The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1909-02-17
TARIFF COMMISSION.

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which mas money enough to squander
it recklessly. The problem is not how
to save money but how to spend it
This fact has made America almost
fifty years behind the times, in the
matter Of the tariff.
Germany since Bsmark's time has
made rapid progress in its bids FOR
the worlds trade by initiating Amer
ica's., protective tariff. Indeed it has
gone farther than this-it is no longer
ia question of protection. it is ques-
ton of reciprocity. In this way she
occupies a far different position than
she did in the time of the principal
titles.
America on the other hand has con-
tented herself with an iron-clad sys-
tenn of schedules which, though in
earlier days actually encouraged man.
lufacture, today is a serious drawback
to our own manufacture in charging
their markets.
Germany in making her tariff call
ed all her experts, thousands in
turers and her agriculturists to her as
sistance and succeeded in making a
tariff which was elastic enough to
give her all the market she nee ded
by reciprocity and at the same time
protect her own market.
Though Germany spent years on
this policy, the U. s. since 1880 has
had three tariff upheavels, with an
other in sight, without calling in the
service of experts and left it to two
committees in congress who passed
on the schedules on an average of
four months.
The question now confronting the
American people is not only whether
these disastrous upheavels are to con-
half Of the worlds trade from an in
elastic tariff. Mr.. Taft, unlike Theo-
dore Roosevelt, has liking for the
tariff problem. His letter to Mr..
Henry Risenburg of the tariff revision
convention, in which he favored a
bureau or commission of technicians
who should collect data in a scientific
manner from which tariff schedules
might be based, as opposed to the old
method of haphazZard and dishonest
committee legislation now in vogue, is
timely message.
Whatever may be the outcome of
the present convention in Indianapo-
lis land it may be years before any
thing happens) the public must re-
alize that the manufacturers of the
country have no AK to grind in fav
oring tariff commission or bureau.
They must realize that it not only
means better tariff for the manufac-
turers, but an increased buying pow
er of every silver dollar in the work
mans wages. They must realize al
SO that the only foes of this move
ment are those protected interests
which are now making millionaires
American people. In such situation,
the people can trust Mr.. Taft and the
70 ~,
they can certain trust barons. The
time has come when the tariff should
not be played with for the spoilation
of American trade. If bureau is
conducted along the lines similar to
those laid down in the convention a
congressional committee cannot come
before the American people as it did
recently and say That We know
nothing concerning wood pulp, al
though we have labored for almost
four months" If this is the conduct
of the committee on the case of one
schedule, what would be its action in
revising tariff which has thousands
of schedules contained in it? Almost
every European country has tariff
bureau which aids it in charging its
trade.
A congressman would not dare to
stand for reelection in the face of
such evidence us would be presented
by the findings of a tariff commission.
The American public must not
think that a tariff commission would
solve all the troubles OF never end
ing question like the tariff, it would
simply mean that congress in the flu
ture would not have any nice lace
curtains made of elaborate lies to
hide behiud the future