The record. [volume] (St. Maries, Idaho) 1913-1918, 1913-10-17
NEEDED

tariff bill aud 1t bias become a law
With most of It's provisions effective
at once. just what lie the ooun-
try likely to realize from this new
lawg The people should bear In
mind two things: That the cost of
living Is not likely to be at once
affected by the new act. That the
chief immediate gain from the new
tariff will be moral rather than
economic.
One of the things most essential to
the successful operation OF demo-
cratic institution is popular patience
Where a few rule, a man here
and there understands the workings
Of POLITICAL iutstitutious, all Is
we'll. II the exceptional individual
knows what may be successfully at
tempted aud what may not and ABOUT
how long It takes to get results from
q given effort. the opinions of the
many make no difference. But 10
this nation the many rule. The
people IS a whole must understand
how politices work, must come to
see the relation Of causes TO affects,
must have at least a general idea Of
the length OF time IL takes 10 effect
bad conditions by remedial lsgisla
tion. Unless this knowledge Is gem
eral, the cooks NAV try to Eat the
cake before IL lie time to take It out
Of tbs oven.
Now the economists all agree that
It takes q term of years to ''get
results'' from a tariff till. One Of
the greatest Of American economic
writer's declares IL to be impossible to
tell exactly what effect an early
wool tariff had BECAUSE IT WAS
IN FORCE ONLY FOUR YEARSi
The people. therefore, should not
anticipate that IL the Underwood
tariff goes inIo effect one day at noon
the next day they will do their mar
ketIng cheaper on account thereof.
Large bodies move slowly The
of a nation Of one hCSo\ \
millions is a very large body .seN\
again, however, will be insts ~ J
great. That is the moral again. ~.
pose that tue claims made by lsRji
protectiouist ~ 10 the tariff iuun'
cence of evil effect upon prices could
be 81 bstautiated. Il would still
remain Que Of lhe chief duties Of
statesmen 10 onguge Whist ha- been
onr iailf plstcNHaauae OF the leiet-
reour sHsot< philosophy Of
life. v
high protection Ia based on the
idea that the government, In the ex
cruise OF its most characteristic
power-the taxing power-must be
run not for the general welfare but
for the private business of individuals
Here, for example, ale the wool
growers aud tue sugar men 1--WE
cannot prosper without legislation
tor our benefit 80 they declare cit Is
the duty of the government 30 to leg
islate as to protect us against harm
aud loss." And the government has
so legislated for more han eighty
years.
The principle Is vicious Il Is a
principle susceptible Of indefinite
extension. Il has been extended All
sorts Of Legislative grabs for the bene-
DC OF favored individuals. favored
groups. favored classes have come
In through the door which the pro-
tected philosophy left open. Even
II the notorious tariff abuses had
never existed, II the shameful activ
ties OF the wGol ard WOODEN lobby
-which have been fragrant at least
as far back 30 he tariff of 1867
aud the sugar lobby had never dis
graoed our political history, the
other evils which crooked thinking
and cross eyed tariff morals have let
Ia upon US would have still been q
national disgrace and q source Of ma
tional weakness.
"Man shall not live by bread
alone" In the list Of national
assets the FRS essentials ale %oleanness
hands and and strength Of heart. It
ls q moral as we'll as a economic
6ght which Oscar Underwood has led
toa successful Issue in Washington
We council Qua readers. to await with
reasonable patience the economic
effaets of the new measure and to
give instant recognition TO its i'm
portance as a waymark on the road
OF the nations progress toward
things just, manly aud decent.