The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-03-05
TOLLS QUESTION: IS NOT MENACE ID THE HARMONY OF PARTY Controversy Is Merely on h. depreciation of Certain
 Features of Treaty MANY ARE LINED UP AGAINST PRESIDENT Underwood Gives His Views on the Matter Which Will First be
 Fought Out in the
 Senate
By C. E. STEWART

By C. E. STEWART | Washington, March 4-fSpecial )--Presi-
 dent Wilson has had easy sailing with | Congress on legislation. So easy in fact l has it been for the President to get ! Congress to do his bidding, that the coun- | try har come to accept the statement,
 frequently made, that all the President
 has to do is to snap his fingers and Con I gress will jump through q hoop. This view of the matter. is not only grossly unjust to Congress. but also to l the President himself. Congress has 1 backed up the President in matters of | legislation. because. in the main it has agreed witt him. It has yielded to the exeeAtive in matters of minor importance. but on all fundamental questions the President has been with Congress and Congress with him and no compromise, CT surrendering on the part of either was necessary.
 The first. and only real issue the Presi- dent has had with Congress- is now pend ing And it is by no means certain that the executive will win, though, the news papers generally, and the public for the most part confidently expect that he will. Public sentiment is divided on the ques- tion of Panama canal tolls, and the ex- emption of our coastwise vessels the pro- test of Great Britain notwithstanding. but there is little doubt but what the majority of the American people believe that this country should maintain it's right to control the canal, until it Is de- cided by arbitration shat the Hay-Paunee- fote treaty is violated by our Panama canal act.
 It is likely that the legislation desired by the President looking to the repeal of the Panama canal act will originate in the Senate. The leaders in the House are not disposed to take up the question un- til they are compelled to do so. But all the real leaders in the House of Repre- sentatives are opposed to the repeal of this act; they do not like to line up against the wishes of the President but they are practically certain to GO so, un- less they are convinced beyond question before hand that the exemption of our coastwise vessels will be in contravention of the treaty.
 Underwood, Kitchen, Fitzgerald, Dore- mus. and others of equal strength and power in the House stand firmly on our right to control the canal. and exempt our own vessels from tolls. MT. Under wood feels that the questoin is so im- portant that it involves the future de- felopment or our commerce and discour- ages the hope of merchant marine
 Underwood Gives Views T can zee no real distinction, said Alr. Underwood. "between a ship loaded at Duluth with wheat going through the Sault Ste. Marie canal without lockage charges and landing its cargo at Buff falo. or a barge loaded with coal start Ing at Pittsburg going through the canal and locks on the Ohio river and unload ing it's freight at New Orleans and a snip starting with American merchandise from San Francisco and going through the Panama canal free of tolls and iEnd- ing it's cargo at New Orleans IF one is equita ble and just the other ls If one is fair and honest the other is If one is in the into rest of the Ameri- can people, the other is also If one is subsidy or subvention. the other is. If one is in violation of olr principles of government, the other is likewise T do not feel that there is a nation in Europe that would surrender as im- portant a question as the development of it's commerce without at least insisting on court of arbitration. And in my judgment it will be great mistake for our government to surrender at this time what may have a lasting ef- rect on the development of the trade and commerce of our nation in the future
 
 of Claude Kitchen, who is destined to succeed MT. Underwood as the majority leader in the House. and Representative Fitzgerald. chairman of the appropria- ton committee.
 When the question gets to the House the responsibility for conducting the fight for the President will fall upon the shoul- ders of Representative Adamson of Geor- sia, who will likely be aided by Sherly of Kentucky and Palmer of Pennsyl- rania.
 Republicans Fight Repeal
 In addition to this many republicans in the House stand for tolls exemption
 Moreover they are moi backward about making the declaration that they propose to light the repeal of the law with much vigor. Already they have dug up speech of the Presidents delivered in his campaign for the nomination, in which he strongly favored free tolls for Ameri- can ships, and this they have printed in the record, for the Information of weak Nneed democrats as a tonic and as what they contend, one 'of the soundest poli- cies ever announced by the President