West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1905-01-19
OUR washington LETTER.
President Roosevelt still Determined
To Call an Extra Session.
lie wants the Tariff Revised and Rail-
road Rates Established.
From our regular correspondent

80 -. y~u. ~ AVOO-
The President has once more
sent CONSERVATION broadcast among
the conservative members of his
party by assuring members of Con-
gress that there will be an extra
sess ion Of he FIfty-ninth
Congress before next December,
despite the frantic efforts of the
stand-patters to prevent any changes
in the precious schedules which Re-
preventative Dingley made, accord.
ing to his own statement, unduly
high with view to permitting of
virtual reduction through recipro.
city treaties.
No sooner had the word gone
forth that the President and some
of the Congressional leaders had
determined to call special session
in the autumn for the purpose of
revising the tariff than the repre-
sentatives of the protected interests
began to arrive in Washington,
lead by Wilbut f. Wakeman, Sec
rotary of the American Protective
Tariff League. kilograms began
to pour in from all directions, some
pleading, some threatening, but all
declaring that not one jot or title
OF the protection now enjoyed by
the favored interests sho uld be
abated. Representative ID cell
from What someone has cleverly
called "The Steel Trust district of
Pennsylvania "and that grand old
statesman" "grand" sounds so
much better than notorious Gen.
Grosvenor of Ohio, began an active
campaign in the House TO demon
strate to the President and to the
country that the tariff revision sem
timent in the Republican party was
inhnilesimal.
TIT
Meanwhile President Ro osevelt
was sending for members of Con-
gress and reminding them of the
express promises made by RepublI-
can orators on the stump, that the
tariff should and would be revised
"by its friends;" that the Re.
publican party was committed to
no particular schedules and stood
merely for the doctrine of protec.
ton on broad scale. The Presi-
dent warned his bretheren that ii
would be dangerous for them to 90
into the next campaign without hav-
ing redeemed their pledges, but all
to no purpose, apparently, for now
the stand. patters maintain that they
have 1853 members of the House
out of total Republican member
ship of aIo, committed against tar
if revision and an extra session.
1t is probable that this claim is ex-
aggerated but there seems to be lit
tie doubt that large majority is
opposed to any movement looking
to the lowering of the schedules.
Just as the radical protectionists
thought, however, that they had
outwitted the President. he execut-
ed coup which has left his Repub-
lican friends gasping. He declares
that he will call a special session of
Congress, anyway, not to revise the
tariff primarily, if majority of
Congress is opposed to revision,
but chiefly to enact satisfactory
railway rate legislation. The PresIi
dent says, moreover, that he will so
word his call as to permit of tariff
readJustment at the extra session
and he has no doubt that when the
new Congress convenes in a special
session il will see the wisdom of
following his advice and making
the necessary changes in the sched-
ules
ttt
1t remains to be seen what will
be the next move of the radical pro.
tectionists, the patriotic servants of
the Steel Trust, the Beef Trust, the
Standard Oil Company and the rest
of those great corporations which
seek so diligently to benefit and be-
friend the public.
SIS
But for another class Of states
men, the Senators who have cheer
fully helped the President in his ef-
forts TO secure redemption Of the
tariff revision promises Of his party,
the announcement that the Presi-
dent will call session to deal with
the railroad question comes as a
blow in the face. The stern digni.
fed, conservative Senate has so long
prevented any reform IN the super
vision Of railway rates or the pro-
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