The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-08-27
Declares Democrats Played Politics" in Passing the
 Tariff Measures
MADE
 ERROR IN WOOL BILL
Charges Underwood, Clark and La- Toilette With Inconsistency. Bills Passed to Invite Hostil-
 ity Toward the President

Hamilton, Mass, August 26.-President Taft began the presidential campaign of 1912 here today, his friends believe. In a speech that breathed defiance, he scored the "insurgent" republicans and demo- crats in campaign who combined to re- wise several schedules of the present tar if at the special session of Congress just closed. He singled out Senator LaFol- lette of Wisconsin, Speaker Clark and Chairman Underwood of the House ways and means committee as leaders of the attempted revision. and gave them spe- cial mention.
 Several times Mir. Taft referred to MT, LaFollette and mentioned the other in- surgent senators merely as the latter's as- sociates He indicated that he regarded the proposed revision as injudicious and dangerous to business, but made It plain that if the tariff board In December re- ports that downward revision of the cot ton and wool schedules should be made he will recommend the use of the pruning knife
 Standing on the broad terrace of Con- gressman A. P Gardner's. farm, with Sen ator Lodge and other Massachusetts re- publican leaders, the President seemed so scent the smoke of the coming battle. Many of the 500 members of the Essex County Republican club gathered below to listen, thought they heard the Key note, speech of the coming campaign and their cheers were loud and long.
 Senator Henry Cabot Lodge supplement- ed the Presidents tariff remark by q few words.
 The President said in part:
 q am here to speak words of encour- agement as to the outlook for republican success. We have just finished an extra session of Congress and the matters con sidered were Of such mp25terce 70 the commonweath of A.assaclIusetts that 5 do not see how the people of the state can withhold an expression of opinion upon them at the approaching election.
 ''The extra session of Congress was called to confirm the Canadian recip- rocity treaty which it did by support made up of votes from both parties. ' our democratic friends. however. were not content to allow the session to pass with the accomplishment of the purpose for which 1t was called. They assisted most of them-in the passage of the recip- rocity bin because they believed in it's usefulness and in so doing they united with the republican support and did not play politics In its passage.
 "I am very sorry to say, however. that having pursued a purely statesman-Iike course with reference to reciprocity, they did play politics of the most irresponsible in respect to three tariff bills, which by uniting with certain republicans in the Senate they were able to pass.
 ..rhe bills bear internal evidence of the fact that they rested on basis of rot tarifr for revenue only but tariff for politics only
 Underwood Erred
 .~The frst-the wool bill-was introduced irtc the House by MT. Underwood, the democratic leader, with the statement that if was A free trade bill and was not 1n- tended to provide protection to the woos or woolen industry, but that 20 per cent tax, which was placed on raw wool inn ported into this country. was made neces- sary as a revenue measure by the pros pect of a deficit in the national revenues.
 ,This was a most profound error. made by MT. Underwood, through a mistake in adding up the columns of the estimated revenues and expenditures so that instead of there being deficit as suggested. there is in reality a surplus of $4O,OOopO, Though this error was made known to him, the p per cent tax upon raw wool was nevertheless retained
 The measure then passed free trade measure to the Senate where, being defeated, the democrats and the so-called republican insurgents united in passing as & substitute the amendment of bill prepared by Senator LaFollette on the floor without reference to or investiga- ton by any committee. The bill went to conference and emerged after a further compromise providing duty of 2s per cent raw wool and an average of 49 per cent on woolen manufacturers This committee promise was adopted.
 Thus the bill is seen to be a com promise between avowed free traders and avowed protectionists, a bill conceiv- ed in an unnatural alliance, a bill the product of political logrolling for the purpose of securing the passage; a bill of it's operations and bill that presents only those methods in its adoption which has been generally condemned in the making of previous tariff bills.
 MT. Underwood and MT. Clark in the House, and MT. LaFollette and his as- sociates In the Senate, had earlier been conspicuous in the support of measure which was avowedly adopted for the pur- pose of securing scientific information to assist in revisions of the tariff.
 Indeed, they earnestly deprecated any future revision without an accurate knowledge of the facts. But now, in the opportunity presented by the special ses- sion and in the desire to play politics. and gratify what was supposed to be a popular desire for the reduction of duties they did not hesitate to adopt all the alleged defective methods of previous tariff revision they had denounced and to reject as entirely unworthy of con- sideration the suggestion of delay until investigation by an impartial board should be had
 Played Politics
 ..No tariff bill within anyone's recollec- tion has ever been passed with so little care. They declined to wait 90 days to hear a report of full investigation on schedule k. which the previous Con- Rresg. by united vote of the democrats and republicans. including the Insur- gents had directed to be made on De-
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