The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-10-02
Speaker Reviews Record of Democratic Party During
 Wilson Administration
PRAISES UNDERWOOD
 TARIFF MEASURE
Confident of Favorable Verdict of People in Elections of Next Year. Novel Situation Will Present
 Itself to the Public

St. Joseph. Mo, October 1.-Speaker Champ Clark of the national House of Representatives in a speech at the democratic state banquet here tonight reviewed the legislative record of the democratic party and expressed con- the election of 1916. Speaker Clark said in part:
 "To millions of voters the present political situation is entirely novel At the republicans have held the federal government and the democrats were lighting to wrest it from their iron grasp. Now all this is changed and, as we believe. changed for the better.
 For years those who love us not asserted that democrats were a party of negation; that we did not have sense enough to legislate. Unfortunately for the country a majority of the people believed their jibberish for a long, long time We wandered in the wilder ness as long as did Moses. but at last the scales fell from the peoples eyes and they concluded to entrust us with power once more.
 What happened? In two brief years we placed on the statute books more constructive legislation of the most highly beneficial character than the republicans enacted in two decades legislation so good that in addition to the democratic votes nearly all the progressives and large per cent of the regular republicans voted for our great constructive measures.
 Tariff Bill
 We passed a great tariff bill-the greatest ever placed upon the statute books. It contains many excellent changes from the Payne -Aldrich- -Smoot monstrosity and it contains one new feature that would make 1t the best of all tariff bills even if the rest of it were as bad as the last republican tar if bill, which most emphatically it is not. That new feature is the income tax. I make bold to predict that the income tax provision never will be re- pealed, no matter what party gets hold of the lawmaking power.
 Tt is said the Underwood tariff bill does not bring in as much revenue as the Payne e-Aldrich-Smoot bill. We who made tho Underwood bill knew when we mad
  l would not be as large under our bill as under the old republican bill. We drew i | so on purpose; that was one Of the end' sought. Also knowing that the gov err nent would need about as much none, as usual, we made up by the income ia, | fee ture the loss in tariff taxes. Republican orators assert that the Un derwood tariff bill, even including the in come tax feature, did not bring in revenue erough to conduct the government. whicl | Is absolutely untrue. Everybody know that tEere Is large deficiency in. the revs nuc, and that the deficiency was caused and still Is being caused by the European war
 I've had for more than half centur financial system of shreds and patches with currency system almost devoid O elasticity.
 Republican Rule
 "For a generation our republican friends had been tinkering with it-al ways promising but never achieving cur rency reform. The democrats with tn assistance of patriotic and progressiv contingent of republicans, placed on tn statute books the national reserve banl act, which Is now praised by all business men
 We passed an antitrust law whic tends tc promote legitimate business an' | crush illegitimate business. Under tn new law trusts are being dissolved am are rearranging their business on legiti mate basis.
 .'The people seem to have absolute con | fidence in the pilot of the ship of state l-Woodrow Wilson-and are not likely t drop him overheard in mid-ocean whil the storm whips the waters into fury H did his duty. the democratic House d it's duty, the democratic Senate did ir duty We submit that we deserve we os the republican, of us. Having dis charged our duty and been faithful to ou trust. the people will assume that W
 will do our duty and be faithful even thu end.''