New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-03-02
Legislative and Executive Accomplishments
Are Greater than Those Of Any Other
President in a Single Term
TIME WILL ADD TO HIS FAME
Confronted Almost from the Start by an Exceptional
Situation, He Has Overcome Party Treachery and
Gross Misrepresentation for Law
Greatest Lesson He Has Taught.

the mere revision OF tariff rates. III exc
ated a maximum and minimum tariff
system, which has enabled the admins
tration 10 procure from foreign nations
the most considerable treatment of AmeIl-
can exports. and has incr eased the export
trade of the United States TO the unprece-
denied figure of over S2,0c0Uc,Op. 1t i'm
posed a tax on the profits Of corporations,
the most just form of income tax, and
thus provided source of revenue which
has added over $33, 10000 a year TO the
governments revenues. it granted sub
stantial free trade TO the Philippines,
thus affording unprecedented prosperity
TO those islands and augmenting their i'm
portation of the products of the United
States until ii has reached approximately
so. 100000 year. II created customs
court, which has accomplished a Uniform
ity of judicial decisions nterpr citing GUS
toms laws hitherto unknown, and pro-
vides for all future causes OF this char
acter being adjudicated by experts who
are fitted by special knowledge To deal
with the intricacies Of this bra1eA OF the
federal revenues Ii created a tarin
board, which. despite the fact tha' it has
since been abolished by he Democrats
accomplished sufficient 10 demonstrate
that by such machinery alone can a just
and accurate revision IF the tariff, free
from political influences and log rolling,
be achieved Ano, finally. the Payne law
materially lowered the duties. 1t in
creased the percentage of imports admit
ted free of all duty from a. to 81 per cent
1t reduced the average rae On dutiable
imports from So TO Al per cent. II effected
reduction of average rates on all I'M
ports of 10 per cent, ana II transferred "a
larger share of the burden of tariff taxa
ton from necessities TO luXuries.
The Conservation Policy.
When President Taft assumed office the
policy, with which he was IN
hearty accord rested for the most part
on Executive orders the legality Of which
was questioned, if not questionable.
President Taft induced Congress to pass
a law specifically authorizing the EXecu-
tive to withdraw from settlement such
public lands as his judgment might die
tate and then, acting under that statute
all the lands Withdrawn by his
predecessor and many million acres more
as fast as the Investigations of the Geo
logical Survey revealed the presence or
mineral resources such as coal. oil. etc,
or the suitability of the land for the de-
velopment Of water power. He secured
from Congress authority to separate coal
deposits from the surface Of the land and
to dispose of the former at prices proper
tionate to the coal deposit, while the sur
face was opened to settlement for agri-
cultural purposes. He procured from Con-
gress vast appropriations for the conser-
walton Of the national forests and greatly
promoted the efficiency OF the forest SER
vice. He procured authority 10 issue
bonds for $20,000,000 to expedite the
reclamation by irrigation Of the arid lands
Of the West. BY his vetoes, as well as
by his constructive acts. President Taft
has proved himself the loyal, judicious
and answering friend Of conservation.
Postal Banks and Parcel Post.
President Taft procured the creation Of
postal savings banks, whereby thrift has
been encouraged, and those who lacked
confidence in their own judgment to de-
termine what constituted trustworthy
banks and other sources Of investment
have been afforded an opportunity to de-
post their savings where their safety is
guaranteed by the government, and the
savings so deposited now aggregate more
than $1,000 900. He has conquered the
long invincible opposition Of the express
companies and effected the creation OF
parcel post system, which has destroyed
. he en- 1onp o,,i nuoh hy the rri-
vate carriers and promises to prove Of the
utmost benefit to all the people of the
country.
The Antitrust Law.
No achievement of the Taft administra-
ton has been more notable or more bene-
fetal to the prosperity Of the country than
its quiet determined and successful en-
forcement Of the Sherman antitrust law.
Nearly seventy causes have been insttut-
ed under this law, and while many are
still pending. more than twenty-five have
been carried to successful issue. Such
immense monopolies as the Standard Oil
Company and the American Tobacco Com
pany have been forced to dissolve, as has
recently the merger between the Southern
Pacific and Union Pacific railways. Suits
are still pending against the coal trust,
the steel trust and the sugar trust and
the United Shoe Machinery Company.
The work of enforcing this farreaching
law has been carried on without a blare
of trumpets or vociferous reiteration of
dire threats which would have destroyed
business confidence ard precipitated hard
times. but with an unwavering determine
ton and an ability of prosecution which
have for the first time in its history made
the antitrust law respected. a genuine
force in the prevention Of monopoly and
unfair and cruel methods of competition
Legislation has been procured and the
federal machinery has been put into CT