New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-07-21
tFrom Tn. Tribune Bureau.l

washington, July 70.
MR. ROOTS VIEw.-Senator Root. who
seldom speaks either In the Senate or for
publication, but who when he does speak
says something worth hearing, declares
that the method Of revising the tariff Is OF
far more importance than any revision
possible under present conditions. MI
Root SAYS he is equally opposed TO re-
vision based on the OK psrte statements OF
the interests affected and to one based on
the prejudices aroused by such a tariff. lie
calls attention to the fact that there are
now before the Senate three tariff bills
dealing with the wool schedule. one,
passed by the opponents of protection In
the House. cannot command the support Of
any Republicans. second, offered by an
insurgent Republican and obviously not
intended for adoption. commands the sup
port Of only those Republicans who are
opposed TO the present administration, and
who are so violently opposed that their
advocacy Of this measure cannot he ac-
copied as a correct reflection Of their tariff
views. And a third, proposed by Senator
Smoot, agrees with neither that of the
Democratic House nor with that Of the in
surgent Republicans Attention Is also
called TO the "jockeylng' between the in
surSents and the Democrats, the obvious
purpose Of both being to emoarrsss the
administration. and II Is pointed out that
perhaps never before have conditions in
Congress so clearly demonstrated the ne
cessity OF trustworthy information CLEANED
by a non-partissn tariff board on which
10 base the rates Of duty. Intelligent OBJ
servers OF the present situation In Con-
gress will be more than ever convinced Of
the correctness Of the contention Of the
President that no further tariff revision
should be undertaken until the national
legislature has before IT the definite in
formation which, at the expense oil great
mains and a considerable sum of money.
the Tariff Board will have accumulated on
this schedule by December l and on other
schedules by later date.
SIMPLY PTKERS.-If you had long posed
as A wild-eved nsurgent, II you had con-
sistentIy advocated every political nosuum
from federal warehouses to the Initiative,
referendum and recall. IL you had not hest
tated to espouse every politico-economic
yagary. until you had been accurately de-
scribed as resembling nothing so much az
patent medicine vender hawking his
wares from the tail OF his cart" how would
YOU feel II you woke UP one morning TO find
yourself completely outclassed. reduced TO
the level Of q common. ordinary piker by
none other than the Attorney General Of
the administration which you had blatantly
pilloried and sought. unsuccessfully, but
not less strenuously. 10 discredit as the
acme Of plutocracy? If you can form any
adequate conception Of what you would
feel like under those circumstances. you
can. perhaps, in some slight degree under
stand the feeling Of the more prominent
insurgents since they have read Mr.. Wick
ershams Duluth speech. And then to real
lie that this very scheme Of federal regu
lation Of prices had been advanced by that
erudite statesman. Francis G. Newlands.
whom you in your self-complacency. had
been prone 10 regard az purely sophomore
cal. and that you had not had the wit 10
steal his idea, but instead had left it to
the man whom you loved 10 describe as
representing the interests" will give you
some further conception OF the depths OF
depression and Decentralization and re-
proach to which certain self-styled pro-
gressives have been reduced. Having
missed tho golden opportunity Of making
Canadian reciprocity their own and Of thus
aligning themselves against the stand
patters,' the insurgents have now failed
10 grasp the most revolutionary suggestion
which has thus far been made with regard
10 federal control Of trusts and monopolles,
and 1t is no exaggeration to say that their
chagrin knows no bounds and was never
exceeded on any previous occasion.
MR.. WICKERsHAMS SUGGESTION
II is only fair to the Attorney General to
say that he did not in his Duluth speech
advocate the fixing OF prices by federal
commission, but merely proposed II as
suggestion worthy Of the consideration Of
thoughtful men IN connection with the ef-
fort Of the federal government. as ex-
pressed in the Sherman antitrust law 10
forestall monopoly Mr. Wickersham has
long been an advocate Of federal Ipcorpo-
ration, and his conception Of such policv
involves both immunity from undue and
Variegated state regulation and such fed
eral supervision as is necessary to protect
the investor from fraud That his consid-
Grafton OF this subject should have resuIt.
ed In attracting his attention 10 tho ,ac,
mat deserving of at least as much con.
sideration as the innocent investor" is tho
INNOCENT and wholly unrepresented "uIti-
mate consumer is not surprising IN tboso
familiar with the mental processes. Of tho
Attorney General That the intoraets o,
the ultimate consumer can be adequately,
protected only by the exercise Of fodora1
control Of prices. the Attorney General
at his house 10 get a renort 10 .ro,r,,.