Staunton spectator and vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1896-1916, 1909-07-09
WASHINGTON LETTER.
From Our Regular Correspondent.

FROM Our Regular CO11eSpOuueHIJ
Washington, D. C., July 5.-Develop-
ments in connection with the tariff de-
bate during the past week have been
far from devoid of humor. Democrat
ic Senators generally have come to take
a philosophical view of the schedules.
They have done their best, at least a
majority of them have, to secure lower
duties and resultant relief for the con-
sumers, they have succeeded in some
small degree and failed in majority
of instances and they have now reach
ed point where they can look calmly
on at the work of their Republican
brethren and extract from the situation
all the humor which it affords.
On Monday consideration of the cor
poration tax amendment was begun.
By a clever manipulation eff those de-
bate rules of which he is past master,
Mr. Aldrich acquired for the corpora
ton proposition parliamentary situa-
ton which for the time being preclud-
ed its amendment and rendered uneS-
capable a direct vote on the Taft pro-
position. This was the occasion OF
disappointment to the Democrats, some
of whom, at least, believed that were
the income tax to come to a vote tirst
it would be adopted. The majority,
however, even of the Democrats, real
lied that the work of the President had
been too well done to permit of any de-
feat of his plans. They have, there
fore, set back contentedly, mere look
ers on in Venice, and have derived a
large measure of enjoyment from the
antics of Aldrich, Hale, Elkins, and
other High Priests of the old school of
Republicanism, as they tramped dog
gedly along like prisoners of war tied
to the tail of the Presidents chariot
and sought to give an imitation of en-
joying the proceeding. Mistaking the
judicial temperament and calm. good
natured exterior of William FL. Taft
for the old-fashioned conservatism of
the Mckinley type, they have, to their
discontinue, at least partially awaken
ed to the fact that they have caught as
great a Tartar as Roosevelt whose
methods are different but whose radi-
calism is no less. In fact behind the
closed doors of their committee rooms
some of the most extreme Republicans
are declaring that they have placed in
the White House a Democrat in dis
quise and one infinitely more danger
GUS to the Republican party than Mr..
Roosevelt, as his methods are more
subtle and his good nature more seduc-
tive.
When Senator Aldrich, standing be-
fore the Senate as the legislative father
of the corporation tax, undertook to eX-
plain that measure, he but lily yelled
his mate hostility to it, frankly con-
fessed that he espoused it only as a
means to defeat the income tax, and
predicted it's repeal within two years.
''This means that the corporation tax
will be killed in conference" shouted
some of the most violent opponents Of
the measure in Republican ronks
''This means nothing of the kind,'' re-
piled the President in effect, talking tt
group of newspaper correspondent
at the White House. ''It means only
that Brother Aldrich hates the corpo
ration tax, that he accepted it only be
cause he was in tight place and hat
to come to me for assistance. His pre-
diction that the measure will be repeal
ed in two years is perfectly harmless
If he can CLEAN some small degree o
comfort from that prediction, have NJ
objection. But I know that once thi
tax goes into operation and takes TIVE
million dollars year from the Stand
ard Oil Company and its subsidiar.
companies, almost as much from tn
Steel Trust, nearly as much from tn
Sugar Trust, and at the same tim
places on public record in Washington
statements of the profits made eacl
year by the trusts and protected intel
ests, the American people will neve
permit its repeal. Ten Senators fror