The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1909-07-08
LETTER FROM HON. j. T. WATKINS.
WASHINGTON, d. c., July /, 1909.

posed the mass meeting, which was held
at Homer on June 26th are not my constit-
uents, many of them are my personal
friends, for whom | have high regard,
and believe that what state will be duly
considered by them. No names were
mentioned in the resolutions which were
adopted; but the inference is that the entire
delegation in Congress from Louisiana did
those things which are condemned by the
mass meeting. Such is not the case. The
members of the House Of Representatives
from the Fourth and Fifth Congressional
Districts of Louisiana did not vote for the
Cannon rules, nor did they vote for the
tariff bill They voted against both.
When the members from Louisiana, who
did vote that way, went home they were
welcomed with cordiality and banquets
we're given in their honor. 1t is not to be
inferred that the resolutions passed will
effect them. The members from the Fourth
and Fifth Districts of Louisiana have at
tended every Democratic caucus held in
Washington and have voted with the party
on every proposition submitted as party
question. Lumber is the only item in the
tariff bill upon which they voted to place
a tariff, and this vote on that item was to
reduce the present tariff rate on lumber
one half. This rate takes all protection off
of lumber and puts it on revenue basis,
which is clearly shown by the Government
statistics.
Twenty seven Democratic members of
the United States Senate voted on the
proposition to put lumber on the free list.
OF these, seventeen voted against putting
it on the free list and only ten voted to do
so. These Senators, some of whom gave
their blood for the South and would sur
render their lives for a just cause, did not
believe that they were violating their
pledges to their party when they voted this
way.
The Democratic platform had one plank
declaring in favor of tariff for revenue.
/ Another clause contained the statement
that lumber should be put on the free list.
One of these propositions was just as
binding as the other. They selected that
one which would produce S3,0OO,OO0.0O in
revenue for the Government, without rails
ing the price of lumber one cent, and thus,
to all intents and purposes, leaving it on
the free list, as announced in the platform.
When Hon. William J. Bryan was
member of Congress he voted against the
repeal of the tax on State Banks. This
was June 6, 1892.
After this, the National Democratic Con-
vention was held and plank was inserted
in the platform declaring in favor of the
repeal of this tax on State Banks, which
would place them on the same basis as
| National Banks. At the session of Con-
gress which followed this declaration in the
Democratic platform, on June 5, 1894, Mr..
Bryan voted against the repeal of this law,
declaring that he was not bound by the
platform.
Mr.. Bryan has three times since then
been made the standard bearer of the
Democratic party, and the good Democrats
who composed the mass meeting voted for
him as the Democratic nominee for Presi-
dent of the United States, without chastis-
ing him, or questioning his democracy.
No pledge to the party was violated in
voting for revenue duty on lumber.
The Democratic platform contemplated a
Democratic tariff bill. Whether the Dem
ocrats or the Republicans won, tariff bill
was necessary. The Democrats lost and
had to take Republican tariff bill and
with it raise revenue and at the same
time protect the interests of the people as
best they could under the conditions which
confronted them.
The Senate has raised the tariff on lum-
ger fifty per cent from what it was when it
left the House of Representatives; but |
trust that we will be able to pass the income
tax amendment and tax corporations, and
in this way be able to reduce many of the
tariff schedules, and at the same time raise
enough revenue to run the Government.
l am opposed to any protective tariff on
any commodity; but as the tariff bill now
being framed is, as a whole, protective
measure, and, as such, taxes the great
masses of the people, think the incomes
OF that class of people, who are made rich
by this protection, should be made to bear
a just proportion of the burdens of the
Government, and that all incomes, whether