Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-10-24
QUERIES ON TARIFF
Chairman HiIIes Writes Open
Letter to Gov. Wilson.
GIVES PART OF PLATFORM
Calls Democratic Candidates Atten-
ton to Stand on Question.
WHAT SUPPORT WOULD MEAN
Would Be Reckoned With as Free
Trader Unless He Repudiates
It, Leader Says.
WHAT SUPPORT WOULD MEAN

NEW YORK. October 24-Chairman
Charles d. Hilles of the republican ma
tional committee has addressed an open
letter to Gov. Woodrow Wilson in which
he attacks the stand of the democratic
platform on the tariff He says:
| The platform of your party on the
! tariff this year is extremely destructive
and disturbing. This is what the demo-
cratic rarty now says to the people on
this question::
| We declare it to be fundamental
principle of the democratic party that the
| federal government under the Constitu-
ton has no right power to impose or
collect tariff duties. except for the pur-
pose of revenue, and we demand that
the collection of such taxes shall be linn
| tied to the necessities of government
honestly and economically administered
This is declaration that protective
tariff duties are unconstitutional If the
democrats believe this they must. If sue
cessful, proceed without delay to sweep
them away. This means to put our in
dustries and occupations on a free trade
basis ruthlessly and without regard to
| business or economic considerations. This
platform declaration by your party UNI
questiOnably means that. having been
| baff1ed in their many attempts to con-
vince the American people that protec-
tive duties were not good for them on
| economic grounds, your party now aban-
dons the appeal to economics and drags
in the Constitution in their assault on
protection. This position is revolutionary.
| For a hundred years protective tariff du-
ties have been accepted as constitutional.
| Yet you and your candidacy stand
upon this platform declaration. You ap-
parently accept and indorse 1t. You must
do so unless you clearly reject it. Do
you repudiate it? If you do not you must
be reckoned with as a free trader seek
ing to have all protection tariff duties
outlawed. This is a position which seri-
ously threatens the security and prosper
! ity of the country.
Injustice of Democratic Tariff Bills.
your personal position in this matter
and the declarations Of your party are
more than ever threatening because the
record Of your party in actually handling
tariff matters is so unfortunate and so
recklessly unfair. You and your follow
ers seek to assure the people that they
should be trusted with the difficult and
delicate work of tariff revision. Yet they
have just shown by their official acts that
they will not be fair and just in this
matter.
THE actions of the democratic party,
rather than their words. show us what
we have to expect from them. The plat
form of this party in 1908 promised
gradual revision of duties If the party
should be intrusted with, power. By the
elections of 1910 they were intrusted with
ipower in the House of Representatives.
which originates tariff bills. The party
fastened to use its power, Did they at
of the tariff? BY no, means They
forced through series of tariff bills con-
stftuting hasty. piecemeal revision
really not a revision at ALL but crude
lslap-dash and reckless slashing OF duties,
involving heaVy reductions
and the placing of many articles on the
free list at one bound and against every
dictate of reason and justice.
| LAS the leader of your party you must
have knowledge of these extraordinary
tariff bills. which, by practically unan-
imous democratic vote, were passed
through the House of Representatives.
These bills cut down and wiped out du-
ties without their authors knowing what
they were doing. The sweeping reduc-
lions would have torn down at once
what had been patiently and carefully
built up during many years: Finished
articles. requiring highly skilled labor.
We're hastily put on the free list. and
this. in many cases. even when the
necessary materials for making them
were left dutiable.
For example. in the democratic bill
revising the metal schedule, machine
tools were placed on the free list, while
the steel from which such tools are made
was left dutiable Typewriters and cash
registers were placed on the free list.
Printing presses. sewing machines and
other finished articles were made free
of duty at a blow. Cotton ties, spikes,
nuts, washers, cut tacks. horseshoes,
various kinds of nails many kinds of
wire and other similar articles were
slammed on the free list. But the steel
and other materials from which such
ticles must be made were left subject
to duty. Could anything be more unfair
and disastrous to the industries and
workers all over the country engaged in
making the articles thus suddenly de-
prived of all protection? 1t would have
been. in fact, even harder and more I'M
fair than general free trade would be.
No Limit to Free List.
What can the workers in these indus
tries think of these unfair attacks
them? What must the workers in any
industry or occupation think? If they
know the facts they must believe that
in the event of democratic success the
product of their labor may at any mo-
ment be hastily placed on the free list, no
matter whether the materials they use
are or remain dutiable or not, and no
matter how much skill and care the pro-
| duction 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
situation, anything else can be treated
in the same way. Cotton wooden
cloth or garments OF any kind be at
once put on the free list Cutlery.
watches shovels. files. automobiles. any
manufactured article or any product 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.