New-York tribune., 1909-02-19
BELPFUL CONVENTION.

Tho resolutions adopted by the Permanent
Tariff Commission Convention are notable for
tbeir moderation They do not ask the impos-
sihle II is the earnest desire OF the country
that the Dingley tariff be revised at the extra
session of Congress which is 10 be called next
month. The Republican party is pledged 10
make a revision without delay. Part OF lhe
work has already been done, since botn Ine
Ways and Means Committee Of the house ana
the Finance Committee of the Senate nave peeLL
aware for some time that they would be called
on to beat a new law into shape between
March and July, 1909. To propose that the
nsssere of the new law should be delayed IN
iii q tariff commission could be appointed and
master the situation would have been the
height OF folly. The next tariff law viii nave
70 he prepared in the old way, and the IND
IanspoIis convention freely recognized that fact
The rough-and-ready system Of apportlonlng
urotection will have to have another trial. the
country hoping for the best under the clrcum-
stances
But the convention was right In demanding
that adequate provision should be made in the
new law for future revisions more exact and
scientific In character. IT is TO the interest of
the countrv that so complicated and delicate
a problem as adapting the system of protecuon
10 national needs should be taken out or poll
tics and il can be taken out or politics only 0!
committing II to experts not subject to political
and sectional pressure and able TO subordinate
local preiudices and cIamor TO the general good.
It is no reflection the members or the COM
mittees in the two houses of Congress who
frame tariff bills to say that they lack, as
rule. the expert knowledge required to make
a tariff They can give only small part OF
their time TO the task, for they have many
other legislative and political duties. The mem
hership of those committees IS continually
changing. Congress is in recess one year out
of every two II would be unnatural TO expect
men TO master all the details of cost Of pro-
duction and TO be able to estimate the effects
of tariff rates on home industry and on foreign
and domestic trade. when they can give only
scant and interrupted attention to tariff prob
lens A body sitting the year round and occu-
pied continuously with that one task would
produce better results and exert much greater
authority.
Another trouble with the present method Of
tariff making is that Representatives and Sen
ators feel natural obligation to do the best
they can 10 serve their particular constituen-
cles. and are usually more interested IN appeas
ing local demands than in legislating for the
general benefit II one can get what he wants
for his state or district he is willing in the
main to allow the same privilege to his asso-
ciates but when interests conflict. personal and
political influences often carry the day against
logic and reason. Tariff making has been too
often division Of spoils among the strongest
regardless of the effect of such q division on
our industrial and commercial development.
commission trying to do its best for the
nation and not for one section for a few
interests would 90 far toward solving the tariff
problem to the satisfaction of a large majority
of the people of all sections.