The silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1909-1925, 1911-03-30
TARIFF VIEWS OF
chm UNDERWOOD
(From F. J. DYER.)
Especial to the Silver State)

any particular the program of legisa-
tion to be carried out at the special
session.
AS for the Republicans, they deny
that they are doing anything of the
kind. "All we want to do,' say the
old war horses who have led the fights
on the Republican side for many years
past, "is to let the Democrats have
their head. When they have shown
the country what they are capable of
doing, never fear but that we shall
be called on to pull them out of the
pit they will have digged for them
selves
But the Democrats are not at all
fearful of the outcome. They are in the
saddle in the house, and in the senate
they have good fighting chance, with
such combinations as may be made
with the aid of the insurgents and
with Republicans who have axes to
grind. They have, therefore, the pow
er to do some real legislative work,
and it will be interesting to see what
they think of doing.
Mr.. Underwood's Views.
Next to the speaker, Oscar w. I'm
derwood, of Alabama, chairman or the
ways and means committee, will be
more prominently in the public eye
than any other man in congress 1t was
stated recently in this column that no
one could say positively what was go
ing on in the ways and means commit
tee, because the members of the com
mittee had agreed not to give out any
information on that point. The writer,
however, found Mr.. Underwood will
ing to talk in general way of his
views on legislation and the tariff, and
because of his prominent position in
conjunction with forthcoming legisla
tion, his views are interesting and sig
nificant
According to Mr. Underwood. the
first thing the committee on ways and
means will do will be to pass on a
bill which he will introduce ratifying
the reciprocity treaty with Canada.
This will be approved and sent to the
house. 1t is believed that it will pass
both the house and senate and become
a law in short order.
After this is disposed of, the com
mittee will settle down TO "A continua-
tion of its consideration of general
tariff legislation. The committee has
no intention of submitting a general
tariff bill all at once. Instead it will
aim to give sort of "frst aid to the
injured by starting on the schedules
which, in its opinion, most seriously
contribute to the high cost of living,
and it will submit series of "pop.
gum bills, reporting the first one
probably within two or three weeks
after the opening of congress. Accord
ing to the best information to be OBJ
tanned at present, the first schedule to
be attacked will be schedule K--that
affecting the wool tariff. Next. prob
ably, will come the cotton schedule
After that the committee will take up
foodstufis Steel will come later, for
while it doubtless affects the cost of
living in ways that the average tax
payer does not realize, the committee
considers that the wool schedule, with
an average duty of about 90 per cent,
and the cotton schedule, with an aver
age duty of about 60 per cent, mean
more to the consumer than the steel
schedule, which levies an average duty
of % per cent.
Revenue First-Then Protection.
Protection is no part of Mr.. Under
wood s political creed. He wants to
submit tariff bill, or series of bills
which shall levy a duty for revenue.
and he wants to make everything con
tribute its quota toward that revenue
Probably he would oppose having any
free list at all, if he could have his
way. He would put tariff on salt
AMI this is where Speaker Clark does
not agree with him. because he be
lieves, as Benton did, that "the cattle
on thousand hills below for free
salt. Underwood would also tax tea
and coffee and many other things
which the Republicans felt should
come in without paying a tax.
If the tariff necessary to be levied
for revenue should operate to give
protection also, then Underwood will
not quarrel with protection gained in
that way; but to give protection as
sucb--'there he balks.
Not a Minimum and Maximum.
Chairman Underwood believes that
the principle of minimum and maxi
strated 25 years ago. said he, Gin
the French minimum and maximum
tariff. 1t is putting the cart before
the horse, and that s what IS the mat
ter with the Payne bill. That why
the tariff law fails us when we are
confronted with dilemma such as the
a.
minimum and maximum we take the
minimum as the law, and hold the
maximum as club to coerce the rest
OF the world; but the bluff doesn I
work What we ought to do is to
have maximum and minimum tariff
the maximum rates to he the rates to
enforce and the minimum being held
in reserve to gain trade advantages
with
You will not have Democratic
senate. DO you think you can frame
a tariff bill that the senate will ac
ceptf' was asked
am more in favor of securing
correct legislation than | am in merely
getting bill through was the re
ply. "We want Democratic bill, and
IT we can't get one passed we can
take the trouble to the country. If
the country wants revenue bill, we