Gainesville daily sun. (Gainesville, Fla.) 190?-1938, 1907-12-20
PoLiTlcAlL 'pRoNisEs.


promises to the Newspaper Publishers
Association, after fashion, by recon-
mending in his message that: There
should be no tariff on any forest pro
duct grown in this country, and, in es
pecial, there should be no tariff on
wood pulp.V II Congress should carry
out the Presidents recommendation
by abolishing the tariff tax on forest
products and wood pulp, such action
would be entirely worthless to the
consumers of print paper, because the
price Of print paper would remain the
same. Such an amendment to the
tariff law, would, however, be of great
advantage to the paper trust, for it
would give the combine free raw ma
terial, which is now taxed, if'bleached,
s. a ton and 1888 per ton II Chemical
ly prepared, or $1,66 per ton on ground
wood pulp in its raw state, all these
rates being on the basis of dry pulp.
This would still Leave the average
tariff of SO ton on paper and pro
tect the trust fro9s the importation
of foreign.made paper from Canada
or elsewhere. Why did the President
not fully redeem his promise to the
Newspaper Publishers Association
and include in his recommendation to
Congress the repeal of the tariff duty
on paper? That would force the paper
trust to compete with the Canadian
paper mills and probably would re-
duce the price of paper about $40 a
ton, which is the amount of the tariff
tax. without allowance for the differ
ence in freight rates from Canada, and
those rates charged from the point
of distribution of the trusts products |
in this country. The stapdpatters who
control Congress also seem to have
a ring in the nose OF the President
which prevents him from advocating |
any tariff reform before election. For
he tells Congress that the subject
cannot with wisdom be dealt with in
the year preceding Presidential cleo
ton, because as matter Of fact eX
perience has conclusively shown that !
at such a time it is impossible to get |
men to treat 1t from the standpoint of |
the public good" In my judgment"
says the President, the wise time TO |
deal with the matter is Immediately !
after such, election" Fancy Cannon,
or Dalzellj or any of the Hog Com.
bine" reforming the tariff bv reducing
it! Their desire is to reform It higher.
So Speaker Cannon has just declared
70 the Pottery Combine and no doubt
Congress will postpone abolishing the
tariff on paper, though to help out the
paper trust the tariff tax on wood pulp
may be repealed.
AS newspaper publishers are suffer.
ing from the high cost OF paper with
no chance Of relief under Republican
rule, why do the Republican editors
still stick to protection? They
know that if the Republicans elect the
next President and the next Congress
there will be no real tariff reform. for
the Republican platform will agbin de
clare Tor the principle OF protection
A party which believes in the tarif
that protects he trusts cannot be eN.
pected 10 deprive the paper trust, or
any other trust. of the protection il
now ENJOYS II would undoubtedly
help the people 10 reform the tarif,
but to uproot the protective system
the President tells Congress could
not but cause widespread disaster
Yet. by the declaration In the last Re
publican National platform upon
which Mr. Roosevelt was elected and
which he heartily endorsed the voters
OF the country were induced 10 believe
that prosperity always follows a Re-
publican tariff The question natur
ally arises could W. be- suffering rom
a more disastrous panic than IN" pres
ent one II the tariff had been revised"
Someway the boom OF senator Know
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