The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1908-12-24
AIdr:ch. Burrows and Payne
Will Be influential in
Next Congress.
FEW TARIFF BUILDERS
HAVE HELPED CONSTRUCT
MORE THAN TWO TARIFF
LAWS.
BY Sheldon S. Cline.

Washington, Dec 24.-If experience
In legislation counts for anything. the
men who will have the most weight
when the 61st congress comes to con-
sideration of the new tariff bill will
be Senators A1rdich and Burrows and
Representative Serene e. Payne. The
latter is chairman of the house COM
mittee on ways and means and the
two senators named are members Of
the committee on finance, Mr.. Aldrich
being it's chairman.
A brief study of the personnel of
the two houses of congress will dis
close that there is a scarcity of states
men familiar with the important sub
ject of tariff legislation. The tickle
ness of the voters of the average con-
gressional district results In retiring
a member of congress before he has
had opportunity to become familiar
with the machinery of legislation,
much less an expert on SO profound
= subject as the tariff.
Experience Necessary.
Experience In constructing tariff
legislation is Just as essential to a
thorough accomplishment of that task
rs legal experience is to the lawyer
who hopes to be successful before the
courts. Simply this experience is de-
MED the average member of congress
by reason Of the briefness of his SER
vice, 1t is probable no tariff law ever
will be constructed which does not
somewhere within it's text conceal IA
voritism that was put there because
the men on guard were wanting in
legislative experience.
Aldrich's Long Service.
There will be only three men in the
next congress who have helped to con-
struct more than two general tariff
bills. Senator Aldrich was a member
of the committee on finance and the
chief aid of the late Senator Morrill,
of Vermont when the Mckinley, Will
son and Dingley tariff laws were pass
ed. These acts were approved as fol-
lows: Mckinley law, October /. 1890;
Wilson law, August "a, 1894, (becom-
ing effective that day without the
presidents APPROVAL; Dingley law.
July "a, 1907. Senator Morrill, died
shortly after the Dingley law was
passed, and since then Mr.. Aldrich has
been chairman of the senate finance
committee. Senator Burrows of Mich
igan, now member of the senate fin
ance committee, was member of the
house ways and means committee
when Mckinley was its chairman and
served on the senate finance commit
tee during the construction of the
Wilson and Dingley bills. Chairman
Payne, of the house ways and means
committee, succeeded to that position
upon the death of Nelson Dingley. He
was member of the house commit.
tee when it prepared the Mckinley
and Wilson bills, as well, and the bill
to be passed next year will bear his
name.
Hopkins Is Veteran.
Mr.. Hopkins of Illinois, now a mem.
Der of the senate finance committee,
and representative Dalzell of Pennsyl.
vania, now of the house ways and
means committee, have assisted in the
preparation of two tariff measures, the
Wilson and DinAey bills. Both gain
ed their experience on the ways and
means committee, of which Mr.. Hop
kins was a member until he succeeded
William E. Mason in the senate in
1908
Senator Bailey of Texas, member
of the finance committee, was a mem
Der of the house ways and means com
mittee when the Dingley law was en-
acted. Senator Lafollette of Wiscon.
sin was member of the house ways
and means committee when Mckinley
was it's chairman, but in the senate
is not member of its committee on
finance. Omitting any reference to the
war tariff exacted for the purpose OF
raising money with which to fight the
war with Spain and which did not in
volve any change in the general prin-
ciples of taxation, these seven men
are the only ones who will be mem.
hers of the 61st congress who have
had any previous experience in com.
mittee in the framing of tariff bills.