Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-08-03
Demand for Revision.

]
but il must speedily become an Pio-
gressive or all standpat
Demand for Revision.
After referring to the rise of trusts
and combinations in industrial enter
prise. he said:
Then came a demand for revision
of the tariff. 1t originated in the
necessities of the people, and was
founded upon the fundamental instinct
for justice. Deprived of the safeguards
which competition at home had fur
nished them. the people knew. with
out reasoning upon ii, that they had a
right to an intelligent readJustment OF
the tariff. They felt the duties should
he so modified that the continued IN
Sistence upon unfair prices would ex-
pose our manufacturers to the correc-
tion of foreign competition.
"In this demand there was no dis
LOYALTY 70 the doctrine to protection,
although for a short period the bene-
fiCiarieS of excessive duties succeeded
in confusing the issue.
ut was then that the standpatter
adopted the name which he now bears,
and his campaign cry was Let well
enough alone The movement how
ever was irresistible and the republic
an national convention of 1908 re
spending, not only with unanimity, but
with enthusiasm to the progressive
party. not only pledged the incoming
Congress- to a revision of the tarlff,
but defined the doctrine OF protection
with care and precision unknown TO
any former platform. 1t SolemniS pre-
scribed a rule with which to measure
import duties. to the end that both pro-
Queer and consumer. both capital and
labor, might share in our prosperity.
Not Honest Fulfllment.
There are many gratifying reduc-
tions in the Payne ldrich act. but
upon the whole it is not fair eX-
emplification of the protective policy.
nor is it an honest performance of our
platform promise. and no matter what
happens l will tell the truth, as l see
the truth. about it.
Let me. however. again warn repub-
licans who are of my way of thinking
concerning the shortcomings of this
measure that the failure of the repub-
lican leaders in Congress to abide by
our platform furnishes no reason for
delivering this country into the hands
of the democrats.
Our course. it seems to me, is set
plainly before us. / do not favor an
Immediate general revision of the
tariff; indeed. / earnestly hope that
we may never be compelled to enter
upon another general readjustment of
the system
Amend Schedules Separately.
in our last attempt it was made
clearer than ever before. first. that
some better way must be found than
we now have of securing information
as to cost here and abroad; and. sec
ond. that we must amend the schedules
separately. AS to the first, the way
will be found in the creation of an
independent. non-partisan tariff COM
mission not to change the law, for
that is and must remain the work
of Congress: but to collect and lay be-
fore Congress and before the people the
facts.
AS to the second We must insist upon
law or rule of Congress that VIII allow
ne schedule to be amended or revised
without going over the whole range OF
the tariff We must exclude the oPpor-
tunity for the trades and combinations
which now dishonor tariff legislation.
The Railway Bill.
Regarding the administration railway
hill Senator Cumnlins said:
With the Introduction of the bill there
began such a struggle as has been rarely
witnessed between the forces of progress
and reaction Inc progressive IepuDlItdnS
did not get all they wanted, nor all they
ought to have had, but they succeeded in
converting a measure which in its original
form would have been d long step back
ward into a measure that is a gratifying
step forward.
Postal Banks.
The postal savings banks bill has in his
mind two serious defects which ought
to be removed at the earliest practicable
moment. First, we have given to the
board of trustees. which is to manage the
postal repositories, the discretion to
designate such post offices as it sees fit.
This discretion will be a never ending ir-
ritation.
The law should be amended so that
repositories are selected by some stand
ard. either of population or of business
which could be applied inflexibly to the
whole country.
Second the most serious objection to
the law will be found in the disposition of
the money after il is gathered at the post
offices. Our platform was bot
toned upon the fundamental idea that
the money put in the post offices should
not be withdrawn by the government
from that community