The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-11-28
|T0 REDUCE TARIFF
ON IRON. srEEL. AND METAL PRO-
 DUCTS.
chairman sereno 0. Payne Replies To Letter From J. w. Van Cieave' who Declined To Appear
 Before The Committee.

Washington, Nov, five are tully aware that the bill reported from the committee will be judged by the people not In the light or view of those wise prophets or critics who. are judging 1t In advance. but in the light of what will be learned from the bill itself and from an examination of the material before the committee.
 In these words, Serene C. Payne, Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. today replied to the letter from J.. W. Van Cleave. Presi- dent of the National Association or Ma nufacturers.
 ,"of course if you have no inforna- tion at your disposal which would aid the committee in the formation of a bill, I can understand your retusai to appear If you have such informa- tion, I cannot see why you do not ac- cept the invitation which has been extended to you, and which Is still held out to you should you reconsider your determination" concluded MT. Payne.
 In his letter to the Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee. which was in reply to an invitation to testi- fly at the tariff hearings before the committee, Mir. Van Cleave says:
 we would rather bear the ills or the Dingley tariff than to be party to a tariff revision made in the old manner. To appear before you 10 plead for certain schedules would be to aeouiesce in the superficial and un- business like methods of investiga- ton against which we protest. We have carefully watched all the state ments that have been made by you and your associates in recent years and instead of convincing us of the errors of our ways, we are more than ever convinced that your present plans of gathering information on which the re-adtuHtment is proposed to be based, is wrong, radically, absurdly, fatally wrong"
 Charles H. sherrlll, of New York. who appeared today for the import CTS automobile salon. favored a reduc- ton in the tariff for automobiles. He charged that there is an automobile trust which expects to get the duty on automobiles increased.
 "Instead of an infant industry which is seeking protection at the hands of your honorable committee" said Mfr. Sherrill, ''it could more properly be called a trust. The Ameri- can manufacturers of automobiles are divided into two large groups. one the Association of Licensed Automobile Manufacturers, which is organized about the so-called Selden patents and the other the American Motor Car Manufacturers. which does not owe allegiance to the Selden patents. The Selden patent is an ingenious device to maintain a high price for auto the HgnnfAG1uFATH.
 From the testimony offered before the Ways and Means Committee of the House at Wednesdays tariff hearing, 1t is evil dent that some reduction. possibly 10 to 20 per cent. will be made in the duties of iron, steel and metal pro duets when the new tarin bill Is framed.
 No schedules of the tariff have been so difficult of interpretation by the appraisers as that covering metals and their nianufactures.
 Numerous recommendations have been made to the Ways and Means Committee for changing the wording making new classifications and pro- schedule. Among the articles for which it Is proposed to make specific provision are steel wire or shavings diamond steel. steel grit, iron sand and similar articles; steel saw plates. crucible plate steel, steel circular saw plates. steel strips. knives, chrome metal, ferromanEanese, manganese metal, tungsten and similar metals; manufactures of mica and allies and all other mixed metals not specially provided for.
 J. H. Mutt. employed by the Vest ern Bar Iron Association. including plants In Ohio. Indiana. Illinois and Missouri. asked that the same differ entials between steel and tiron bars be observed. and that the duties be high enough to maintain the small es- establishments.
 John W. Walton of Cleveland. O., as a dealer, importer and consumer of wire rope, asked that the duty on that article be reduced.
 If you want to raise revenue. you should reduce the rates" advised Mir. Walton. Now the American manufac- turer gets all the benefit and the Gov ernment nothing for the rates are prohibitive."
 Nelson Lyon, Secretary Treasurer of a company manufacturing wire articles at Tarrytown N. r.. asked for a re- moval of the tariff on pig iron. He claimed that if the entire tariff had been removed from pig iron during the last year. the American manufac- turer would have received Sl65,OOO,OOo more than they received for the pro- duct of 1904. In that year. he added, a profit was made, flor the steel trust does not produce unless 1t produces profit"
 Mr. Lyon said that the removal of the duty on pig iron would mean reduction of cost of $500 on his out put of wire articles. amounting to $40.- 900 year.
 How much would that reduce the price of egg beaters for the consumer" dueried MT. Cochran.
 wei. they are very cheap now" re- piled MT. Lyon.
 "Would you reduce your prices s4 a ton?" insisted Mfr. Cochran.
 q hope l would be able to do so," replied Mfr. Lyon.
 In an attack on the steel trust" Mir. Lyon said that during the panic last fall "our great and good President Roosevelt who rules our land in right eousness, allowed the steel trust to turn