Evening star., 1911-08-18
TAFT'S MESSAGE
VETOING WOOL TARIFF BILL
House OF Representatives:

- = ~44 W. w
I return without my approval House
bill No. llO1s with a statement Of my
reasons for so doing.
The bill is an amendment Of the exist
ing tariff law. and readjusts the customs
duties In what is known as schedule X,
embracing wool and the manufactures
of wool.
was elected to the Presidency as the
candidate of q party which in its plat
form declared it's aim and purpose to be
to maintain a protective tariff by the
imposition of such duties as will equal
the difference between the cost Of pro-
duction at home and abroad, together
with q reasonable profit to American in
dustries.'' 1 have always regarded this
language as fixing the proper measure OF
protection at the ascertained difference
between the cost of production at home
and that abroad. and have construed the
reference to the profit OF American indus
tries as intended, not to add new eie-
ment to the measure stated or to ex-
clude from the cost of production abroad
the element of a manufacturer or pro-
ducer's profit, but only to emphasize the
Importance Of including in the American
cost a manufacturer or producers proht
reasonable according to the American
standard.
In accordance with a promise made in
the same platform / called an extra ses-
sion of the Sixty-firSt Congress, at Which
q general revision of the tarin was mace
and adopted in the Payne bill IL was
contended by those who opposed the Payne
bill that the existing rates OF the Dingley
bill were excessive and that the rates
adopted in the revising statute were not
sufficiently reduced to conform 10 the
promised measure. .
The great difficulty, however. in dis
cussing the new rates adopted was tnat
there were no means available by Wnlcn
impartial persons could determine what
in fact was the difference in cost OF pro-
duction between the products or TINS
country and the same products abroad
The American public became deeply Inn
pressed with the conviction that, in order
to secure a proper revision OF the tarin
in the future, exact information as 10 the
effect of the new rates must be had. and
that the evil Of logrolling or a compro'
mise between advocates of different pro-
avoided and the interest Of the consum-
ing public could be properly guarded
only by revising the tariff one schedule al
a time.
Created Tariff Borad.
To help these reforms for the future
took advantage Of clause in the Payne
tariff bill enabling me to create tarin
board of three members, and directed
them to make glossary and encyclope-
dia of the terms used in the tariff and to
secure information as to the comparative
cost of production OF dutiable articles un-
der the tariff at home and abroad. In
my message to Congress of December Z,
1909, l asked a continuing annual appro-
priation for the support Of the board, and
said:
Il believe that the work of this board
will be Of prime utility and Importance
whenever Congress shall deem 1t wise
again to readjust the customs duties. II
the facts secured by the tariff board are
Of such character as to show generally
that the rates of duties imposed by the
present tariff law are excessive under the
principles of protection as described In
the platform Of the successful party a,
the late election, / shall not hesitate tc
invite the attention Of Congress to this
fact and to the necessity for action predi.
Gated thereon. Nothing, however, halt
business and interferes with the course
of prosperity SO much as the threatened
revision Of the tariff, and until the fact.
are at hand, after careful and deliberate
can properly be undertaken, 1t seems tt
me unwise to attempt 1t.
The amount of misinformation tha
crseps into arguments pro and con in
quire the kind of investigation that
have directed the tariff board to make
an investigation undertaken by 1t wholly
without respect to the effect which tn,
facts may have in calling for a readjust-
ment Of the rates Of duty.
A popular demand arose for the forma
creation by law of a permanent non
partisan tariff commission. Commercial
bodies all over the country united in a
movement to secure adequate legislation
for this purpose and an association with
a nation wide constituency was organized
in favor of such a commission was evil
denced by resolutions adopted in 190t
and 1910 by republican state conventions
in at least twenty-eight states.
In addition, efforts were made to secure
a change in the rules of procedure in the
venting the consideration of tariff change!
except schedule by schedule.
The business Of the country rests on
protective-tariff basis. The public keenl.
realized that a disturbance of busines.
by a change in the tariff, and threat o.
injury to the industries of the countr,
ought to be avoided. and that nothing
could help so much to minimize the fea
of destructive changes as the known ex
istence of a reliable source of informa
ton for legislative action. The deep in
terest in the matter of an impartial as
certainment of facts before any new re
vision was evidenced by an effort to pas
q tariff-commission bill in the short ses
sion of the Sixty-first Congress, in whic
many of both parties united.
Such a bill passed both houses. /
provided commission of five member!
to be appointed by the President. no
more than three of whom were to be
long to the same party, and gave then
the power and made it their duty Il
Investigate the operation of the tariff
the comparative cost of production a
home and abroad, and like matters o
Importance in fixing the terms of {
revenue measure, and required them Il
report to the executive and to Con
gress when directed. Several. not vi
tsl amendments were made in the
Senate, which necessitated a return OF
the bill to the House, where. becaus,
Of the limited duration of the session
comparatively small majority were
able to prevent It's becoming a law.
Has All Power of Commission.
On the failure or TINS Dill L took Sucl
steps as could to make the tariff boart
/ had already appointed a satisfactory
substitute for the proposed tariff com
mission. An appropriation of s225 900. tc
continue the work until June 30, 1872
had been granted by Congress In the
alternative to be applied to the board
had appointed. unless tariff commission
bill was passed. In this appropriation
bill the bipartisan tariff commission, Il
created and appointed. was directed tt
make a report on schedule X by De