The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1910-05-06
TARIFF COMMISSION WOULD
MINIMIZE PEOPLES CONTROL.
Congressman Fordney Is Opposed to
Plan to Create Such a BODY.

Congressman Fordney Is Opposed to
Plan to Create Such Body.
Washington. April 3O.-Congress.
man Fordney is opposed to the es-
tablishment of a permanent tariff
commission for many reasons.
He says: ''The people who advocate
tariff commission contend that
this great matter. most vital to the
welfare and prosperity of our nation,
the arranging of our tariff l,sche dules,
should be placedin the hands of few
non. partisan, unprejudiced men. They
contend this would take the tariff out
of the hands of congies and beyond
the influence of parties interested in
the establishing of certain tariff rates.
In the first place. while it is easy
to say, appoint non bipartisan body of
men. who are absolutely unprejudiced
and who would not be influenced by
their friends or otherwise. l contend
that it would be quite impossible to
appoint such a board. If, as some
people would lead us to believe, the
house of representatives, a body of nearly
400 men, can be unduly influenced in
this matter, how much easier woul d it
be to influence body of say FIVE men?
And again, every man who studies the
tariff question forms some opinion of
his own. He becomes free trader
or believer in the principles of pro-
lection. l cannot imagine man with
knowledge of the question not belong.
ing to one of these two classes, he Ger.
tainly cannot be called absolutely un.
prejudiced and non:partisan on this
subject. During my experience. have
found men to be influenced more or less
in forming their opinions on the tariff
by the nature of the industries in their
respective localities, and it is my firm
belief it would be impossible for five
men, coming possibly from five differ
ent states, to watch and care for the
..e,d DIS of the entire country in the
arrangement of tariff as well as the
3"5 members of the house of represen-
tatives, coming, as they do from every
corner of the United States and its
insular possessions
WOULD ACETATE TARIFF.
Some men say a tariff commission
would do away with the constant agi-
tation of the tariff question, but can
not understand how the permitting of a
commission to change rates at their
discretion could do otherwise than keep
the question of tariff rates constantly
agitated to the great detriment of bust
ness interests. If for no better reason,
such commission would keep the
question before the public to demon
strate their existence, and it would
keep manufacturers in constant appre-
hension of unexpected changes in tariff
rates affecting their welfare, and pos
sibly, their ability to continue in bust
ness
The objection to the establishment of
tariff commission that appears to me
most strongly, however, is that it is
contrary to one of the most funda-
mental principles of our constitution.
Article l. section Z, of the constitution
provides that: All bills for raising
revenues shall originate in the house of
oil. representatives. In the days of the
colonies our fore-fathers knew the
burdens of unjust taxation. In fact,
as all know, taxation without repre-
sentation caused the American revolu-
ton, and later, when the constitution
was framed, the clause, giving the
power Of framing all revenue laws to
men whom the people elected by direct
vote, was considered a clause of vital
Importance to the people. Taxes col
lected on imports form the chief source
of the revenues of our government, and
in face of all this, some people contend
it would be reform movement, bene-
filing the common people to transfer
this power of arranging the tariff
schedules from a body of 395 men,
elected by direct vote of the people, to
body of five men appointed by the
executive.
DERIVES PEOPLE OF RIGHTS.
IF the tariff is not to be entrusted
to the men whom the common PEG.
pie elect, why trust congress with the
solution of any important problem;
and if the tariff is to be eliminated
from the consideration of congress- it
will not be long before the common
people will have little or nothing to do
with voicing the affairs of the govern
ment,
II believe that vesting an appoint
ed commission with power to arrange
our tariff laws would be move in
the wrong direction and most seri-
Gus blow to the rights of the people,
and until am convinced that l am
wrong in this belief, 1 cannot support
such proposition"
"Such q move is decidedly in con.
IL.