The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1911-02-27
RECIPROCITY


The Mccall reciprocity bill reach
ed the Senate late last week and its
fate there depends largely on the ac-
ton OF our two senators from Yer
mont. The Senate is closely divided
and II Senators Dillingham; and Page
vote against the bill it seems likely
to fail.
Possibly an undue prominence Is
given the reciprocity issue for in It.
self reciprocity with Canada is Of no
great moment. 1t Is only as de-
parture from the existing condition
of things that gives it Importance but
the importance of the departure is
not to be treated lightly.
For almost twenty years now Con-
gress has betrayed the people into
the hands of the trusts. When Cor
man and Murphy and other Democra-
tic bosses sold out the control OF
congress to the moneyed interests
back in 1898, in spite of the efforts
of Grover Cleveland the people OF
the country did not know the far
reaching effects OF the bargain, but
when the Republicans came back in
to power, the trusts through tarin
trading of one gang with another
were able to keep up the control
which they had secured
This proposed reciprocity agree
ment is chance to make a breach
in the wall OF criminal interests. II
isn't party question. The Demo
Gratis merely dare not vote against 1t
because II is one OF the issues on
which they hope to win next year
and for this reason 1t stands a snow
that II would not otherwise have.
The question is whether the Plato
cracy which has held the country In
its grip for eighteen years can con-
troll enough senators TO stop the bill.
The following from the Saturday
Evening Post states the situation ex-
actly:
mo member OF Congress who OPP
noses the Canadian reciprocity treaty
and still calls himself a tarin reior-
mer can be taken seriously. The
treaty admits. duty free. some Cana
dian woodpulp and printing paper
thereby displeasing the trust-controii-
ed paper industry in Maine. IL al
mits fish, duty free, and this alarms
the fishery masters at Gloucester
Massachusetts. II gives free trade
In grain. butter. eggs and foodstuns
generally; 80 in certain focalities'
under certain conditions, American
farmers may have to meet some Gan
adian competition.
Are we to break the tarin wall
and still leave 1t intact at all points!
That is exactly the sort OF tarin re-
form our standpat friends gave the
country In the Payne-Aldrich bill.
I'VE are still exporters OF farm
stuffs. The bulk OF our farmers, on
the bulk OF their products, have al
ways had to meet the free compeut
ion OF Canada and every other coun'
try in the markets Of Europe. Mean
while nearly everything they bought
| has been charged with high tarin prl-
ces.
III they are really afraid 10 meet
a little Canadian competition al
home there is small show OF their
getting relief from high-tariff exact
ions, for the whole tarin game con-
sists precisely in playing one inter
est and one locality against another
Help us 10 protect our steel ana
we will help you to protect your bar
LEY. In this give and take the Farmer
has given a good dollar and got
plugged nickel. The whole question
concerning this treaty is whether
farm constituencies-or their repre-
sentatlves In Congressman be In
duced to keep on playing the game
In they can-after all the tariff agita-
ton OF the last two years--it is high
time for our standpat friends to sit
back and laugh.
THE high,protection champions
are against the treaty. Is this be-
cause they are deeply concerned over
the butter and egg market In north
ern New York? We fear not. II
lis because they see this treaty will
break the vicious tariff circle. With
free butter. eggs and barley the gran
ger vote in congress can no longer
be counted upon for ninety per cent
duties on wooden goods
The finding OF the Interstate com
merce commission against the rail