The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1915-12-17


and what is proper reciprocity
with other countries.
Should he Permanent.
Such a commission should be
made permanent; 1t should be
given full power to investigate
and recommend schedules to con-
gress; 1t should be given all the
power possible under our consti-
tuition. and should be put in such
position toward the public that
its opinions, when announced,
would carry so much weight that
congress could scarce refuse to
enact them into law.
Some people may object to this
on the ground that 1t would be
tantamount to taking the tariff
making power away from con-
gress and putting it in the hands
of small committee, but this is
no argument at all because for 80
years our tariff has been made
and remade, and each time by a
small committee, on purely po-
litical basis for political advant-
age. This small committee then
reported 1t to congress, which
passed 1t without a large percent
age Of the members of congress
knowing much of anything more
about 1t than the public itself
knew.
On Political Basis.
During the last 80 years We
have had five or six revisions of
the tariff by politicians on a po-
litical basis for political advan-
tage. Each time We have had
business upheavals, severe losses
in trade and thousands of men
out of work. Is It not high time
that we learned our lesson and
took the tariff out of politics
through the creation of an inde-
pendent non-partisan tariff COM
mission?
On the corporation question
we are also lamentably weak. At
this time, when we should be
reaching out to all parts of the
world with great, strong, indus
trial organizations, we are mark
ing time. waiting, waiting, wait
ing for the supreme court to in
terpret the Sherman law through
some one of the several law suits
before it, so that we can find out
how business on a large scale can
be done legally in this country.
And this marking time is being
done at moment when we
should, instead, be taking advan-
tage of the most golden oppor-
tunities ever offered this country
for exploiting foreign trade.
Abuses Are Vital.
| Whatever may be the decision
OF the supreme court in the pend
ing trust suits, it will be Of little
permanent value to the people of
this country, for the abuses in
corporate management of which
the people complain will not be
abolished by those decisions.
| These abuses are vital Ques-
tions and arise through false capt.
talization and a lack of publicity
in the affairs of great interstate
and international industrial units.
Neither in the Sherman law nor
in the powers of the present fed
eral trade commission is there any
provision whatever for the pro-
lection of the people against these
and other glazing abuses.
We are hearing much talk these
days about New York Immediately
becoming the financial center of
the world. This can never be
more than a dream as long as the
great nations of Europe own prac-
ticalIy all the ships with which
the trading of the world is con-
Quoted.
IT is nothing short OF a crime
against our people that we have
no merchant marine mt time like
this when our opportunities are SO
vast for worldwide trade; and
yet every few days we are in
formed i'm some way from WASH
ington that the government ex-
poets to 90 back next winter to
The polio! of advocating Il govern
ment-owned shipping line on
which Il was defeated last winter.
We lost another great oppor-
tunity recently through the utter
lack of interest or cooperation
on the part of our government in
the international financing that
has been going on throughout
the world. In my judgment, the
present administration made its
first colossal blunder in this d.
rection during the first few weeks
OF the administration when Mr..
Wilson vetoed the participation
by our bankers in the great Chi
nese loan. That was our golden
opportunity to establish trade re-
lations with the far east. Our
government forbade the loan, but
European nations gladly made It
and at the same time made their
trade agreements.
During teh present war we have
apparently had but one outlet for
our cotton crop and that has been
England. We should long ago
have been making trade agree
ments with great nations like
China, in connection with loan
transactions, SO as to increase our
outlet for cotton and other
things.
We have just negotiated a great
loan with England and France, yet
not one word was said, and, SO far
as the public knows, not one
thing was done to secure for this
country trade agreements, con-
cessions or understanding of any
sort In connection with making
this loan. Our government took
no hand whatever in the trans
action, asked no questions, gave
no advice, did absolutely nothing,
and apparently did not think at
all OF how this giant loan coulc
be used to establish permanent
trade arrangements for our coun-
try.
nv man IN thia countrv who