Los Angeles herald., 1910-01-07
FAITH UNFAITHFUL

4
II been conducting an analytical in
~ vestigation of senatorial records,
with some results which are of keen in
terest to citizens of California. Senator
Flints achievements have come in for
especial attention.
According to La Follette's Flint was
a gold medalist among the program
In the whole senate only three senators
(Kean of New Jersey and Smoot and
Sutherland of Utah) surpassed Flint in
slavish devotion to the Aldrich pro-
gram. Out of 127 roll calls Flint voted
with Aldrich 1O9 times and never once
against him. When he failed to vote
with Aldrich it was merely because he
failed to vote at all.
"It was Flint who declared that, going
through these tariff laws from one end
to the other you will find that the tariff
is not a material factor in the selling
price to the consumer; but the price
which the consumer pays for an article
is caused by reason of the eXorbitant
prices charged not only in department
stores, but stores throughout the coun-
try in large cities and small towns.
This profit is from so to 100 per cent on
these articles, and 1 think I can estab-
lish that to the satisfaction of the SEN
ate and the people,
This he undertook to do by the illus
tration of a toy which cost 5 cents to
oh, I1a x1rnc 60
cent, and which he said was sold at
retail for 25 cents. Another illustration
which he offered to support the argu-
ment was of a suit of woolen clothes,
the cloth for which he said cost $3.50,
on which the duty was $3.50, and the
price of which to the consumer he said
would be $50 to $40. He claimed there
fore, that the $3.50 duty was no factor
in determining the price of the suit to
the wearer.
"Whereupon Senator Tillman wanted
to know. if such were the case, why the
committee on finance did not give him
the 1O-cent duty on tea with which he
desired to encourage tea growers Of
South Carolina To which Hale, an
swering for the committee, said if Till
man had a real industry there, the
Republican party would adopt the
bantling' But Tillman, more frank
than the rest, and more frank than was
good for his tea tax, admitted that his
South Carolina tea eXperimenters, like
the others in this country who are
seeking to increase their profits de-
sired this duty because they wanted to
raise the price of their tea and increase
their profits. And, he continued, and
his statement taken from the Congress
sional Record is perhaps a sufficient
answer to the argument that the tariff
makes no difference 4 do not believe
in the doctrine which the senator
from West Virginia, Mr.. Scott, and the
senator from California, Mr.. Flint,
have promulgated, that the tariff has
nothing to do with the price, else why
are these protected industries so clam
orous, why are they burdening us with
their petitions through the mails and
why were their committees and lobby
lists in the house when this bill was
pending there, and why are they in the
senate now, begging with tears in their
eyes not to touch mine."'
after Senator Gore of Oklahoma
called the bluff of the finance commit
tee by introducing a resolution direct
ing the committee to investigate and
report to the senate upon the subject
of these import prices, manufacturers
prices, wholesale prices and retail
prices, less was heard of these imputa-
tions against the retailers and mer-
chants. The blind senator quoted
reputable merchants who loudly pro-
tested that the excessive profits at
tributed by Senator Flint were un-
true, and that the figures which
he gave for retail prices were
wrong. OF course Cores resolu-
ton was sent to the pigeonholes of the
finance committee by a vote of the
senate, and Of course also Flint and the