Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1909-12-09
Republican Party Has Changed
Front and is Marching To-
ward Lower Duties Declares
Secretary MacVeagh,
INTERESTING ADDRESS
TO BAY STATE BANKERS
Work Of Recent Extra Session
Mere Incident in Fixed Policy
of Majority in Congress,
Cabinet Object Believes


IBy Morning Journal Special Leased Wire
Boston. Dec. S.-That the repub-
lican party has changed front and is
now marching toward lower tariffs
and that in this movement the Payne
tariff bill was but an incident, was
the interesting statement made by
Secretary of the Treasury MacVeagh,
at the annual banquet of the Massa
chusetts Bankers association here to-
night. Three hundred persons at.
tended the banquet.
Opening his address with "A brief
reference to the currency situation,
Secretary MacVeagh made a plea be-
fore the Massachusetts Bankers as
s%ociation tonight hat the banking in
~terests realize the gravity of the issue
and declared thai unless the bankers
succeeded in adopting the public point
of view instead OF the private one,
they would lose an opportunity to in
fluence greatly the coming legislation
on the subject.
That was all the secretary had to
say on the currency and he passed to
"a discussion ct the tariff and the
Payne law. He said in part:
In considering the results of the
recent tariff legislation it is indispen-
sable in my Judgment. to keep two
important factors in mind. The first
is that the Payne law is but IN Incl
dent in that tariff revision by and
within the republican party, sanction
ed and undertaken by the party itself
and advocated by President Taft, in
and out of office, and by President
Mckinley with almost his last words.
The second is hat it is the result
ant effect of the movement, which is
apt to take into account and estimate
and not, essentially, anything else. No
M expected the movement to COM
plete itself in a single act of legisla-
ton and it was expected to be quite
clear that the legislation enacted last
August did not end the movement for
tariff revision. The opinion is prac-
tically universal that We have seen
the last of the log-rolling system of
legislation upon such an important
subject and hat hereafter such legls-
lation must be based on facts and
knowledge and scientific investigation
and not on mere bartering between
sections and different interests.
There is one great act that marks
q new tariff epoch. That fact is that
The republican party had changed its
front. Whereas, it has been march
ing toward higher and higher tariff
and it has now faced about. II has
recognized changed conditions.
ut is true hat the Payne bill does
contain as much downward re-
vision as the great majority Of mem
bers of the republican party wished.
1t did not contain MS much of that
as the president wished. But
the Payne bill as it passed the house
was an intentional and marked re-
vision downward. As it now stands, it
is a practical confirmation of the now
policy of the republican party.
PERSONALLY I sympathize with the
tariff policy of the republican
hut | most heartily believe that,
Notwithstanding the well acknowl-
edged limitations of the revision con-
in the Payne bill. it ought not
be accepted by the friends of tariff
as a satisfactory achievement
under all the circumstances. be-
Iieve we ought not have expected any
else but "a step forward. Within
a period far short Of the lapses Gnd
intervals of time heretofore dividing
Lariff revisions, we may 10 forward
along the same conservative lines
Secretary MacNeagh predicted that
he tariff board would prove itself
to cope with any situation
which would be proper for "a tariff re-
He declared he believed IL a
mistake to minimize that part
II the recent tariff legislation.