The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-06-14
Sharp Williams Says Root Amendment Is Intended
 To Defeat Bill
LAFOLLETTE MAKES
 VIGOROUS ATTACK
Not Reciprocity But Tariff Revision By Executive Manifestations Stone and Kern Agree With
 Williams Report

Washington, June 13.-The battle lines
 on Canadian reciprocity were squarely drawn In the Senate when Chairman Fen
 rose of the finance committee reported the bill without recommendation, favorable
 and adverse views were presented by
 senators and the way cleared for the long
 discussion in open session.
 Senators McCumber and LaF ollette sub
 mitted reports outlining their views in
 opposition to reciprocity, and MT. Will
 Hams presented the views of himself and Senators Stone and Kern, favorable to the N measure. The debate will continue to-
 morrow morning with speeches in opposf-
 ton to the bill by Senators Curtis and
 McCumber.
 Mir Dixon expressed surprise and regret
 that the committees did not bring in recommendation for or against the bill and In so doing elicited statements re- | gardlng the course of the finance com mittee. One of these was made by Sen ator Heyburn, who brought out the facts regarding the motion in committee to re- port the bill adversely. He said he had presented this motion and 1t had been lost by tie vote of to 2, thus rendering an opposing report impossible, while at the same time approaching very near to one.
 MT. Gore introduced an amendment to the bill which would place Canadian flour. meal, meats and agricultural im- plements on the free list, but said he would not press the provision if it be- came evident that its adoption would imperil the bill.
 IA Senator LaFollette, in an individual re- \ port, expressed adverse views on the 4 reciprocity bill. He said it was perfectly H consistent for one who believed in free to support the bill, but that no man believed either in tariff for reve- l nue only or in a protective tariff could consistently give it his support. E T believe in reciprocity" said MT. La r~FasIlette. q believe in reciprocity with Canada but protest against this pro- posed revision of our tariff by executive mandate. protest against this diplo- matic bargain that Is masquerading In the guise of reciprocity.
 Not Reciprocity u IS HOl TeCipIoSilys u iS hob o fair exchange of tariff advantages. It is tariff trade, conceived in special interest selfishness, negotiated in secret and brought into the open with the attractive label of reciprocity a bid for the favor of the American public.
 This agreement is not in the inter est of the consumer. Relief from the high cost of living is not to be found in such tariff compact as that rep resented in the pending bill. Tt is not necessary to wrong any class or do injustice to any interest in order to benefit the consumer And it Is scarcely less than criminal to make a scapegoat of the farmer for the benefit of any unlawful combination. "It is not the farmer, 1t is not the consumer for whom these negotiations were made. It was made to benefit the railroad. the miller, the packer. the newspaper publisher.
 "The newspaper publishers are prom 1sed a free market for print paper, for which they expend about $55,000,00o annually. No one who investigates the conditions under which the news papers of this country have been com pelled to purchase their supply Of print paper can escape the conclusion that the publishers have been subjected to eXtortion.
 The conditions under which the pub fishers are forced to conduct their bus mess are intolerable These condi- tions call for action which will afford immediate relief
 ''rhe gross injustice of the proposed bill impels me to oppose It. If. how ever, it Is to be enacted into law, it should not pass without amendments in the interest of the great body of consumers including the farmers, who are compelled to carry all the burden of the Presidents lop-sided pact" Williams Speech Senator John Sharp Williams of Mis- sissippi rather plainly intimated that when he wants a thing he wants it, but he will hot refuse to kill rattlesnake because at the same time he cannot Kill an anaconda. This in brief is his reason for accepting the Canadian reciprocity as set forth in report on that Dill filed in the Senate today, when Senator Penrose chairman of the committee of finance, reported the measure. ..When I want two things, I want
 both but if I can't get boths then l
 want the one I can get" MT. Williams
 said Not only Is it true that l would es original propositions favor most or the amendments offered, but l could easily write down several hundred others that would like to put upon the statute books, reducing the burden of tariff tax ation upon the people. But see no par ticular sense in refusing to shoot rat tlesnake because I cannot at the same time shoot an anaconda This is espe- cially true if the anaconda is not within effective gun range"
 MT. Williams report was one of sev- eral presenting various views on the reciprocity bill The majority report was non-committal, neither for nor against Senators Williams, Stone and Kern united in urging the acceptance of the bill without amendment while Senators LaFollette and McCumber presented re- ports in opposition to the measure. MT. Williams in writing the report gave especial prominence to the portion of President Tafts Chicago speech dealing with wood pulp as expressive of his | views
 Adding few words of his own regard Ing the wood pulp provision, Mr. Will Hams said
 our government attempts to meet the situation by giving free entry to wood pulp paper or board as an inducement to the lifting of the Canadian restric- tions by the provinces. It seems to me to be evident that that is the only way ln which the liftinr If tho ~n-<-,.x..--