The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1912-12-06
StCOND MESSAGE SUBMITTED
Since The SESSION BEGUN
Deals With Every Department Of the
government Except State Depart
ment-stronsIy Against lndepen.
denee For Philippines in Near Future
by Associated Press.)


washington, Dec. 6.-President Taft
Will make no further effort to have
Congress reduce the tariff. In "gen.
erar message to Congress submitted
today, the President clearly Indicated
mis- intention of leaving further tariff
revision to Mr.. Wilson and the Con-
gress just elected.
Now that new Congress has been
elected on platform of tariff for rev.
enue only rather than a protective
tariff, and is to revise the tariff on
that basis" said the President, at is
needless for me to occupy the time of
Congress with arguments or recon-
mendations in favor of protective
tariff"
This message, the second submitted
by the President since the present
session began will be his last of a
general character. 1t dealt with ev-
cry department of the government eX-
cept the state department, recon-
ed much Of the legislation which Mr..
Taft previously had urged upon the at
tention of Congress, and took up and
discussed at length several subjects
comparatively new.
Mr.. Taft came out strongly against
Independence for the Philippines pro
posed, he said, in a bill now before
Congress. He deprecated the new pol
icy of one battleship a year instead OF
two; and indorsed again the scheme OF
currency reform proposed by the ma
tional monetary commission.
Conservation was lightly touched
the President recommending the
amendment of bills now before Con
gress so that water power companies
which dam navigable rivers will con
tribute to the improvement Of these
streams.
He declared that no radical change
in the Sherman antitrust law was
needed, and praised the supreme cour
for its recently announced changes II
rules of equity procedure. In this con
nection the President asked Congress
to pass legislation which would ALLOW
the supreme court to formulate rule
of procedure under the common Law
in federal courts and predicted tha
such action would facilitate justice II
those courts and reduce the cost o
litigation to the public.
The Panama canal was dismisse
in few words, the President prophe
sying its opening in the latter hal
of 1918. He took occasion, however
to declare that Congress should re
ward the work of Colonel Goethals b
an appointment as major-general wit
the provision that he become chief G
engineers wnen the term OF the pre-!
ent incumbent expires. He made onl
a brief reference to the dispute wit
Great Britain over the Panama can'
act and said that when formal pr
test was lodged against that act
would be taken up by the Unite
States.
The army the President discusse
at some length. He praised the arm
legislation of the last Congress, b
said that provision should be mac
by law so that the nations foreig
regiments may be always maintaint
upon a war footing; and he urged Il
passage Of the pending militia-pay bi
designed to make service in the mllit
more enticing, and showed that u
home army will be nothing more th'
a Skeleton" until Congress provid
that it be concentrated in fewer pos
than now maintained. He urged al
the passage Of another bill now
7 fore Congress, designed to raise quic
" a volunteer army in case OF war
President Taft did not approve t
proposal for immediate autonomy
the Philippines and independence
eight years, as proposed in bill pei
ing in Congress.
'Tn the Philippine Islands we ma
embarked upon an experiment unpre
dented in dealing with dependent p