The Mena weekly star., 1913-04-10
Presidents First Message.

Washington, April 8.-President Woodrow Wilson today communi- cated his first message to the sixty third congress, convened in extra ordinary session. It was an unus- ually brief document, dealing eX- clusively with the need for thor ough, moderate and Well-consld- cred revision of the tariff. The president drew attention to the ne- cessity for an early reform in the banking and currency laws, but refrained, he said, from urging for the present any other legislation that might divert the energies of congress from it's clearly defined duty" toward the tariff question.
 The message referred to no par ticular schedule, mentioned no rates and included no statistics. It was an enunciation of the presidents principles on tariff revision. His specific views and ideas as to rates and duties, it has been generally ac- cepted, will be contained in the tar if bill itself, which he is now con- sidering in detail. The president s decision to put the weight of the administration influence behind the bill with it's various schedules as drawn by the House Ways and Means committee, caused him to omit specific reference to tariff rates until the measure was finally agreed upon in the opening days of the present session..
 The message urged that special privilege and exemptions from com petition be cut out of the nations tariff system and that the revision be made to square with the facts as they are At the outset, the president called attention to the party's pledge for tariT reduction. ITO the Senate and House of Repre-
 sentatives:
 q have called the congress to- gether in extraordinary session be- cause a duty was laid upon the par ty now in power at the recent elections which it ought to perform promptly, in order that the burden carried by the people under exist ing laws may be frightened as soon as possible and in order, also, that the business interests of the coun- try may not De kept too long In sus- pense as to what the fiscal changes are to be to which they will be re- quired to adjust themselves. It IS al fn al trNf fTsxv inc tariff duties must be altered. They must be changed to meet the radical alteration in the conditions Of our economic life which the country has witnessed in the last generation. While the whole face of the method of our industrial and commercial life were being changed beyond recognition, the tariff schedules have remained what they were be- fore the change began, or have moved in the direction they were given when no large circumstance of our industrial development was what il is today. Our task IS to square them with the actual facts. The sooner that is done the sooner we shall escape from suffering from the facts, and the sooner our men of business will be free to thrive by the law of nature (the na- ture of free business) instead Of by the law Of legislation and artificial arrangement.
 We have seen tariff legislation wander very far afleld in our day very far indeed from the field in which our prosperity might have had normal growth and stimula- ton. No one who looks the facts squarely in the face or knows any thing that lies beneath the surface of action can fail to perceive the principles upon which recent tariff legislation has been based. We long ago passed beyond the modest mo- ton of protecting the industries of
 (Confinuad on Eiflh pappl