The Daily Missoulian., 1910-12-17
PROSPECTIVE SPEAKER SAYS
THE JOB HAS CERTAIN uN-
PLEASANT FEATURES.
HIS VIEWS ON TARIFF
Favors Revision Of the Bill by SEIZED
als, an Idea, He Says, Which Did
Not Originate With the Republicans
Democrats Issue Call for Caucus
in Order to Decide Program.

Washington, Dec. 16.-Representa-
tive Champ Clark issued a statement
tonight fully outlining his platform as
prospective speaker of the democratic
house of representatives in the next
congress. He proclaims himself in IA
vOr Of the appointment of house COM
mittees by committee, rather than
by the speaker; and he states his be-
lief that the tariff should be revised
schedule by schedule, rather than in
one single bill Those two subjects,
says Mr.. Clark, are the ones upon
which he has been continually i'm
portuned to make some statement.
Democratic house members sent out
call today for caucus on January
10 of the democratic membership of
the next house. Mr.. Clark's statement
is both an explanation of the call and
declaration of his own platform as
the probable speaker of the house.
The caucus will select ways and
means committee and a rules commit
tee, somewhat larger than the present
committee of seven. Mr.. Clark believes
one of these committees should be
empowered to select the other COM
mites of the house.
Two Theories Of Revision. 4
There are two theories Of tariff re-
vision,' says Mr.. Clark, in his state
and revision by separate bills for sep
arate schedules. This is a matter not
of principle, but of method.
individually, prefer the scheme
of separate bills for separate sched-
ules. taking the schedules with the
most obnoxious features first, perhaps
in certain cases having separate bills
for particular items.''
The statement proceeds to say that
whatever method is decided upon, full
hearing as comprehensive as that
which preceded the framing of the
Payne-Aldrich law, will be had by the
new ways and means committee.
''The assumption, growing out of ig-
norance in certain quarters" says Mr.
Clark. that President Taft or Sena-
tor Cummins or any other republican
has discovered something new in tar
iff revision by the separate schedule
scheme Is preposterous. H.
LAS far back as the Fifty-second
congress Chairman Springer intro
duced separate bills for separate
schedules and even for particular
items, which were derisivcly denomi-
mated. 'Springer's popular gun bills by
ribald republican speakers and writ
ems: several years before Judge Sprin-
ger was chairman of the committee
on ways and means Mr.. Mckenzie Sc
cured the passage of a hill putting
Quinine on the free list and touching
no other item whatsoever in any tariff
schedule
All Democrats Invited.
Mr.. Clark declares that he is heart
lily in favor Of inviting to the caucus
all democratic members-elect. He says
his efforts for two years have been
directed to the unification of the dem
Ocrats in the house, and for that rea-
son members-elect should be given
eevry opportunity to express their
Choice in the naming of committees.
The questions of interest to the
country, as Mr.. Clark sees them, are
how the democrats will select thei1
committees and what the party will
do with the tariff This last question
has been answered, and, proceeding
to the first, he says:
LAS to the mode of selecting COM
mittees in the event Of my own Sc.
lection to the speakership, Would
not care the snap of my finger to ex-