The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-03-18
TARIFF FIRST ON
PROGRAMME OF
EXTRA SESSION
Oscar Underwood Clears Up
Doubts as to Tentative
Measures
OTHER LEGISLATIVE
MEASURES TO WATT
Success of Tariff Revision Must Be
Assured Before Other Pressing
Questions Will Be Considered
by New Congress

Washington, March 1.-THE extra ses<
sion of Congress. called by President Wiz
son today to assemble April 7. Will be-
gin with nothing but the tariff revisisH
bills before 1t. This fact was made clear
in statement today by Representative
Underwood. chairman of the House COM
mittee ON ways and means. Until tariff
legislation is well under way in tlle
House no general committees will be
named and no other legislative subjects
VIII be taken up.
The President specified no subject for
the extra session in his proclamation. bnt
it is fully understood that his message
to Congress at it's opening viii dwell upon
the need of tariff revision. II currency.
Philippine independence. Alaskan affails,
woman suffrage or other pressing ques-
tions are finally forced upon the attention
of Congress. it win be only after the
democratic leaders of the Two houses and
the President are convinced that the sue
cess of the tariff revision Is assured
Date Satisfactory
The date fixed for the tariff session
was accepted by congressional leaders with
satisfaction. Senate committees are or
ganized for work and will take UP the
preliminary stages of much general legis-
lation early in April. a general agree
ment exists however to keep general
subjects out of active discussion while
tariff legislation is under way.
House leaders " be ready to go'ahead
with tariff revision as soon as the session
convenes.
THE date fixed by President Wilson IS
sa tsfactory 10 us. said Representative
Underwood today "The tarin legislation
will be ready for presentation to the
House bS that time and wa should be at
work upon Ii IN tho House within three
on Your days after the House convones.
"or COURSE. before work is begun it viii
be necessary to organize the House The
ways and means committee, acting as the
committee ON committees. VIII prepare
slate of committee appointments to be
presented TO the caucus. The plan is to
organize only the committees necessary
to conduct the organization before the
Ifouse-rules, accounts, mileage and en-
rolled bills
Il will confer later with Chairman
Fitzgerald Of the appropriations corn
mittee as to the necessity of reorganizng
his committee to handle the appropria-
tion bills which failed at the last session.
These viii be the only committee organ
ized prior TO the beginning of the tariff
work. The others will 90 over until later
in the session
The tariff legislation now being CONF
pleted by the ways and means committee
will be submitted to the democratic can
Gus before the session opens.
The democrats OF the ways and means
committee adjourned tonight until to-
morrow after beginning a revision OF the
intricacies of4ustoms enforcement in the
adminstratiHW sections of the tariff and
Informally discussing the income tax plan
in a general way without attempting to
reach decision as to that new revenue
raising scheme designed To add perhaps
$l0000O,000 to the treasury funds. While
the income tax details hinge upon this
final estimate of the probable revenue
from the fourteen schedules, the DISPOSE
tlon of the committee majority is to in
augurate the system with probably a
one per cent tax on a minimum of s5ouo
annual income with the idea that the
tax may be susceptible to a lowering of
the income minimum or a raising of tie
tax percentage or both. II conditions
after the plan IS fioated
Fight on Wool Schedule
The big fight now is the always con-
troversia schedule X. the big wool sche-
dule on which final vote is likely with
in the next three or four days. The ad-
vccates of free raw wool In the commit
tee have counted upon winning in the
end regardless Of what the probable at
titude Of the Senate might be.
The majority already has settled upon
free raw cotton and upon sharp reduce
tions in the cheaper grades of textile
manufactures
The revision plan contemplates sub
stantially the point provisions of the
democratic revision bills that were put
through both Houses during the last
Congress 1t was stated tonight that
the revision as planned includes:
Schedule A-Reaffirmation of most of
the rates or chemicals. oils and paints
provided under the democratic chemical
revision attempt at the last Congress
with some sharper reductions. including
cuts in the rates on the cheaper grades
Continued ON Page Nine)