The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1911-01-12


useless, without statistics judgment
| is unreliable"
Let me point out some ways in
which the work of a tariff board
or commission is absolutely essential
at the present time. There is gem
eral feeling that the Payne Tariff IS
| at different points unnecessarily high,
| that II abounds i'm Inconsistencies,
| that its classifcations are faulty, and
| that it contains blunders which were
| due to Ingenious devices and "jokers"
| of which the trainers of the law were
| themselves unconscious. How, / ask,
| are these evils to be remedied2 Scarce
| ly any one I'm the country except pro
| fessors of economics and finance has
an intimate and detailed acquain-
| tance with the tariff. ,rhe best in
| formed among us has only a general
| impression that it is unsatisfactory.
Few of us have the time. and still
fewer the necessary ability and train
| ing, TO make an Independent study
of the tariff. And even If we do
| so how little weight would the con-
clusions of private individuals have
| in country of nearly hundred
million people? But special govern
| ment agency consisting of expert in
vestigators whose independence was
guaranteed by secure tenure of Of
fee and who gave their entire time
and energy year after year TO the
investigation of these questions, would
come to have in tariff matters
weight and authority fairly compar-
able with that of the Census Board
.Ht...
sion or Zone might almost say) the
courts themselves. Surely the time Is
past when the affairs of government
can be safely conducted in ignorance
Of the facts in a country i'm which cX
pert advice Is sought i'm all domains
Of private business. We proudly say |
that ours Is scientific age. But |
science simply means an accurate, |
verified, and systematic knowledge of |
facts. And such survey of economic |
facts is Indispensable i'm the making |
or amendment of our tariff If our |
Government is not to be classified |
among the survivals of pre-scicntinc |
and barbarous ages.
The Tariff Commission will be n |
source i'm Bacon's phrase of "dry
light And there Is no field i'm which |
dry light" is more urgently needed |
our best economists even those who |
ire not free-traders, believe that our
present tariff duties arc ncedlessly |
high, even ON the principle of cquali-
lation of costs at home and aboard |
Chc Tariff Commission will be able
% furnish MS an impartial deter
nine of this question. Tho general
lublic certainly believe. and this he
ief Is one of the most vital and
iotent factors in modernpolitics, that
he tariff confers a monopoly on GER
ain trusts and enables them to con-
rol prices and to opprcss the con
uming public. The Tariff Commission
should be able to tell us how far
this belief is justihablc, and to
ccommend tariff amendments for the
direction of such an intolerablc evil
( is widely assumed that any rcduc-
ion i'm n duty would entail corrc-
ponding reduction in the price of the
article. This may be said To be the
iew of the general public. Yet eco.
lomic experts are not protection
SITS, have demonstrated over and over
gain that such reduction cf duties
would not make possible a general
oWtlIUb VI pllNfSs VI lulS Indllcit
100, the findings Of the Tariff Com
mission would be of inestimablo
,alue. They would h I'VE wider cir
'ulaton than the writings of eco
lomists, and their conclusions would
'e regarded by the public as authori-
tative so long at least as the Com
mission retains the hign scientific
'haracter which now attaches to the
members of the present Tariff Board.
'inally, the public and politicians
lave very generally assumed that
he economic prosperity or adversely
+ the country depended on the tariff
rhis belief no doubt is due To tn,
circumstance that in the absence Of
argcr and more vital issues. the
ariff for very many years has played
very large part I'm the politics Of
ur country. But students recognize
md a tariff commission would un-
| loubtedly agree with them-that this
,reat country could prosper under
| ny protective tariff or no protective
| ariff The sources and the guarantees
| # our prosperity are this cOntinen-
| al domain with its varied and mex
| 1austible resources the energy and
| Intelligence Of the American people
| he industry ana skin of our wage.
| arners the enterprise and sagacty
of our great Industrial leaders and
| fnanCiers and the institutions Of
| education. moral and spiritual inn
| provement and democratic government
| which keep the mind and heart and
| conscience and civic sense of oui
| people sound alert and vigorous.