The Washington times., 1908-11-24
SHEEP BEGIN BUTTING
INTO TARIFF SCHEMES
Plans Are Laid to Knock Present Schedule Wool But
as of Yore Tears Are Ready to Be Shed Cor the
American Ram and Yew

The great American sheep is going to
butt his way into the tarif hearings, IN
the closing days, and make a deter
mined demand for an increase Of the
wool tariff
1t is wonderful what a fierce and mill
tant beast the sheep becomes when ne
starts out on the scent OF a tarlII
schedule His instiI It IS unerring lie
never loses the trail, and when cornered
will fight with the last drop OF his
blood. TO save himself from the degra-
dalton OF competition with the paupef
sheep ONO, not Er"~ 1y-0f Australia
and Argentina.
II seems that the wool schedule Is
really TO be the subject OF determined
attack. The sheep people or the Far
West insist that they are In earnest
when they ask an increase. At present
there is Il cents per pound speclnc duty
on wool. and they want II Increased.
They are coming here fun OF facts ana
figures. TO prove that unless they get 1t
they viii probably be retired nom Dusl-
ness in the next few years. They deny
Indignantly that, in common with many
other interests, they are asking al IN
crease Of their protection, not with
the hope OF getting IL, but in the eXpec-
tation of making a good blum and say
ing all they now have They reaAy
want an increase, and expect 10 con-
vince the committee.
Mckinley Drew Tears
The wool and iron schedules were the
pieces de resistance OF tITtm argument
for MANY wears. Mckinley new the wool
business so well that ne could draw
tears to the eyes of any audience talk
ing about the differences between 1rees
pauperfzed sheep. and the self-respect-
ing. protected American wOOl-grOWeT.
1t used to be especially elective TO tax
about the development Of the wool IT.
dustry in the United States under pro-
tection. But the sOrroWful fact is that
In recent years. despite the restoration
OF protection by the Dingley act and
desDite the fact that Australia has had
a long series OF haTd-luck sheep years
the American wool business has not
been an entire success
The vyooI-gTowing interests out West
want the situation remeC'eu py du 'l5i
more tariff. That is the one splendld,
sovereign specific, in the thought OF TIC
man who has been making y speeiAlLy
of the wool tariff He knows that any
industry can be made prosperous Dy
mo importers Of wooden goods, II Is
reported, are prepared TO make some
thing like a tgnt, this time, Tor a re-
ductIOn in the wool schedules It Is not
clear where the manufactures OF wool
en- goods stand, but IL IS said that they.
too, anxious for cheaper raw material
and convinced that the American wool
production Is gong TO become year by
year more and more inadequate 20 the
demands Of the American market, Will
urge that the consuming publlc-ut
clothes wearing couimunity-be given a
chance. In short, fl IS ciucumstanually
reported that a real EFFORT viii be made
to get the whole merits OF the wool
schedules considered and to determine
whether the annual tax paid by the
clothes wearing community is really Jus
titled by the Importance Of the wool
industry.
Wool and iron were the original back
bones sOf tariff argument Each was an
infant industry, nedIng nurture aHd sIs-
tenance. Iron has apparently JUSTIFIED
the confidence that the early protection
lists had in il. II began an infant and
has grown to be the greatest industrial.
giant IN the world The man whose