Los Angeles herald., 1909-05-13
SAYS MONOPOLY
HAS CONTROL OF
TOBACCO FARMS
KENTUCKY'S SENATOR PLEADS
FOR TARIFF CHANGE
INTERESTING POINTS BROUGHT
OUT IN DEBATES
Blind Lawmaker from Oklahoma
Makes lmpassoned Address-Phil-
ippines Free Trade Protest In
dorsed by Commissioner
[By Associated Press.l

out the payment of duty of cents per
pound, Senator Paynter of Kentucky
today laid before the senate a history
of the tobacco industry in this country.
He declared that the tobacco growers
believe they are in the grasp of a con-
scienceless monopoly" and adverting to
the tobacco troubles in Kentucky, eX-
pressed the hope that the enactment
of the proposed law would remove the
causes which have provoked these
troubles.
Continuing, he said:
1.-The manufacturers have no right to
demand, as a matter of protection to
them, that the farmer should not be
permitted to sell his tobacco in the nat
| ural leaf to WhOmSOeVer he pleaSeS.
when the internal revenue laws were
enacted, the government made no prom
Use to manufacturers that the farmers
should not be permitted to sell their to-
bacco in the natural leaf to the con-
sumers through the fundamentally of
their Venders."
When Senator Paynter had concluded
his Speech Senator Culberson took the
floor to comment on recent court de-
cisions in litigation against the tobacco
corporation instituted by the depart
ment of justice.
He said circuit court judges of the
United States had expressed the opinion
that this trust was a monopoly and eX-
listed in violation of the laws of the
United States"
One Touch of Humor
A touch of humor was introduced
when Senator Gallinger laid before the
senate a petition from his constituents
in New Hampshire praying that a re-
duction of 10 cents a bushel be made
in the duty on wheat.
AS the title of the petition was read,
Mr. Gallinger glanced toward the sena-
tors in the wheat growing states, many
of whom have figured prominently in
the movement for lower duties on the
manufactured products of New Eng
land Senators Nelson, Burkett and
McCumber and others exchanged sig
nificant smiles with the senator from
New Hampshire, but no comment was
made.
Senator Simmons offered an amend
ment reducing window glass rates be-
low those suggested by Senator Cum
minis in his amendment yesterday.
At the close of long debate on the
glass industry Mr.. Hale declared that
the tariff duty had no relation to the
protective duty levied to build up the
manufactures in this country.
Speaking of foreign competition, he
continued:
"There never was a time when the
profound policy of the German empire
J has been so strong as today in the de-
termination to invade the American
market. The man is blind who does
not see that almost every manufac-
turer in this country is met by this
determined invasion upon our indus
tries by competing industries of Ger
many to obtain our markets"
Blind Senator's Defense
Oklahoma, delivered an impassioned
defense of retail dealers against any
charge of eXtortion.
Senator Gore declared the senate had
turned itself into a grand jury and lis
here ready to return verdict against
the retail dealers for the high prices
of articles used by the American peo-
pie, and the senator from Maine has
constituted himself foreman of this
jury.
1.-The manufacturers and trusts are
undertaking to hold up the middlemen
and retailers as a shield to protect
| themselves against the outraged con-
sumers. | stand here to enter a plea
of not guilty for the retailers of this
country"
Mr.. Gore named shoes, hats, shirts,
clothing and other articles as being
sold to retailers under contract that
they should be sold at an agreed price.
During discussion of the profits of
window glass manufacturers by Mr..
Newlands, Mr.. oliver of PENNSYLVANIA
objected that there is not a widnow
glass manufacturer in the United
States today who is making anything
like a fair profit.
Il speak with feeling" said Mr..
Oliver, because within four years L
have invested no small amount of
money in the manufacture of window
glass and L tell you it disappeared as
rapidly as though I had put 1t in the
wrong number at Monte Carlo"
Agree to Amendments
Committee amendments relating to
marble and stone manufactures were
agreed to.
When the section relating to iron
ore, on which the committee had rec
commended duty of. % cents ton,
was read Mr.. Crawford opposed plac-
ing a duty on natural products of the
country in such as lumber, oil, iron ore
and coal.
MIR. Rayner gave notice that he
would move to place iron ore on the
free list.
Mr.. Crawford declared that so far as
the cost of labor in Canada and the
United States was concerned there was
no difference in the lumber industry
and that none of the arguments used
to justify the protective tariff could be
applied to it.
Referring to the oil industry Mr..
Crawford declared the Standard Oil
company had been shown by the bu-
reau of corporations to have prospered
by gross unfairness and the violation of
every principle of honesty and decency.
Reviewing the history of the United
States Steel corporation in respect to
it's attitude toward the independent"
steel producing concerns, Mr. Crawford
said:
One of the pathetic things that has
come under my observation here is the
desperate appeals made to members of
this senate by men of small means
struggling along with small factories
imagining that they are really indie
pendent concerns.
Helpless as a Mouse
"They are as helpless as a little
mouse that attempts to play on the
carpet in front of feline that can
crush it with it's paw. When we think
we are helping them we are simply
strengthing the big corporation that
can absolutely crush them at any mo-
ment."
Members of the senate finance COM
mittee are working nightly on amend
ments to the tariff bill relating to sub