The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1909-07-23

Washington, July 23.-President
Taft will sign the conference commit
tee tariff bill. There will be no veto.
The conference committee tariff bill
will be at least the equivalent OF the
Dingley law. and probably then some.
Senator Cummins issued a state
ment yesterday, which can be sum
married. in the one sentence that one
swallow does not make a summer.
The Cummins' statement shows that
few free raw materials do not con-
stitute a downward revision of the
Dingley tariff law. The Iowa senator
points to wool and cotton, glassware
and carthenware, and few other
items in which the consumer is vital
ly interested and the tariff conferees
not at all. to Judge by their indiffer-
ence to them.
1t seems to be by no means certain
that the president will even secure
these free raw materials which he
has been demanding for the last few
days. The talk now is of a accent
or Accent duty on coal, which Is a
reduction from the 67-cent rate of the
Dingley law to be sure, but 40 or As
cents higher than the reciprocity with
Canada provided in the Payne bill. OIL
will undoubtedly be free. The inde-
pendents. even, seem to have given
up their fight for duty. What they
had from the senate was but the
ghost of duty. countervailing
rate. Senator Burrows is still stout
against free iron ore. Whether 1t is
| free, or pays the 20 cents per ton of
| the senate bill, Is not proof of the
tarff having been revised downward.
1t seems to be settled that rough
lumber will pay $1.25. When the
house fixed the rate at 81 in the
Payne bill. despite the apparently
| general demand for free Iumber. that
was counted as a defeat for the re-
visionsts and a substantial victory
for the standpat crowd. which is
enough of comment on $1.25 lumber.
| The standpat crowd is satisfied that
hides will carry at least Z per cent
| duty, some of them talk of 10 per
| cent, and these standpatters call the
| proposed general reduction of the
leather schedule n joke. Here Is one
point which the real revisionists, how
| ever, are still hopeful of carrying. II
hides be put upon the free list and the
leather schedule is also reduced there
will have been real revision In this
one schedule at least
| The Republicans can also poin;
with pride to the reductions in steel
and iron. Department stores may be
expected to put such steel rails as
they sell upon the bargain counters
and the driver of dray will be
able to buy his structural steel rather
cheaper than before. There will still
remain, however. the Dlngley rates
or worse. on wool, cotton, glassware
and earthenware, to name but -four
schedules.
Serene Payne. sole hope of the re.
visionists on the conference commit.
tee, told delegation of clothing men
here yesterday to protest against tho
steep wool rates that they were "toc
late" President Taft to whom the
delegation first appealed, referred II,
members to Payne. All the delega.
tion did was 10 offer sound evidenc,
that combination of woolen manu-
facturers has already boosted prices
in woolen textiles. which mean,
higher prices for clothing all around
Some enthusiastic apologists fol
President Taft and his Constitution
al" method of dealing with congress
insist that he Is now revising tn,
tariff downward. He told the clothin,
men to go to Payne and Payne said
TOO late"
Yesterday Payne had the hous,
conferees meet separately from thei
senate colleagues. The meeting be
gan with an ultimatum from Payn,
that the other house members mus
stand with him for downward revision
and ended with the agreement of tn,
house conferees, including Payne, oil
the senate cotton schedule. BY
clever combination of specific with a,
valorem rates the senate boosted thi
cotton schedule, which covers abou
all the articles of clothing not in
cluded In the woolen schedule. Their
has been lot of talk in the last fey
days about a reduction in these cot
] ton rates by President Taft. Payn
and the house conferees had the Gus
toms experts before them this after
noon and the customs experts con
vinced them of the righteousness O
4
clares that the government custom
experts are about the cutest custom
experts In the world. He is for them
SO are the cotton manufacturers.
Now. On the whole, looked at iron
the standpoint of the day after, tn
Tart after dinner method of dealinl
with congress does not seem quite 8,
enective as the big stick of his dstin
guished predecessor. At least the at
titude OF the standpat crowd, afte
last nights White House session, wa
one of relief
Moreover Senator Cummins issue,
his statement, which he held bacl
to see the results of that dinner o
last night. Cummins was at the Whit,
House for breakfast this morning
too, and yet he issued his statement
The gist of this Cummins statemen
is that President Taft is being bun
koed on this tariff game. After hear,
L m N H. -