The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-07-17
TAFT IS BES|EGED
 BY REPUBLICANS
Delegation Pleads for Aid In
 Time of Trouble
TAFT GIVES PLAIN FACTS
Members of Congress Tell President Their Political Lives Are In Dan- qer But He Merely Laughs
 At Their Fears.

Washington, July 16.-The White House was stormed today by delegation of 23 republican congressman who spent an hour and A half with the President tell ing him that their very political lives de- pended upon the protection of raw ma terals. It has become pretty generally known about the capitol that the Presi- dent has expressed himself quite freely as favoring the free entry of hides, oils and coal and material reductions on lum- Der etc Many of the congressman who composed the delegation represent south ern districts They told the President all most tearfully that they had been elected on the theory that they would protect raw materials in which their people was in- terested and if the party failed to do this their districts would flop back again in the democratic column.
 Mir. Taft listened patiently to all that was said He chaffed the congressman good naturedly at times. Representative Hayes of California made speech in favor of protection of iron for iron ore but the President said he suspected MT. Hayes of being chiefly interested in lem ons. The range of the discussion covered every known raw material and when 1t was all done and through with the Pres ident stated his position.
 He said that he favored protection where protection was necessary and where protection was no longer needed he was in favor of greatly reducing the duty or removing it altogether.
 Question of Facts.
 .'It is merely question of facts, gem l tlemen," the President said to the con gressmen, and in the light of facts we i all want to try to do the right thing"
 The spokesmen of the valiant 23 were Representatives Young of Michigan, who dwelt upon the necessity of placing high duty upon iron ore; Mondell of Wy oming, who is particularly interested in coal; Gaines of West Virginia, speaking for coal and iron Langley of Kentucky, for coal and lumber; Cowles of North Carolina, for lumber; Austin of Tennessee, for coalf iron and lumber, and Hayes of California. MT. Langley put the matter squarely up to the President as a ques- ton of political expediency.
 we came from democratic states, some of us." said MT. Langley. but we were 
 the protection of raw materials. If we fail to protect our constituents we will be revised downward into private life.''
 President Taft remarked dryly that he was as much interested in republican suc- cess as anyone could be-
 Senator Bradley of Kentucky made the twenty-fourth member of the party for a few minutes but left shortly after the con- ference began.
 Official Statement.
 Later in the day the following official statement was made at the White House:
 MT. Young of Michigan opposed free ore; MT. Mondell opposed free coal or , reciprocity with Canada and free hides; each on the ground that the policy would injure the interests In his state. The President replied that he was not com 1 mitted to the policy of free raw material, l but that he was committed to the prin- ciple of a downward revision of the tariff, 1 which he had promised. and that he was obliged to look at the matter not from the standpoint of any particular district but from the standpoint of the whole coun- try, and also from the standpoint of re- sponsibility for the entire republican l party. He repeated the platform of the republican party and said he had always 1 understood 1t meant a downward revision l in many instances, though perhaps in few instances an increase might be need | ed; that he represented this construction 1 of the platform on what he understood to be the principle of protection and it's jus | tification, namely, that after an industry which was protected by duty equal to the difference between the cost of pro- | duction abroad and the cost of produc- | ton in this country, including a fair profit to the manufacturer, the energy and en- | terprise of American business men and capitalists, the effectiveness of American labor and the ingenuity of American in | Yentors under the impulse of competition behind the tariff wall would reduce the cost of production, and that, with the re- | duction of the cost of production the | tariff rate would become unnecessarily high. and ought to be reduced
 This was the normal operation of tho tariff as claimed by the defenders of the protective system not in every case, but as a general rule that of course a revision of the tariff could not be perfect, must have defects and Inconsistencies, but in- solar as his influence went when called upon to act in connection with legislation 1t would be thrown in the direction of performing the promises of the party as he understood them; and that if iron ore and oil and coal and hides did not need protection. and the conditions were such as to enable the ore producers and the oil producers and the coal producers and the producers of hides to compete success fully without reduction of wages with the producers from abroad, then they did not need a duty, and their articles should go on the free list. He said he felt that his position as the tituIar head or the republican party and as President with the whole people as his constituency. gave him somewhat broader point of view than that of a single member of Congress in respect to articles produced In his district He felt strongly the call of the country for downward revision within the limitations of the protective principle. and he hoped to be able to re- spond to that call as he heard 1t. as well 1 In tha interasts of