The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1910-06-16

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with his usual god sense, President
Taft does not wish the leaders of his
party to try to avoid the tariff issue IL
the Democrats are willing to go before
the voters of the United States upon
that question in the fall election.
There are only two things, as Mr..
Tafts judicial judgment readily appre-
ciates, to be said about this matter
One is that scarcely nythiAg in an inn
portant campaign could be easier than
the demonstration of the fact that the
Americar tariff system, as this paper
has so often shown with specific ex-
amples of prices for meats, potatoes,
breadstuffs, cotton, coal and other
commodities. cannot be proved to be
responsible for the high cost of living,
or for any considerable part of the
high cost Of living, which has been so
much discussed throughout the coun-
try, and which cannot fail to be of the
greatest importance to the Consumers
of the United States.
A tariff of ll4 cents pound upon
meats declared to be eager to come
across the line from Canada at low vail
uls) cannot possibly account for ad-
vances in the price of beef, mutton,
pork, etc. running all the way from
to IL cents pound. Potatoes that the
: farmer delivers to the railroad at 80
1cents in this State, but which reach
sthe consumers in this city at anything
from 81 % to Sl.50, cannot have their
selling price determined or influenced
by tariff that is negligible quantity
compared with the huge advance from
the producer to the consumer. The
tariff cannot be blamed for price of
cotton( with no tariff at all upon that
raw material (which is so high that
manufacturers who pay that price can
not sell their finished product at fig
reasonable profit There are innum.
cradle instances like this, as we have
submitted and resubmitted to those
who indulge in ignorant loose talk a
bout the responsibility of the tariff for
high prices which are caused by acts
and influences which work out the re-
suits of excessive costs to the consum-
er, whether duty is high or whether
it is low, whether there is tariff
whether there is no tariff at all.
The other thing to be said is that il
the Democratic party, or the public
or any section of the country, wants
to make an issue of the tariff, it could
not be lodged, wherever the issue II
regarded as the chief thing in the elec
tion, if Congress leaders or party lead
ers or anybody else, wishes to dodge
it. The vo.ers will cast their ballot,
upon this question whenever the.
please to do SO,
The thing for Republican news
papers and for other representative
of the Republican party to do is not t.
declare or to imagine this is a question
to be sidetracked or run full speed b.
campaign managers, as they deem ex
pedient, but is one that will have t
undergo the test of the ballot DO.
whenever Congress district or tn
nation so desires. And, as we hav
said, the easiest way to answer the un
provable arguments of the agitators
to submit 10 the public the specifi
facts about tariff rates and commodit
prices. IT, after they have those fact
clearly presented for their understand
ing, the voters nevertheless want t
elect members of Congress who wi
greatly modify, or even wipe out, tn
tariff, nobody can stop them; nobod
can ward of the consequences unit
the voters themselves, suffering frol
their mistake, hasten, as they hay
done before, to correct it.-New Yoi
Brass