Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1909-04-22
ALDRiCH BILL NOT IN LINE WITH
PLEDGES OF MAJORITY
PARTY.
CLEVER WORK ON A FEW SCHED
UlES TO QUIET PUBLIC
CLAMOR.
MANY SECTIONS SAME AS DING.
LEY LAW-OTHERS
DISAPPOINTING.


dering minstrel bill; a thing of shreds
and patches, surely cannot be the tar
if measure Senator Aldrich told Presi-
dent Taft would be satisfactory to the
ultimate consumer, and would fulfill
the Presidents campaign pledges OF
| an honest revision and a revision,
mainly downward" of the schedules
Why, it isn't even a complete bill. A
string of schedules of lariff imposts
means nothing. The most important
features OF the tariff bill are not yet
framed and reported to the senate by
| the finance committee. The matter of
maximum and minimum schedules is
still left open, because the republican
members Of Mr.. Aldrich's committee
cannot agree among themselves what
form they should take. 1t is impossi-
bic to tell what the new tax Ievies on
imports will be until this feature of
the new tariff law is agreed upon.
Another controversial and important
feature of the Payne bill. the Ameri-
can valuation clause, is ignored in the
present Aldrich bill. If the American
wholesale price is to be made the
basis of valuation for fixing duties
on consigned goods. instead of the
| foreign price as at present, the whole
effect of many Of the schedules viii
be entirely changed. If this plan is
made effective the cost of many items
upon which the duty has been appar-
emily reduced will be increased, and
| their cost to the ultimate consumer
will be greater. The matter of the ex-
! tension of the drawback privilege is
! another important section of the tariff
| law upon which the senate commit
! tee has not been abe to report an
| agreement. The ultimate consumer
has yet to get the frs glimpse of evil
dence that either the senate or house
intends to keep the pledges that have
| been made in their name. If one may
Judge from the Payne and AIdriCh
bills not even an honest attempt has
been made at an honest" revision.
Not in Line with Promises.
! All of the advance information, all
of the inspired tips and leaks
from the senate finance committee
room while the Aldrich bill was franz
ing. we're that the senate proposal
would be thoroughly satisfactory to
President Taft and to the ultimate
consumer. 1t was to be a scientif-
icaIly designed and constructed bill to
meet the present deficit in the reve-
nues. 1t was TO be such a complete
change of the Payne bill that its
house makers would not know it. 1t
was to be conceived and drawn on
broad lines, and not according to the
usual practice of matching the de-
mands of one tariff thief" against the
other Is it any of these things? Is
it any more than some triling meas
IRE and modification Of the Dingley
rates intended to be made into law as
quickly as possible on the plea that
the pressing and urging demand of
business" is for the immediate enact
ment of a new tariff law?
While pretending to ignore the pro
ceedings of the house, the senate
leaders, in framing their substitute
tariff bill appear to have taken the
house attitude deeply into considera-
ton, and to have paved the way for
some frst-cIass dtckering in the con
ference committee. The senators
have shrewdy avoided the pitfalls Of
the house, and have paid due atten-
ton to those items upon which the
public attention is focused BY with
holding its judgment on the maximum
and minimum feature of the Payne
bill. and by failing to specify the
drawback and valuation provisions, by
ignoring completely the inheritance
tax provision of the Payne bill, and by
seeming TO leave open 10 the judg-
ment of the senate such contested
schedules as hides, lumber, wood
pulp, and print-paper, merely by put
ting in a tentative suggestion as to
what they might be, the committee
has also opened the way for log
rolling. 1t is generally believed here
that the senate committee intends
that the coming tariff bill should be
framed in conference, and hat it has
laid its lines accordingly.
Revisionists viii Be Heard From.
Fortunately. no rules of closure OBJ
tain in the senate. and there is moth
ing 10 prevent the ardent tariff revi-
sionfsts from saving exactly what they
think about the tariff bill in their own
way. and in their own time. A num-
her of the western senators, who were
pioneer tariff revisionists, including
Senator Cummins, La Toilette, Bever-
idge. and others. are preparing to
train their guns or the pending legis-
latfOn not entirely with the hope OF
having their suggestions enacted into
lew now. but with view to inform
ing the country OF what has really
beer. accomplished in the present revi-
sion. and. particularly. what has not
been accomplished.
TT is rue to a limited degree that
the senate bill does make more reduc-I
tons in the Dingley law than the
Payne bill passed by the house, but
the house bill made reductions in the
more essential items affecting the
great bulk Of The ultimate consumers,
while the senate committee has spe-
c;a1ized its reductions more in the in
terest Of this or that manufacturer.
The senate, like the house, has not