The Washington herald., 1910-12-17

Smoked out by members of his own
party, Champ Clark, OF Missouri, pros
peetive Speaker in the Sixty-second Con-
gress. gave out statement last night
in which he announced that he favors the
selection of the House committees by a
committee on committees.
Mr.. Clark'3 statement amounts to a
declaration Of principles. giving an in
sight into the course that will be fol-
lowed by himself and his party brethren
when they come into control OF the
House. He approves the proposed reform
IN the rules involved In the creation of
committee on committees. discusses the
tariff, and intimates that he and his
friends will have harmony in the new
House if they have 10 tight for il.
The expected happened when Mr.. Clark
placed himself on record as favorable to
the plan 10 take from the Speaker the
power 10 name House committees Dem
ocratic Representatives-elect have been
shouting for this reform ever since the
November election. Not until yesterday
had Mr.. Clark reached the conclusion
that he would have 10 speak out on the
subject. With a prospect that nothing
but death could rob him OF the Office,
Uncle Champ was hopeful that he would
be boosted into the Speakership with all
the privileges and prerogatives now at
taching TO the post. Delegation after
delegation came out for a committee on
committees. and finally Mr. Clark bowed
20 the inevitable
Tariff to Come First.
Mr.. Clark begins the statement in which
he outlines his principles by discussing
the tariff. The party. he points out. s
pledged 10 revise the tariff, and this will
be the first question that it will tackle
in the new House, Accordingly. Mr.
Clark announced. the Democratic mem
bers-elect will meet in caucus onsJan-
uary 10 to select the Democratic
memherS OF the Ways and Means Com
mittee, which committee initiates tariff
legislation. The reasons given by Mr.
Clark FOR thus early selecting the mem
bers OF the committee are set forth as
follows:
l. We have prunisd to revise the tariff. which
promise should be relgiousy fulfilled. as al other
ante-electiOn promises should BE- fuldHed
Il viii require months Of unremuting and intel
ligent labor 70 collect the fscts which 70 base
tariff bin or bills as the may be- such biu or
bills vii he wise and Just and such as se are
willing 10 go 10 the coHntry On.
The people have right To- know what We IEo
'rse 20 do al the earliest moment consistent with
the careful and intelligent preparation q a tariff
bill CT bills. so To reduce the wory Of uncertainty
70 a minimum
: It woald be unvise and unfair to Ia. ~p0u the
members Of the Ways and Means Committee the
oner1us and delicate duty Of preparing 4 arih bill
on bills and deny them sufficient time IN which %
accomplish that task carefully intelligcutly and
with credit TO themselves and with satisfaction 10
and 10 the couutry
Prefers Schedule Plan.
TN the foregoing remarks / have used
the words bill or bills. because there
are two theories Of tariff revision much
discussed at the present time: Revision
by one general bill and revision by sepa-
rate bills for separate schedules. This is
matter not of principle, but Of method.
individually. I prefer the scheme of
separate bills for separate schedules, tax
ing the schedules with the most obnoxi-
Gus features frst-perhaps in certain
cases having separate bills for particular
items; but whichever method is decided
upon the Ways and Means Committee will
need the same quantity and character OF
information, for at last a general bill
would be made up of the separate bills
on all schedules"
Neither President Taft, nor Senator
Cummins, nor any other Republican, is
entitled to credit for the plan OF revis-
ing the tariff schedule by schedule, ae-
cOrding TO Mr. Clark "As far back as
the Fifty-second Congress. said Mr.
Clark, Representative Springer. a Dem
ocrat introduced separate bills for sepa-
rate schedules and even for particular
Continued on Page 4, Column i.