Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1906-08-23
The President Addresses a Letter to
Congressman Watson, Of Indiana.
REVISE TARIFF WHEN NECESSARY.
When 1t Will Do More Good Than Farm
wOuIdn't Change Leadership Of House
Would Limit Hours for Railway En-
plOyees-Pats Cannon on the Back.

New York, Aug. 20. "A letter writ
ten by President Roosevelt to Congress
man James E. Watson, Of Indiana, re-
viewing and approving of the work of
the present Congress and declaring:
ITO change the leadership and organiza-
ton of the house at this time means to
bring confusion upon those who have
successfully engaged in the steady
working out of the great and compre-
hensive scheme for the betterment of
our social and civic conditions, was
made public today through the Republi-
can congressional campaign committee.
The president also declared that such a
change would result in hurtful Oscilla-
ton between the extreme radical and
the extreme reactionary. The president
also said that he hopes the present Con-
gress will enact laws prohibiting pOliti-
cal contributions by corporations, lower
ing the duties on imports from the
Philippines and limiting the number of
hours for railway employees.
On the tariff, Mr.. Roosevelt says:
1--WE stand unequivocally for protec-
tive tariff and we feel that the phenom-
enal industrial prosperity we are now
enjoying is not lightly to be jeopardiz-
ed, for it would be to the last degree
foolish to secure here and there small
benefit at the cost of general business
depression. But whenever a given rate
or schedule becomes evidently disad-
vantageous to the nation, because of
the changes which go on from year to
wear in our conditions, and where it is
feasible to change this rate or schedule
without too much dislocation of our sys-
TEN. it will be done; while general re-
vision of the rates and schedules will be
undertaken whenever it shall appear to
the sober business sense of our people
that on the whole the benefits to be de-
rived from such changes will outweigh
the disadvantages; that is, when the
revision will do more good than harm.
Let me add one word of caution, how
ever. The question of revising the tar
iff stands wholly apart from the ques-
ton of dealing with the so-called
trust that is, with the control of mo-
nopolies and with the supervision Of
great wealth in business, especially in
corporate form. The only way in which
it is possible to deal with those trusts
and monopolies and this great corporate
wealth is by action along the lines of
the laws enacted by the present Con-
Sress and its immediate predecessors.
The cry that the problem can be met by
any change in the tariff represents,
whether consciously or unconsciously,
an effort to divert the public attention
from the only method of taking effec-
tive action.
Mr., Roosevelt says that if only par
tisan issues were involved in this con-
test he should hesitate to say anything
publicly in reference to it, but he does
not feel that this is the case. He feels
that "all good citizens who have the
welfare of America at heart should ap-
preciate the immense amount that has
been accomplished by the present Con-
eress, organized as it is, and the urgent