Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1907-06-27
WASHINGTON LETTER.
From our Regular Correspondent.

Washington, June 22nd, 1907.
1t appears that the United States has
for long time been armed for tariff
war without any additional legislation.
But this fact was only recently brought
to light by digging up an old statute
that had never been enforced. This
law has been brought into play already
in the tariff dispute with France, and
it is likely to settle the question with
out much further discussion. 1t will be
available for use with any other coun-
try that chooses to take tariff issue with
us, and may thus be rated as valuable
discovery.
1t is an old law under the meat in
spection act of 1890, and provides that
the President in case any product of
the United States is Disseminated
against by n foreign power may select
such products of said foreign power as
seem desirable and prohibit their inn
portation is affective from the time of
the Presidents proclamation, and be
modify, extended or wholly withdraw
such proclamation at any time he sees
fit. This is arming the President with
weapon of retaliation that it would
be hard to equal. The United States
is so nearly self-supporting and besides
has so many quarters of the world to
draw on for all sorts of supplies, that
we would feel the deprivation OF such
law very little. But it would enable
this country to strike any other nation
in its tenderest trade spot We could
prohibit the importation of French
silks of wines to this country and while
we would suffer for neither wine nor
silk, France would lose a market that
she could not possibly afford to part
with. We could cut off the importa-
ton of any or all Germen manufact
ures without feeling it to any extent
but Germany could not afford to risk
her market in the United States 1t is
very sweeping law, and one that
fortunately we have such law will go
far toward helping us settle any foreign
commercial dispute that arises in the
future.
Rather to the surprise of the govern
ment, the bids for the new $4,000, 900
battle ships, SO called, were far below
expectation of the Department. There
are to be two of these monsters, and
they are to be duplicates in many re-
spects of the famous British Dread
naught class They are to be more
powerfully armed and it is likely in
view of the experience of the Dread
naught with turbine engines, that they
will not attempt this new departure in
marine construction.
There were multitude of bids sub
mitted, no less than seven combina-
tions being put in by one firm. There
were bids following the Navy Depart
ment's plans, and there were bids that
followed the original plan as to the
hulls and differed as to the engines.
Others followed the plans as to the
engines and differed as the hulls. Per-
h APPS the most attractive of the COM
bination plans was one for cruising en-
gines of the reciprocating type that are
economical of coal at low speed and
with auxiliary turbines that could be
called into play in emergencies when
speed was everything and economy
nothing.
The lowest bid was from the New
port News Ship Building Company for
$3,9S7, 900, and the next lowest was
from the Fore River Company for
81, 100000. The limit of cost was to
have been $4,000, 900 for the ship with
out guns or ornament and $4,000, 900
tor these two items. But as it now ap-
ears, the ships will cost much less
The President has taken hand in
the salary question that has been agi-
tating the government clerks in Wash
ington and elswhere for some time. 1t
is reported that he has worked out
plan whereby there can be an increase
of pay based on merit, and not a fiat
increase such as has been looked for
heretofore.