Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1914-10-27
Another Extra" Session.?


to the regular: yet southern members
hope for and demand an extraordinary
session to convene by the middle oil
November Nineteen months of Demo.
cratic legislation has frittered away
more time and spent more of the PEG,
pies money than any session in his
tory. Now they are clamoring for time
and opportunity to spend quarter OF
q billion more. The effect of this Ii
months of Legislation" upon the
country cannot be computed in dollars
The industrial loss is beyond estimate
and with the menace Of further i'm
mediate interference with the country s
affairs. the prospects are not allurine
for revival of business.
A review of the work of the ses-
sion just closed is hardly necessary
in these columns, as We have from
time to time pointed out the course
taken by the administration. 1t has
been a session under the thumb of the
executive. promising much and de-
livering little. The income tax is a
specimen. Democratic exchange
publishes the following. which is suf-
ficient:-
Estimates on which Congress relied
when whipping the income tax section of
the Tariff bill into shape for adoption,
now appear to have been much too high.
Experts figured that there were 100 per-
sons in the 900 class.
Returns show "A.
Incomes between 100000 and 1000, 900
were set down as numbering $50.
Only 81 have been disclosed.
And SO on down the list-the eonse-
Quence being a revenue of about SIS, 000, 600
collected under the new law for the 10
payable months of last year, instead of
the expected sum of s45.o00.o00.
Aside from that the tariff bill has
proven tremendously short of furnish
ing the revenue estimated as necessary
for running the government. Humid
reds of millions additional taxes must
be put upon the country, because of a
lack Of definite policy and sound under
standing of national affairs.
We are paying dearly for theoretical
conduct of very practical business. 1t
ID one thing to describe what can be
done, and quite another to accomplish
it. Democracy has failed, signally.
Deficits, extravaganza. over taxation,
total failure to redeem its pledges,
reputation of loudly made promises,
raids on the civil service, reestablish-
ment of the spoils system, creation of
new offices and boards, increased sal
aries, increased allowances for every
branch Of government-all these and
many more can be honestly charged
against. the first two years of Demo-
cratic control. And all these increased
bills for the people to pay have come
in place of the promised reduction in
the high cost of living, and at a time
when the people could ill-afford to
stand them. Even the Democratic
Chairman of the Appropriations Com
mittee in speech on the floor of Con-
gress, said:
When ever l think of the horrible
mess I shall be called upon to present
to the country on behalf of the Demo-
cratic Party. am tempted to quit my
place."
He declared that the Democratic
Party had unnecessarily piled up the
public expenditures until the Demo-
cratic Party is becoming the laughing
stock of the country"
Another specimen of gigantic folly
is we'll described by Senator Reed
smoot of Utah, who is regarded as
national authority on the tariff and
results of tariff changes. He says:
The Democrats have laid an enor-
nous burden on the American people
and absolutely destroyed the sugar in
dustry Of the United States without
reducing the price of that commodity
Sugar is striking illustration of
the great blunder which the Democrat
ic party committed in its passage of
the tariff law Of 1873" said Senator
Smoot. Under this law the tariff dutv
on imported sugar was reduced % per
cent, and this commodity will auto
matieally be placed on the free list on
May !. 1916. / will not dwell upon the
erect Of this law on the domestic sugar
industry further than to saw that 10
of our American sugar-beet factories
have closed their doors since its pas
sage. That the price of sugar to the
consumer was not reduced by the 25
per cent reduction in the tariff rates is
clearly borne out by authoritative sta
tistics, Tor, as matter of fact, for 10
weeks prior to the outbreak of the war
In Europe, when normal conditions ex-
listed In the sugar market, the retail
price of sugar was from one-ffth to
one-th'rd of cent per pound higher
than It was for eight weeks before the
rs per cent reduction became effective
ana during all this time the profits OF
the sugar redneries had increased
about the same amount that the duty
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