The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-11-22
A Bargain
TARIFF LINE DRAWN
REPUBLICAN ADMINISTRATION TO
 MAKE FIGHT.
New Administration, it Is Sound will Go After the BenehciOus--Taft
 in Expected to Lead.

Co After the BcneiciOus-Taft
 ia Expected to Lead.
 Washington Special by Walter We'll
 manto The Record Herald.
 Tariff revision for the people or for the special interests isthe greatest question now before Congress. Presi- dent Roosevelt. President Taft the selfish beneficiaries of the tariff on the other. The latter apparently have with them the speaker of the House of Representatives, the ways and means committee and the con trolling oligarchy in the Senate. We thus have before us the prospect of a merry war between the brogressives and the standpatters of the Repubh- can party, with the outcome in great doubt
 President Roosevelt has written a letter which. read between the lines, as it was intended to be, indicates clearly enough where he stands, Alvin H. Sanders of Chicago. president of League, wrote the President he had heard the high tariff advocates in tended to rush revision through the short session of Congress which comes to an end March 4. In reply the Presi- dent says he has not heard of any such plan and adds: T entirely agree with you that such course would be improper and l will not consent 10 fl"
 
 As a metter of fact there had been talk of rushing through a revision bill" without waiting for the special session which President Taft IS to cAii The plan was to give the special Tn. terests what they wanted and have it over with as quickly as possible. In support of this plan the argument was used that talk of revision wou1n produce uncertainty and act as . ae. ANFA tS this idea % has been abandoned. No one now seriously talks of revision this winter and nothing Is to be at tempted at the short session excepting preparation for the work to be aone at the extraordinary. session in the spring. Railroading through revi- sion for the interests was a little too much and even without the opposl- tion of PresIdeat Roosevelt 1t is prob able the scheme would have talIen down of its own weight.
 What President Roosevelt means in his letter to Mir Sanders is that MT: Taft was elected In part on saEIH siIa there is belief the new President stands for revision for the whole peo- ple-for the consumer as well as TOT the producers and manufacturesi Ihat there is general faith President Tatt will do everything in his power 10 realize the popular expectation. Such being the case, President Roosevelt means that no snap Judgment VIII pc to the Taft administration elected on that issue; that the tariff must pc deliberately and carefully revised ana that the incoming President shall ,aii have ample opportunity to redeem ms upon his party and upon Congress-
 Meanwhile Mir. Roosevelt is devoting his energies to an effSrt o to nnisn d1o,np UP Istratton. One of the un finished things Is the overhauling of the Sher- man antitrust law. Congress was against the President on this ques- ton last winter. but MT. Roosevelt has not given up the fight. He is now after Congress again and will fake up the cudgels in his annual message, now just ready for distripu. ton. This Is the real slghlncance ol White House last night. The Presi- dent wants to bring about an under standing between the railroad mana gers and the labor leaders which will make 1t practicable to present to con gress a dehnitfve scheme. He has the idea that the managers Of corpora tions and the spokesmen for labor do not get together enough, do not understand one another's point or view. He wants to do all he can 70 promate exchange of opinion among them and good relations generally; tIerca fHene inc so-called "labor dinner" There are to be other such gatherings during the winter, and the particular purpose which the President has in mind Is amendment of the sherman inc administration programme. The winter session for the Roosevelt nolicies or unfinished work; the spring session for the Taft policy of tarin revision for the whole people
 To-day number of public men were talking of the tariff outlook. one made the remark already gwen in these dispatches, that the hrst ana greatest test of the new Presidents eourage as leader was to come on tbis tariff issue Has Mir. Taft the nerve to grapple with the special in- terests and their friends tn the House and Senate and compel reaSonae!e replied one of MT. Taft's friends anu associates, who was in conference with the President-elact at the White House last Sunday "Watch MT. Tatt inetn him to secure falr play. and Q reYision which is not all upward. He knowsthat many of the people who voted for him did so upon the oellet that he would stand Tor square ueai. Mark my prediction-he will mako good.
 senator Carter of MoneR9a, who was at the White House to-day. suR- Eests the possibility that the Republt- can party may satisfy public opinion on tariff revision without serious overhauling of all the schedules if it will put on the free list such com moIities as lumber and coal, neithor of which needs protection any moro Senator Carter pointed out the absurdity of spending millions. year 10 protect onr forests while keeping n tax of $2 on lumber to encourage the destruction of our timber re- sources as rapidly as possible. If the ways and means Committee should take up this suggestion and propose to put lumber and aoal on the free list the lumber and mining interests would have a hundred senators and representatives knocking at the door of the committee-room the next morn ing. each with a protest in his hand
 
 One of the most extraordinary con tributions to the tariff discussion Is a letter written by Charles Francis Adams. the Boston publictst. to Re- Mccall. 8 member of the wayR and means committee. Taking