El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-05-12
PAYNE SAYS PRICE
IS HIGH ALL
OVER WORLD
Denies That the Tariff Has
Caused Increased Cost
of Living Here

VI 4AAS LII -
Washington. D. c., May 12.-Serenc
E. Payne, author of the tariff Law
that bears his name, entered into q
vigorous defence Of that measure in the
house today.
He declared that the Republican
party's pledge to revise the tariff down.
ward had been fulfilled and that from
whatever viewpoint you look at it, the
law shows reduction in rates. There
were some increases for which no apol-
ogies were made; they were necessary
for the revenue: the commodities on
which the rates were reduced represent
10 times the value Of the luxuries or
which the rates were increased; It was
a true downward revision, but the Law
has been nisrepresented, he said. By
politicians with campaign capital; tc
make by tradesmen grasping for pelf
The high cost of living, he declared, Il
due to overproduction of gold and "a
not peculiar to the United States but is
consistently paral1eled IN Europe.
This briefly was the defense of the
tariff law made today by Mr.. Payne II
the debate in the house
Charges Misrepresentation
Misrepresentation began he de,
clared. when the conference report
came in. Now and then it started from
the tradesman who wanted 10 increase
the price OF his goods and give the tar
if as the reason. In 90 cases out of
hundred. the assertion was false as the
tariff had reduced the duty On tht
goods he was selling Before the bill
was passed, retailers Of wooden goods
started the story that an increased tar.
iff had increased the prices of theiI
goods.
Not a single increase was made in
single rate OF duty in the whole wool.
en- schedule
iff.'' he continued. ais that It must mes
iff,'' he continued, is that II must meet
the expenditures Of the government
From the date this bill went into effect
it has accomplished all that was pre-
dicted for it.
Too Much Gold.
The price Of commodities has beer
increasing for 10 years the world over
One reason for the advance is not Onl!
the great increase in the production o.
gold but the cheaper methods Of pro-
ducing it The supply is greater thar
the demand and is obtained with less
cost. AS gold is the measure of all
values the commodities are higher be.
cause Of its increase IN prices.
The increase in prices are upon ar.
ticles on which the cuty has been
lowered by the present law or else re-
mains where they were under the Ding
ley law. All kinds of farm products
meats. butter. eggs, poultry. all foods
hides, feathers. shoes and raw cotton
show reduction in duty and increases
IL price.
Increases Abroad.
"It is hardly possible to take a sin.
gle item in the tariff and show Of.
rect increase from the rates of duty
Investigations into food prices show
this cOnclusively The increases in price
are fully paralleled by increases in the
same articles abroad If the tariff hal
Increased the cost of living, howeis II
that on April 21. duplicates from NTaint
to California published tables showing
the cost Of living is decreas sing all along
the line?"
Then Mr.. Payne presented a series o:
tables showing the specific reductions
made from the rates Of the DingleJ
law
He then went on to show the in.
creases Of imports under the new tariff
comparing its first six months results
with the corresponding six months I'M
der the Dingley law. He presented Z
table showing increases import
ranging from 10 10 100 percent il
hides. iron ore. pig iron. tin plate, ma
chinery. leather and lumber.
Press Criticised
The press Of the country. Mr.. Payne
criticised for its attitude on the pulE
paper situation. He referred TO tht
duty Of 1915 a ton imposed by the new
law on print paper and declared:
We are criticized because we did MOI
fix the duty at 50 a ton and close our
paper mills in the vain hope that Cam
ada might remove her embargo and
" it'll a great many Of our mills closed
by strikes. there is scarcity of pa
per 1t is evident that the situation
car be relieved Only by some agree.
ment between the executive and the
Canadian authorities to be ratified by
congress.
New Law FulfiIIs Pledges.
We then have tariff law that full.
fills the pledges of the platform, thai
produces sufficient revenue to meet Oui
expenditures that has discarded in the
various schedules that it revised all the
duties that have become unnecessary
because of changed conditions: that
carries out the measure of protection
enunciated in the Republican platforml
that by its maximum and minimum pro.
visions has opened the gates OF the
world of our merchants and 10 our
and that above all
shuts up no factory, puts out no fur.
mace fires. stops % wheels OF indus.
try and deprives no man of his daily
wage
The law has brought prosperity ts
the farmer. who never before in our his
tory has enjoyed the prosperity he en-
Joys now; il has brought prosperity
to the factory and to the merchant II
satisfies the south, as no other tariff
ever did. 1t is a tariff for the whole
country. and under it the people Of the
whole country are enjoying prosperity
beyond their Dreams