Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1912-10-18
Tariff Plank and Boards, or. 4
Glance Into the Political
Lumbar Yard.


which is primarily an economic ques-
Itioa has been made the football of
partisan politics. Impellby a falsed
sense Of loyalty to party. the average
citizen is not willing to consider this
question on its merits and thus reach
an impartial and independent con-
ciusion about it, but adopts the utter
ance of his party platform, right or
wrong, as his own individual opinion.
He gets his views on the tariff as he
does most of his clothes, ready made.
1t may be that the most selfish and
sinister influences have dictated this
platform utterance but the ''loyal"
| partisan does not stop to ask any en-
barrassing questions about this: he
hears the crack of the party whip,
and, like the we'll trained draft ami
NAL he is, settles down in the traces
| and pulls his full share of the load,
OF course it is the other fellow who
does the riding and who owns the
load but the willing worker, uphill
and down, does the pulling, inspired
in his humble task by the drivers
promise of full feed of hay at the
end of the journey. AS reward for
his cheerful service, he, perhaps, may
get few nibbles of real hay but more
often he is the victim of the flimfam
game worked by the frugal old farmer
who fed shavings to his horse after
having put green goggles on him to
make him believe that it was clover.
With the purpose. more OR less
sincere, of taking the Tariff out of
politics, it has been suggested that
the whole question be referred to
nonpartisau board which shall
thoroughly and impartially investi-
gate the facts involved and shall re-
port the result of such investigation
to the President and Congress. This
sounds all right as theory but it
has proved all wrong in actual prac-
tice for we have had just such a
board" and the results OF its labors
have been anything but satisfactory.
Mr. Robert Maclea. lifelong Re-
publican and at one time Consult
ing Expert of the Tariff Board"
writes thus of the failure of this
method of handling this much vexed
question:
"The 'non-partsan' Tariff Board,
says Mr.. Maclea, ''has been the hope
of the business men of the country.
They wero led to believe that where it
completed its Investigations it would
report something authoritative, some
thing impartial, something fully
honest as the basis OF tariff legisla-
ton.
"This the Tariff Board has failed
utterly to do. Its report on wood
pulp and paper, on wool and on cot
ton are worse than farcical. 1t might
be charitable for me to dismiss the
responsibility, or culpability, with
| the excuse that the members Of the
board were inefficient. But the pub
lie moneys were expended freely to
secure the ADVICE of experts and il
their advice had been followed, at
least the wool and cotton reports, in
their present form, never would have
would have been permitted to become
public documents.
1.-THE last straw to break the camel's
back is the Hill cotton revision bill
put forward by the Republican mem
bers of the Ways and Means Com
mittee, and claimed by them to be
based on the Tariff Boards findings,
The Hill bill is loosely drawn, unjust
and absured. 1t is unfair to the great
!, cotton manufacturing interests OF the
. South and proportionately favors the
New England industry. 1t is q bill
designed for political effect and not
for proper tariff revision. If. after
waiting nearly two. years for the
Tariff Boards report, the Republican
: party is going to continue the same
old methods of tariff favoritism, it IL
time halt should be called. -. The
tariff mas been left by the Tariff
J Board as much as unsettled question
as it was before"
| Proceeding further. Mr.. Maclea
charges that this Board which cos,
Government half million dollars to
maintain, was guilty of suppressine
vital facts which were damaging to
!: the selfish claims of the favored in-
; terests.
He says: "By January the great
mass of data collected in the Gotten
industry was beginning to show the
the inevitable proof Of excessive
duties 1t showed that the tariff rate
; was, in some instances, twelve times
the total cost of the labor entering
Toto the protected article. It pointed
the accusing finger especially at the
Favored group of New England
'standpatters.
! Repeatedly I urged the Board to
present these facts IN conclusive, con-
vincing form; to indicate in the cot
ton report where and how the In
: ljustices of the existing tariff react to
the injury of the industry as q whole,
and to point out the remedies that
ljustice and fairplay require"
i 1t is unnecessary to state that Ill Of
Mr.. Maclea's urging" was vain, fol
the New England Tariff magnates 70,
! lust what they wanted from this com
PLEASANT Board.
The theory and the actual working
OF this scheme 10 like the experiences
Of the old darby to whom the grocery
clerk sold box of axle grease fol-
cheese. The dusky customer, seated
lon nail xeg, was making way with
the contents of the box when the clerk
ventured to ask him how he liked that
new kind Of Cheese. The old darby,
Icarvinp another slice. replied. ssHits