Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-04-15
TARIFF MAKERS.
V-Oscar Wilder Underwood.
By FREDERIC ]. HASKIN.

In the new democratic House OF Rep
resentatives the position Of chairman OF
tho ways and means committee has been
invested with ell the power that 1t ever
connoted. boht with respect to tariff leg1s-
lation and to parliamentary procedure
and then a great deal more.
Oscar Wilder Underwood OF Alabama
chairman of the ways and means COM
mittee, is the captain Of the democratic
majority in the House Speaker Clark
yet Is the leader Of his party. and he will
continue to exercise a considerable de-
gree Of power. but nothing comparable
to that welded by Speakers Cannon
Henderson, Crisp and Reed.
In response to what they conceived to
be the public demand, the democrats in
caucus took away from the Speaker the
power to appoint the committees OF the
House. The caucus then selected the
democratic members Of the ways and
means committee and instructed them
to nominate men to serve on all the other
committees Of the House. to determine
upon a tentative legislative program, and
to draw up such tariff bills as it might
deem necessary to carry out the demo-
cratic promises to revise the tariff down.
ward.
BY common consent Mr.. Underwood was
made chairman of this now all-important
committee. Mr.. Underwood was born IN
Louisville. KY, in 1862. and Is therefore
forty-nine years old. two years older than
was Mckinley when he introduced his
famous tariff bill. and two years younger
than Wilson when he became the author
of the last democratic tariff measure.
Mr. Underwood Is the grandson Of Jo-
seph R. Underwood, who was a member
Of the House
Grandfather Favored from 1885 to
Protective Tariff. se 1 anu u from so
1s47 to 1883. representing Kentucky. SEN
ator Underwood was a whig and the close
political friend and associate of the great
Henry Clay. AS a Clay whig he was, nat
urally. an adherent of the protective prin-
ciple, although as he came into public
life just after the passage Of the COM
promise tariff Of 1888 and as he retired
before the recurrence Of the protective
agitation he never was actively identified
with protectionistic legislation.
But Oscar Underwood makes 1t clear
that he does not inherit his grandfathers
whiggery. He was educated at the Uni
FcTSity VI NN8Hiid, dHO Us Ile AlIiStI
says: THE university gave me some
thing better than the classics. Founded
by Thomas Jefferson, the institution has
chung to the spirit he infused into it,
teaching his principles even unto this
day. Democracy was founded on this
teaching. / acquired my democracy from
ii and I never have departed from the
faith Of the creed Of Jefferson taught me
there
After his graduation In 1884 Mr.. Under
wood went to Birmingham. Ala, attracted
by the glowing accounts OF the new iron
city furnished by his elder brother, then
established there in the iron business.
Oscar Underwood began the practice OF
law in his adopted home and was Sue
cessful from the beginning. In 1894 he
was elected to Congress. winning a ter
rifle fight on the Issue Of the tariff. Biz
mingham then was sharing in the general
industrial depression OF the country, its
boom had long ago collapsed and its bust
ness was stagnated. Being an iron and
steel center it was urged that 1t was
suicidal to remain attached to the demo-
cratic party merely because Alabama was
q southern state and that Birmingham
ought to send to Congress protectionist
and a republican.
Mr.. Underwood took the democratic
nomination on q tariff for revenue only
plank. he placed himself squareIy on the
Cleveland tariff platform and fought the
campaign to successful issue. Since
that time he has had practically no oppo-
years.