The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1913-04-11
BRIEF MESSAGE DEALS
ENTIRELY WITH TARIFF
Especial to The Free Press

\ w OOuTOW w IISCIl IOudy SuUulILICu ul
message to congress, as follows:
To the Senate and House OF Repre-
sentatives:
| have called the conguess together
in extraordinary session because g
duty was laid upon the party row II
power at the recent electSons which Il
ought to perform promptly I'm order
that the burden carried by the people
under existing law may be frightened
as soon as possible and An order. also
that the business interests Of the couD'
try may not be kept too long in sus'
pense as to what the fiscal changes
are to lie to which they will be reauir.
ed to adjust themselves. 1t Is clear
to the whole country ,1hat the tariff
duties must be altered. ,rhey must be
changed to meet the radit,ai altera ton
In the conditions Of our economic Ike
which the country has wit uessed With.
In the last generation. While the
whole face and method of our indus.
trial and commercial life Uvere being
changed beyond recognition the tariff
schedules have remained what they
were before the change begaIE or have
moved In the direction they ,ksere Civ
en- when no large circumstances. of our
Industrial development was Nfnat it Is
today Our task Is to Square them
with the actual facts. The soa ner that
| IL done the sooner we shaN escape
from suffering from the facts and the
sooner our men Of business will he
| free to thrive by the law eff nature
(the nature OF free business, instead
Of by the law Of legislation and arti-
fetal arrangement.
How Tariff Has Grown.
We have seen tariff Legislation wan.
der very far afied In our daT-very far
indeed from the field In which our
prosperity might have had normal
growth and stimulation. n one who
looks the facts sQuarely In the face or
knows anything that lies beneath the
surface Of Action can fail to perceive
the principles upon which recent tariff
legislation has beeH based. We long
ago passed beyond the modest notion
Of protecting the industries OF the
country and moved boldly forward to
the idea that they were entitled to the
direct patronage Of the government
For long time--a time SD long that
the men now active In public policy
hardly remember the conditions that
proceeded tive have sought IN our
tariff schedules TO give eDch group of
manufacturers or producers what they
themselves thought that they needed
in order to maintain practically ex-
elusive marker as against the rest of
the world Consciously or unconscious
ly we have built up set of privileges
and exemptions from competition he
hind which IT was easy by any. even
the crudest. forms of combination to
organize monopoly. until at last moth
ing is normal. nothing is Obliged to
stand the tests of efficiency and econo-
my. in our world of big business. but
everything thrires by concerted ar.
rangement. Only new principles of
action will save us from final hard
disqualification of monopoly and com.
plete loss of the influences that quick.
en- enterprise and keep independent en-
ergy alive.
Must Abolish Privilege.
1t is plain what those principles must
be We must abolish everything that
bears even the sembtance of privilege
or Of any kind OF artificial advantage
and put our business men and pro-
ulcers under the stimulation of con-
staut necessity to be efficient. econom.
icai and enterpEising. masters of com
petitive supremacy. better workers and
merchants than any in the world
Aside from the duties laid upon arti-
cles which we do not and probably
cannot produce. therefore. and the
duties laid upon Injuries and merely
for the sake of the revenues they yield.
the object of the tariff duties hence
forth laid must be effective competi-
tion. the whetting of American wits by
contest with the wits of the rest of the
world
1t would be unwise to move toward
this end headlong. with reckless haste
or with strokes that cut at the very
roots Of what has grown up among
us by long process and at our own in
vitation. 1t. does not alter a thing to
upset 1t and break 1t and deprive it of
chance to change. 1t destroys it,
We must make changes in our fiscal
laws, In our fiscal system. whose OBJ
ject Is development. a more free and
wholesome development. not revolution
or upset or confusion. We must build
up trade. especially foreign trade. We
need the outlet and the enlarged field
Of energy more than We ever did be-
fore We must build up industry as
we'll and must adopt freedom in the
place Of artificial stimulation only 30
far as it will build. not pull down. In
dealing with the tariff the method by
which this may be done will be a mat.
ter of Judgment. exenised item by
item. To some not accustomed to the
excitements and responsibilities Of
greater freedom our methods may iii
some respects ma at some points seem
heroic. but remedies may be heroic
and yet be remedies 1t is our bust.
ness to make sure that they are genu.
Inc remedies. Our object IL clear Ii
our motive is above just challenge
AND only an occasional error OF judg.
ment is chargeabe against us we shall
hA fnrtt,po<n t.'' ~