Ceredo advance. [volume] (Ceredo, W. Va.) 1885-1939, 1911-10-25
HIS POLICY DEFINED
PRESIDENT TAFT STANDS
s0UARELY BEFORE COUNTRY.
Fer Tariff Revision, but This Must Be
Done In an Intelligent Manner
Attitude Is Both Wise and
Statesmaniike.

President Taft gave at full length
and in plain language in successive
messages his reasons for vetoing the
wooden. free list, and cotton tariff
bills. AS he said in discussing those
bills at Grand Rapids there was little
for him TO do except to sum up in one
address what he had said TO congress
In three messages.
The reasons given therein lose none
Of their force in the restatement In
deed. the public will be impressed
more forcibly by them
The major premise of the presi-
dents argument la that he, the Repub-
lican party, the progressives included,
the business organizations Of the
country. and the last congress were
committed to the proposition that
there should not be a revision of tariff
schedules without accurate informa-
ton. and that q tariff commission
would be the best agency TO procure
1t. Nobody will dispute that.
The minor premise is that the We
toed bills were prepared without ac-
curate information. One was con-
terence committee compromise. a hur-
riedly gotten up hodgepodge. and an
other swarming with palpable errors.
The presidents inevitable conclu-
sion is that all the bills had to be We
toed
The bills are dead. Whoever reads
the presidents analysis of their short
ccnlrss viii agree that their death
was deserved. The president did not
conHne himself to them He defined
clearly his general tariff policy, thus:
Il am in favor of the reduction of
the tariff wherever it can be done and
still giving living measure of pro-
lection to those industries of the coun-
try that need it, But insist that We
have reached now a point in the his
tory of tariff making when every one
ought to realize that the tariff should
not be changed and business dis
turbed, except upon information which
shall enable us to pass bills that will
disturb it least. Our whole business
system rests upon the protective tariff
basis. The real hope of men who are
In favor of lowering duties is to pur
sue the policy Of securing accurate in
formation TO keep the tariff rates
down as low as possible consistent
with the life of the business protect.
ed. The natural operation of the
tariff under those conditions and
American ingenuity is TO continue to
reduce the cost of production, and
that in itself will secure, if We adhere
to the policy. a reduction of the tariff
rates from time to time, but to cut
them now with blacksmith's tools is
TO invite in the next two or four years
a Revision of feeling, and then O. re-
currence OF higher rates and the old
system Of high tariffs. This ] would
deprecate, and so far as | can with
the powers given me by the constitu-
uon / propose to stop such a move
nent and to secure a reduction in ac-
cordance with the principles Of the
Republican platform. and on informa.
ton accurate and impartial"
Surely this is sound Republican doc
trine and should be acceptable to all
who profess allegiance to the Repub-
lican party. 1t is sound economic doc
trine which should appeal to all who
are for low tariff duties. but who
would not have the industries of the
country injured by needless and faulty
legislation.