The Oskaloosa herald., 1911-07-13
WILLIAMS VS., cuMMlNs..

WILLIAMS VS.. CUMMiNS.
The st. Louis Republic of July Attn
contained the following special cor
respondence from Washington;
"Since the close of Senator Cum
Minis speech in opposition to the
Canadian reciprocity treaty he mas
been the subject of commlseration
from the friends of reciprocity tor
not for twenty years has a senator
been so numerically skilled for MS
insincerity, nor has his insincerity up
on a great international problem peeh
more graphically exposed.
The whole trend of the Iowa SEN
ators speech was dehuhclatiVe OF
President Taft for assuming to usurp
the power of congress in the matter
of tariff making. He insisted that
the president was invading the do
main of the legislative branch OF the
government when he negotiated
treaty with Canada that put foreign
products on the free list and reduced
the duties on others.
He wept in floods over the cruel
harm the treaty would infict upon
the farmers of the Northwest by al
lowing Canada to send some OF her
farm products into this country free.
1T was at this juncture in his
speech that the shrill, sharp voice OF
John Sharp WiIliams-former demo-
cratic leader of the house and now
one of the senators from Mississippi
INTERRUPTED the Iowa senator to ask
permission to read a short extract
that would throw light on the sub
ject the honorable senator from Iowa
was discussing. If it won't interrupt
the senior senator from Iowa, l would
like to read it now said Senator Will
liams.
Senator Cummins had never
measured swords with John Sharp
Williams in the house, and he didn't
recognize from the gentle manner of
the Mississippian the danger that
lurked in it. 1t was the very tone
and manner that had lured scores OF
house members at different times into
fatal ambushes.
IF it will not occupy too much
time replied Senator Cummins, I
will be pleased to hear the extract
the senator from Mississippi would
read Whatever he has to say is al
ways instructive and to the point
"Thereupon Senator Williams open
ed a thin pamphlet and prefaced what
he was about to read from it as fol-
lows:
THE senior senator from Iowa
was elected governor of his state in
November, 1903. On January IA, 1904
he was indicted into that great cttice
and as the closing part of the cere-
mony he read an inaugural address.
1t is part of that address | would read
1t relates to reciprocity with Canada.
Senator Cummins turned red up to
the roots of his hair. He knew what
Was coming, and il anticipation OF a
crushing fall he turned from red to
white. If chances were swords he
would have thrust an hundred of
them into the bosom of the Mississ-
ippi senator.
And then the latter read with
great effect from that inaugural ad
dress as follows:
Let us not be content with
mere distractions. 1t has been
possible to make, and in my judg-
ment is still possible to make, a
treaty with Canada which would
for years to come make US prac-
tically master of the imports in
to that dominion
I'm the last ten years American
manufacturers have expended
$100,000,000 in the establishment
of plants in Canada which would
have been kept at home, with all
the labor which that implies, if
there had been a fair and perma-
nent relation existing between
the two countries.
mot only so, but every student
of affairs knows the chance We
now have across the border will
be completely destroyed unless
we treat with our neighbors up
on a fair reciprocal basis.
THE farmers of Iowa have lost
something in the foreclosure OF
the opportunities to feed the men
who are operating the plants to
which | have referred, and they
will lose more when Canada rails
es the barrier so that England,
France and Germany will supply
them material for the wonderful
developments upon which she is
just entering and which we are SO
well prepared to supply.
1T has been said that in order
to obtain these changes it will be
necessary to let into our marke-
cts Canada's agricultural products
or some of them. | believe this
to be partially true, but let me
ask the farmers of Iowa, whether
they think they will lose in the
exchange? Which would you
rather do, lose the markets that
will be created by vast imports
into Canada, or meet Canada in
competition in the things WHICH i
you producer ! assert confident
ly that In the sharp struggle with !,
Illinois, Wisconsin, the Dakotas,
Nebraska. Kansas and Missouri.