The Washington herald., 1907-07-20
Revision sbould Not Be Postponed.


The plan of the Republican leaders TO
postpone revision of the tariff until after
the Presidential election of 1908 ignores a
vital question Of immediate and pressing
Importance, which can be met only by
reduction of Federal taxation We refer
10 the immense and increasing excess of
government revenues over expenditures.
The Treasury surplus now amounts to
over $S7,000,OOO It shows no signs of
diminution; IN fact. competent authority
/ estimates that the excess revenues Of the
! present fiscal year will far exceed those
OF the fiscal year just concluded. What
! justification can be offered by stand
patters for maintaining a revenue system
which is piling up in the Treasury i'm
! mense sums taken from the pockets of
citizens for no legitimate purpose what
eve-?
! Ellis II. Roberts, former United States
/ Treasurer, in the North American Review.
/ justly characterizes the surplus as "a
real monster eating into the earnings and
/ savings of the producing millions" 1t
drains away the iife-bloOd OF trade, and
congests in the hands Of government the
! funds needed for moving the crops and
for supplying capital for new enterprises.
/ Mr.. Roberts declares that mo iinancier,
no statesman, would include in a scien-
tifc system such a drain from the COM
munity without definite object" He peril
nently asks whether il IS not high time
20 heed the concerns Of the individual
citizen, and let him keep as much as
may be Of his wages and property" He
thinks the surplus should not be permitted
20 grow for single month after Congress
can act 10 stop It, He points out that
the revenues Of the government can be
diminished without raising strife over
tariff schedules by simply making fat
reduction in all present rates of revenue.
Mr.. Roberts ampliies the idea thus.
The suggestion is natural to extend the free
list ty C. score Of millions OF more II a ma
jority can be rallied FOR such measure. Tc-y
well; but is that possiblcl Not q few viii insist
that tobacco. besr and spirits can easily afford 10
pay the tax now levied. and that the internal
revenue should stand without change. Then OBJ
lection viii be urged that the customs duties
should not alone bear the whole reduction which
would take of per cent from the schedules as
they stand Such diversities force practicsl legis-
lation back 10 the plain plan of uniform dis
count from all the present charges to an amount
equal 20 the surplus Of lsE
That would be l3 per cent on the total revenue
Such mobilization on the tariff and internal
ruTonue combined could not be STYLED drastic or
harmful. while the reduction. If cast on customs
schedules alone would be more radical than has
been advocated BY rvvisiouists or champions q
tariff reform.
Here is a practical remedy for the ad-
mitted evils Of a huge Treasury surplus
evils that ought to be forced upon the
attention of Congress at its next session.
II has the merit OF avoiding controversy
over the principle Of protection. a con-
troversy which both parties appear
anxious to escape. While it does not
propose TO rectify the inequalities Of the
present tariff schedules, a horizontal re-
dUction doubtless would accomplish some
thing In that direction. Anyway, II would
reduce the revenues and cut of n Treas
ury surplus daily growing more unwieldy
and more dangerous.
But we see no good reason why. in
dealing with the problem Of the surplus.
the tariff should not be revised so as
to conform with the business needs and
conditions Of to-day. Such a revision
would not necessarily involve serious po-
itical differences. Republican revislonists
and Democratic revisionists are not so
far apart that they could not agree on
the main features Of a new tariff bill.
The protective principle is no longer in
danger from Democratic attack indeed.
It would be impossible 10 obtain united
Democratic support for a tariff measure
that was not avowedly protective in char
aeter. This being true, it is entirely
within the power Of practical statesman
ship 10 carry through both Houses of
Congress at the coming session a tariff
bill that would neasurably satisfy all
parties, all sections. and all interests
save the extremists on the one side who
insist on standing pat. and the extremists
on the other who would destroy the pro-
tective system as the sum of all vii
lainies.
Would not such an achievement take
the tariff question out Of politics more
effectually than the postoonement of re-
vision until after 1908, a proposal which
gives the Democratic party a splendid
opportunity TO make the question vital
issue in the next Presidential campaign2
Tn-Z