The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1913-07-04
Free Farm Products
Prices Will Be Lower
erom Saturdays Daily.


Congressman Hammond is enjoy
ing brief vacation at his home in
st. James. He came to the state to
fulfill several speaking engagements.
Last week he addressed the G. A.
X. encampment at Worthington. On
July he gives three addresses, one
at Springfield in the morning, an
other in Redwood county at a grove
celebration and one at Lamberton
in the afternoon. On July 10 he
will address the State Bankers
meeting at Duluth on the currency
question.
A st. James Plaindealer represent
ative visited Congressman Ham
mond at his home and enjoyed an
hours conversation with him talk
ing on some of the present day
problems. In speaking of the I'm
derwood tariff bill, Mr. Hammond
said that if he were writing it he
would have made it different. He
believes in low duties on many ar
ticles and does mot favor the put
ting of so many things on the free
list. He said that on general prin.
ciples a tariff on an article tends
to restrict the market and increase
the price of that article and with no
duty on any article it tends to make
an open market and a lower price.
Other things, such as the supply
and demand, have far more to do
in fixing the price than the tariff.
Will Lower the Price.
When asked as to the effects of
putting on the free list such things
as the farmers raise, like wheat,
potatoes, ETC., he thought the tend
ency would be to slightly lower
the prices on these things. Tariff
compromise and all parties could
not get all they wanted He thought
on the whole the measure would be
of benefit to the whole country. In
passing the measure the party in
power is carrying out it's campaign
pledges and keeping faith with the
people.
Mr.. Hammond thought that COIL
gress should pass currency meas
ure at this special session. He
said that he was pretty we'll salts
fed as to what should be accom-
plished by a currency bill. First, it
should make our currency elastic
enough so that it could expand when
there was need of expansion, so
there would practically be an i'm
possibility of having money panic.
People should be able to buy good
securities when they have plenty of
money and to turn these securities
into cash again when they needed
money. In any currency bill two
things should be avoided
Take Power From Wall Street.
Too much power should not be
put into the hands of a group of
bankers like Wall street, so it could
control the market, and the cur
rency should not be so elastic as tr
encourage wild speculation. He ha0
not studied the bill now pending to
know whether it met those require.
ments or not
Mr.. Hammond talked freely as to
what he thought of the probable flu
ture of the progressive and republic
an parties. He thought that no one
could tell now which would become
the dominant party. Time and fu-
ture events only could tell The
chief thing in the way of the build
ing up again of the republican party
was the fact that the members of
the party are not united on any of
the great questions of the day
There are the progressive republic
ans, near progressive republicans
and the standpatters. There was one
thing that he thought stood in the
way of the progressive party soon
becoming a great national party and
that was that it did not have a dis
tinctive issue on which it stood on
one side and beth the other parties
were on the ether side. If such an
issue should arise the party might
soon sweep the county and come
into power.
Admires Mr.. Bryan.
Mr.. Hammond expressed great ad-
miration for Secretary w. j. Bryan.
He thought that he would make one
of the great secretaries of state,
ranking with John Hay and Elihu
Root. He thought that Mr.. Bryan's
stand in not serving wine at state
functions had made great hit with
the country. He said, however, that
President Wilson was following the
custom of former presidents and
was permitting light wines to be
served at White House functions
Mr.. Hammond said that as presi-
dent, Mr.. Wilson was making good.
He had great influence with his par.
ty and was determined that it
should fulfill its campaign pledges
to the people.