The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1909-12-09
Says Republican Party Has
Changed Front, and This Is
Only Beginning.
ALSO HANDS OUT SOME
ADVICE TO BANKERS
Declares Financiers Must Adopt
Public, and Not Private,
Point of View.

BUS lON- MISS. DcC o. hat III"
Republican party has changed front
and is now marching toward lower tar
IFS, and that in tins movement the
Payne tariff bin was only an incident,
was the interesting statement made by
Secretary of the Treasury MacNeagh
at the annual banquet Of the Nassa'
chusetis Bankers association tonight,
Three hundred persons attended:
Opening his address with i brief ref
eTeuce TO the currency situation, Secre"
tary Mac Ncagh made Il plea before the
Massac cbusetts Bankers ASSOCIATION TO-
night that the banking interests realize
the gravity of the issue, and declared
that unless the bankers succeeded ia
adopting the public point Of view In.
stead of the private one, they would
lose an opportunity to influence greatly
the coming legislation on the subject.
Puts Tariff Paramount.
That was all the secretary had 10
say on currency, and he passed to a
discussion of the tariff and the Payne
law. He said III part:
'ln considering the results of the
recent tariff legislation il is indispcn-
sable in my-.iudgment TO keep two i'm.
portant factors in mind.
"Thc first is that the Payne law is
but an incident in tariff revision
movement by and within the Repub.
hcan party, sanctioned and undertaken
by the party itself and advocated by
President Taft in Office aud out of of
fec, and by President Mckinley with
almost his last words
The second is that it is the re.
sultant effect of the movement which
is important TO take into account and
estimate, and not. essentially, ANYTHING
else No one expected this great move
mcnt TO complete itself in a single act
OF legislation, and if was expected TO
be quite clear that the legislation, en-
acted last August, did not end the
movement for tariff revision.
Passing of Log Rolling
The opinion is practically universal
that we have seen the last of the log
rolling system of legislation upon such
an important subject that. hereafter
such legislation must be based on facts
and knowledge aud scientific iuvcstiga-
tIou, and not on mere barterinG between
sections and different interests
'There is one great fact that makes
a new tariff epoch. That fact is that
the Republican party has changed its
front. Whereas. il has been marching
toward higher and higher tariff, II has
now faced about. 1t has recognized
changed conditions.
1T is true that the Payne bill does
not contain as much downward rcvi.
sion as the great majority of the mem
hers of the Republican party had
wished. II did not contain as much
of that revision as the president wished.
But the Payne bill, as it passed the
house, was an Intentional aud avowed
revision downward AS ii now stands
il is a practical confirmation of the
new policy Of the Republican party,
Not Satisfactory Bill
Personally l sympathizc with the
new tariff policy Of the Republican
party. but | most heartily believe that,
Notwithstanding the we'll Acknowledged
limitations of the revision contained in
thc Payne bill, it ought not to be ac-
ccptcd by friends of tariff revision as
satisfactory achievement under all
the circumstances. | believe that We
ought not TO have expected anything
else but a step followed. Within pc.
riod far short of the lapses and inter
walls of time heretofore dividing tariff
rcVisions. we may go forward along the
same conservative lines.
Secretary MacVcagh predicted that
the tariff board would prove itself
competent to cope with any situation
which would be proper for a tariff re-
vision. He declared he believed il a
great mistake to minimize that part OF
the recent tariG legislation,