The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1909-07-23
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER
Washington, D. c., July 18th, 1909
Mr.. Editor -

The Republicans in both houses Of
Congress have been treated to an extra
ordil Try and in many instances most
unwelcome surprise during the week
just ended. Misled by the genial ex-
terror and apparently easy-going dis
position of William Howari Taft they
elected him President and then pre-
pared for an administration which
would closely resemble that Of Presi-
dent Mckinley. The events OF the
past week have brought them to real
ization that their President has a will
of his own that behind his ever present
smile there is a determination which
bodies i'll to the "stand patters" in his
party. Twenty-Five Republican mem
bers of the House marched on the
White House in solid phalaux, last Fri
day, intending to read the President a
lecture becaus he was eXerting his in
f1uence with conferees to induce them
to place hides, iron ore, petroleum and
coal on the free list and to accept the
House duty of 81 thousand feet on
lumber, which is just half the Dingley
rate. They approached the White
House with most militant spirit and
gave some broad limitations to the
newspaper correspondent in the ante
room of the very bad half hour in store
for the President. They came away
looking like set of boys who had
been caught stealing apples and the
later conf essed that the President had
ridiculed them, had lectured them, had
charged them with selfishness and mar
rowness and then calmly Informed them
| that he, with the whole American peo-
pie for his constituency, had a much
| broader point of view than they did
| regarding any commodity which was
| produced in their respective dis
tricts. He told them, moreover, that
he construed the Republican platform
as pledging the party to tariff revision
downward and that he purposes to do
all in his power to accomplish full
| fillment of that pledge and that the
wisest thing they could do would be to
| go back to the House and wait for an
opportunity to vote for tariff bill
embodying his ideas.
Before this conference the President
| had explained his views to the con-
ferees of the houses. He had explain
ed to them, laughing all the time, that.
if they were genuine frie nds of Spea-
ker Cannon instead of putting a duty
on petroleum, as he wanted them to
do, they would put petroleum on the
free list because that would prevent the
| speakers being reIegated to private
| life at the next eit ction. He told them
that tue American people did not be-
lieve that the duty put any money into
the pockets of the farmers, but that it
did large amount into the treasury of
the Beef Trust and that the people did
not like that and would punish the
| party which continued the tariff on
hides. lie assured them that ma
| jority of the voters would interpret
| duty on petroleum as tribute to the
Standard Oil Company, and a duty on
| iron ore as tribute to the Steel Trust,
and any duty on lumber higher than the
House rate as tribute to the Lumber
Trust, and any duty on coal as tribute
to the Coal Trust and he hated awfully
to think of what would happen to a
| political party which the people held
responsible for taxing the consumers
to swell the profits of these trusts. He
| told them that he had nothing very
much at stake because his position was
known to the people. They appreciat-
| ed that he favored tariff revision DOWN
ward and besides his term did not ex-
pire until 1918, but he was
awfully sorry sorry for all those poor
Republican members of Congress who
must stand for reelection in 1910 be-
cause then the indignatio of the voter
would be at white heat and they would
visit it on the poor memb ers of Con
| gress. And when the President talked
this way the conferees saw the point
They agreed to accept his Recommended
tons if he could secure the votes in
Congress to effect the adoption of the
conference report after they had re-
duced the duties as he wished them to-
After his conference with the dis
gruntled Republican members, the
President gave to the press statement
of what he had said to them He dictat-
ed the statement himself and made it
| good deal milder than his remarks
actually were, but it is believed to be
plain enough to effect his end and to
bring down on the opponents of revis-
ion downward amount of condemna-
ton which will make them glad to
accept the conference report with all
Of the Presidents ideas embodied there
in.