger of giving away lit
tie when in reality the party should
take a new hold on its principle Of
protection.
The Iowa convention will be watch
ed by the entire country because OF
the prominent place Iowa has taken
of recent years in tariff controversies.
The platform it adopts will have great
effect on the entire campaign. From
theoretical point of view there. will
undoubtedly always be contest over
the tariff, but from practical point OF
view it looks as though neither party
could ever reduce the tariff very much.
The expense of running this govern
ment has now reached an enormous
sum and that money is obtained from
the operations Of the tariff. If the
democrats should get into power and
cut off the tariff they would immediate
ly find themselves with a hopeless de-
felt on their hands. They would have
to cut down the expenses OF the gov
eminent to the point where the people
Of the nation would protest. The army
and navy would have to be cut down
to dangerous point. The people
would of course expect the democratic
party to run the government as liber-
ally as the republicans and they could
not do SO without the tariff. They
might Of course put on some other sort
of a tax but it would have to be one di.
rectly on the people and would be i'm
measurably more unpopular than the
tariff ever was.
Since the higher duties under the
Dingley schedules produced greater
revenue than did those under the Will
son law, it is presumed that any revi-
sion attempted by either party would
be in lowering the tariff wall and
therefore cut down revenues. 1t is in
teresting to see what would happen
under these circumstances at the
treasury from which congress asks
about a billion and half dollars reg
ularly every two years.
The Wilson law in 1895 produced in
customs revenues 1852, 1857; in 1896,
$3.50 ,O21,751; in 1897, $176,554,126.
The Dingley law produced in 1899
s2O6 ,12s,4S1, In 1900 $233,164,S71, in
1901 $238, 585, 451. in 1902 $685., 44,7S1,
in 1903 $2S4,479,581.
But 1903 was high water mark even
under the Dingley schedules. The in
come has begun to fall gradually. In
the meantime the expenditures are in
creasing. Since July 1, 1908, they
have been s449,153,59S and for the
same period of last year they were
s43O ,999,855. There have been increase
of more than ten and half millions in
civil and miscellaneous expenses, OF
more than s170C0000 in the navy and
more than 100000 in pensions. The
navy only cost about $78,000,000 in
1903 while the total expenditures for
this year are $s4, 4o3 900 or two and a
half millions more than it cost last
year. And yet neither party would
go before the country and advocate the
abandonment Of the navy expansion
because it was costing money.
The downward movement of the
Dingley revenues in the opinion of
Secretary Shaw and his customs ex.
perts will continue and there is expect.
ed to be even greater reduction dur
ing the next fiscal year because of the
business depression which invariably
accompanies presidential campaign.