Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1913-05-09

That mods and bends In the breezes
And my heart is as light as the wine
that blows
The leaves from of the treeses.
Buck up! It's great just to be alive
FREE MEAT, tanned CATTLE.
(Sioux City Journall
If the democratic tariff makers have
any respect for logic they are likely t:
heed the demand Of the Corn Bet
Meat Producers Association for ethel
free cattle or duty on meat.
In the committee tariff bill as it Is
about to pass the house, meat is OF
the free list. but duty Of 10 per cent
is levied on cattle. Undoubtedly this
inconsistent little arrangement was
made with view to political expedi'
ency. The placing ot meat on the free
list looked good from two standpoints
In the first place it looked like
healthy blow at the so-called meal
trust. In the next place it seemed tc
fulfill the promise to give the con-
sur1er cheaper food. With both u
these arguments in favor Of free meat
it Is plain that there never was
chance for a duty on meat in the new
ter.ff
But with free meat. why not free
cattleo Well, for one thing cattle are
raised by farmers. There are lot OF
farmers in this country. While the
farmers like to have things they buy
on the free list they have prejudice
against seeing the things they sell
there. The democrats received q
striking object lesson to this effec'
when they noticed what the farmers
did to the republican national admin
istration that stood sponsor for Cana
dian reciprocity. Therefore the trainers
of the Wilson bill showed their friend
illness to the consumer by Topping OH
part of the duty on cattle. while leaV-
ing 10 per cent ad vaiorem for the
farmers to look at and admire. II the
consumers We're disposed to get fussy
about this modes: little duty it woulc
be possible to explain that free cattle
would be playing right into the hanus
of the meat trust. which would thus
be enabled to import its raw material
cheaper. without there being any way
of forcing it to sell the finished prod
uct al lower prices to the consumer.
The corn belt meat producers are
attacking the duty on cattle from ar
angle evidently unforeseen by tbs
trainers of the Underwood bill the
meat producers, it develops. feel that
they as well as the meat trust are IN
terested in the selling price of meat
They would prefer protective duty
on meat. If they can not have that
they want free cattle rs well as free
meat Why do men representing a
farming interest want free cattle !:
They want il because they live in the
corn belt where one of the best paying
occupations is fattenins cattle on corn
for the market They DO not want TO
raise their own cattle all along the
route They want to buy feeders
that have passed their youth where
grass is plentiful and cheap. They
want TO buy these feeders when they
can be fattened most rapidly on corn
diet and sent to market in the best
possible condition to command fat
prices. The Iowa meat producers GO
not fear the competition of Canada in
corn fed fat cattle. Canada does not
raise the corn with which to finish the
cattle for the market. But Canada has
plenty of grass for the development OF
Feeders. II meat Is u sun Nitiicue
the benefit of a protective tariff the
corn belt meat producers want to buy
their feeders from Canada without
paying a tariff duty on them. In 9TH
er words. feeders are raw material TO
the corn belt meat producers, and IL
he has to sell his finished product in a
free market he wants to buy his raw
material in a free market. If there IS
ANYTHING wrong with the logic of this
argument it has not yet been pointed
out to the satisfaction OF the corn belt
meat producer.
The democrats In the senate will
have a chance to recast the meat du-
ties. There is no Likelihood duty on
meat would be accepted by the presi-
dent. If a duty on cattle does not
please our most progressive farmers,
as represented in the Corn Belt Meat
Producers Association while free cat
tie will please them. a great deal of
persuasion should not be required to
bring about the change. Free cattle will
be much easier to defend from ira
ditional democratic tariff stand than
protected cattle.