The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-10-24
HILLES TO WILSON.


lieve that. in the event of Democratic
success, the product of their labor may
at any moment be hastily placed oil
the free list. matter whether the
mater ials they use are or remain
| dutiabIe or not, and no matter now
| much skill and care the production
| of their output may require. If nails
and machine tools can be at once put
/ on the free list, without regard to the
| material or to any other business stu
alton, anything else can be treated in
| the same way. Cotton or wooden clotA
or garments of any kind can be at
| once put on the free list. Cutlery,
| watches, shOvelS, files, automobiles,
! any manufactured article or any prod
uct of farm, forest or factory, can at
once be placed on the free list. This
| is the prospect of free trade or worse
/ than free trade that the workers must
and do face.
This threatened injury would be bad
enough at any period. 1t is doubly
+ dangerous now. For at this time com =
petition from the advanced nations of
| Europe for the American markets Is
| becoming keener every year And an
even greater danger to our industrial
welfare is looming up. The great
awakening of the Japanese and Chinese
peoples, accustomed to the cheapest
living. is bound to bring most serious
additional competition: from Asia.
Under the encouragement of our
protective tariff we have obtained d
great industrial development and prog
reSs- Our standard of living has been
raised and kept high, and we have
become happy. prosperous and SUI
perior people. Under the able admin
lstration of President Taft we have
emerged from a condition of panic and
depression. and have come into a per-
iod of remarkable prosperity. Is il
any wonder that our people are uneasy
Ct "a dam of ID J1f.a
Gus situation? Is it any wonder that
more than ever before they feel the
need of carefully guarding the proteC-
tive duties? Only in this way can they
hope to maiEtain their present strong
position against the aggressive skill of
Europeans and the almost barbarous
cheapness and low living conditions
of Asiatics.
Tearing Down Duties.
In the face of this situation any
man can see how ruinous it would be
to reduce or wipe out duties without
adequate information of the business
situation to be affected thereby This
information involves a study of the
competition from all over the world.
President Taft has been the first to
establish a non-partisan commission
to get adequate information about
production and trade as a guide for
tariff revision. This is the business
like way in which to handle this bust
ness question, and the common sense
of our people recognizes that it is
the only fair and just way.
Yet your party, through control of
the house of representatives, has cut
short the work of the tariff board by
denying the necessary appropriations.
Your party will not permit the collec-
ton of the informatiO without which
changes of tariff rates must be made
in ignorance of their effect. Your
party in the house of Representatives
would not permit the board estab-
lished by President Taft to continue,
and would not themselves provide for
or establish any sort of commission or
body of men. even of their own seIec-
ton, to investigate and report, either |
to the president or to the house of
representatives, the facts and figures |
of the industrial affairs affected by
the tariff bills they We're rapidly and |
heedlessly passing. They set their |
faces firmly against the receipt of in
telligence. They would not heed the !
facts presented by the tariff board es- |
tablished by President Taft, nor would !
they make any attempt to get the facts |
themselves.
In your public declara tons you are |
seeking to assure the business men |
and workers in all fields of industry |
that they should have no fear that |
the tariff duties would be lowered too |
abruptly or too much if you and your |
party should be successful at the COM |
ing election. And yet you know very |
we'll that if elected you are in honor !
bound to use all the influence of the |
presidential office to secure the de- |
structfve tariff legislation officially |
by your party. Practically !
all the advocates of your cause join !
in the effort to Iull the people into a
feeling of security in the face of your
candidacy and the record of your par |
ty. It would be harsh to call this |
effort a conspiracy against the con- |
fidence of the people. Yet this pol /
icy is trifling with the people in a |
dangerous way.
The People Must and Will Know.
There is z strong public demand |
that this trif1ing should now cease.
damentally underlies business success
and progress all over the country.
They want to know clearly and def
initely just where you stand in this
critical matter and how you propose
to deal with it. They have a right
to know this Their living depends on
it. If you can not or will not speak
plainly. yoI must be plainly told that
vague and smooth generalities will not
satisfy the public. The gentle soft
ness of well-poised, academic Ian
guage means nothing and excites sus-
picion. The tariff is a business ques-
ton and it is action upon it that
counts for good or evil.
Fortunately for the country, the
Democratic party in the house of
could not get their
will enacted into law. What saved
the industries of the American peo-
pie from the destruction threatened
by the Democratic bills? Simply and
solely the courage and clear-headed,
good sense of President Taft, backed
up by Republican senate. Presi- |
dent Taft did his utmost to induce
his partisan. opponents to pass fair
bills. He asked them to wait for and
examine the facts collected by the
he had set to work He
n hOrnd and huiIded natientlv for the |