Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1911-09-21

than three members of the same po
litical party could be appointed a.
members of the board. The investi
cations to be undertaken and the re
ports to be made were set out in thu
act and included as proper subjec
matter the comparative costs of home
and foreign production. The boatt
was to report to the president and t.
Congress as either directed. The bill
went to the senate and was there
amended in a few important particu
lars, one requiring confirmation OF
the appointment of the members by
the senate and aDother modifying ir
some respect the inquisitorial powers
of the board. These charges necessi
tated a return of the bill to the house
for its concurrence in the amend
ments. A large majority favored con
currence but a small minority was
able to beat the bill by filibusterine
in the last hours of the session. In
the uncertainty as to the passage Of
the bill, both houses had provided
$225,000 for me to continue the tariff
board then existing If the bill for the
other board failed of passage. In
this appropriation bill the statutory
tariff board, if established, was direct
ed to investigate and report upon
Schedule K on wool and woolens by
December 1, 1911. This direction was
the result of an amendment offered
by a democratic senator.
Tariff Board to Report Dec. I.
Upon the failure Of the bill for a
statutory board, and in an earnest
effort to enable Congress to act with
accurate knowledge on Schedule K
and, indeed, on Schedule lon cotton
manufactured issued an order to
the tariff board already appointed ~
continue the necessary investigations
of these schedules and to report up
on the same on December l next. In
order to make as good a substitute
for the statutory tariff boal. as
could, I added two competent demo
Gratis to the board. The board con
sists of two professors of economics
of the highest standing, one at Yale
and one at the University of Virginia
a former assistant secretary of the
treasury in charge of customs, the pro.
prietor and editor of an agricultural
and stock raising newspaper-an au'
thority on these subjects-and 9 for
mer democratic congressman of great
ability and experience from Georgia.
Except the former. assistant secretary
who is a republican, and the former
congressman, it is nard to say that
the members have any politics at all,
certainly none which will prevent i'm
partial investigation apd judgment.
They are to report on the GLOSSARY"
and the facts as 70 the comparative
cost of foreign and domestic produc.
ton after investigations made by ex-
perts in their employ. They have
eighty persons under them working
hard to complete the work marked
out for them.
No Revision Without Information
l have gone over with care this his
tory of the movement for tariff
board in order to show how fully com.
mitted am to the proposition that
we ought not have any revision on a
schedule of the tariff without accur-
ate information as to the operation
and effect of the proposed changes,
and further to show that in this view
l have had in the past the hearty sup
port not only of the regular republl-
cans, but also, and with more en-
phasis, those who call themselves pro-
gressive republicans.
Second, l also wish to point out
that all republicans of whatever shade
are committed to the maintenance of
our protected industries to the point
of retaining duties on imported arti-
cles which shall equal tha differences
in the cost o. production at home and
abroad.
Third. Except for the extra ses-
sion called only to pass upon the re-
ciprocity bill, the first time that the
congress could consider
and pass upon tariff schedules would
be in December, and that time it's
by consent of both part
les, had fixed as the proper time at
which full report as to the most oh.
jectionable schedule ought to be re-
ported. With the money granted me
by Congress had provided board,
and with the same per-
sonnel as the statutory board would
have had, to make a report not only
upon wool but also upon cotton.
House Made Bills For
Political Purposes
Although many democrats have as
sisted in the support of the statutory
tariff board bill and have advocated
such means Of securing accurate in
in respect of the probable
operation of the proposeu revision,
the house at once began to make a
rcord for political purposes by passing
three tariff bills, the wool bill, the
free-list bill and the cotton bill. They
gave no public hearings Of any kind
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