The Coconino sun. (Flagstaff, Ariz.) 1898-1978, 1916-06-09
DEMOCRATIC REVENUE
LAW A FAILURE

Washingto, June 7, Especial Cor
respondence) Democrat leaders in
Washington are much chagrined at
the speech delivered recently by Sena-
tor Furnifold Simmons, before the
Democratic State Committee at Ra-
leigh, North Carolina.
Senator Simmons speech was
looked forward to with great deal
of confidence by the Democrats, be-
cause it was expected to be the only
genuine Simon-pure keynote speech
of the party for the 1916 campaign.
There will be a so-called keynote
speech delivered at St. Louis by Mart
Glynn, but remembering his futile
attempt to answer Elihu Root, the
Democrats had pinned small confid-
ence on Glynn's st. Louis peroration.
With the faint hope stirring in their
bosoms for the next four years, and
realizing the fact that the Hon. Fur
nifold Simmons might continue as the
chairman of the Finance Committee
which, when it comes to q showdown,
dictates the fiscal policy of this coun
try, the Democrats had faith that Mr..
Simmons speech would so manipulate
statistics and language that the coun-
try would feel sufficiently assured to
place one more bet on the disciples
of Woodrow Wilson.
Little consolation do they find in
the Raleigh speech Simmons is as
uncompromising free trader as ever.
The panorama of future trade offers
no terrors for Furnifold Wilson has
relented to the extent Of espousing a
tariff commission. because Of Chang
ing conditions;" the Democrats, gene
rally, believe that revision of the
tariff, on the plea of additional reve-
nue." is advisable, but Simmons, hav-
ing swatted business with an axe,
pleads "guilty" and looks to the .eoun-
try for vindication. The uncoYnpro-
missing attitude Of the chairman Of
the finance committee viii ambarass
Woodrow Wilson in making conces-
sions to the November voters. How
can the leader of the party declare
for q new tariff BILL when the chair
man of the Senate Committee who is
largely responsible for the present
law, presents brief in its favor?
One Of the worst breaks of Senator
Simmons, in presenting his tariff ar
gument to the North Carolina Demo-
cratic State Convention, is to be found
in the following contradiction:
"You cannot revise the tariff in the
interest Of the people unless you low
err the wall enough to allow competi-
ton from abroad, when the price here
is above the level of a fair and just
profit That is what we aimed to do,
and Ithink have done"
Then, flying to the defense of the
present law. he says "There was
Some increase in our total imports
during the year Immediately preced-
ing the war, just as there had been a
constantly continuing increase in our
imports both under the Dingley tariff
and the Payne-Aldrich tariff, but the
ratio Of increase in our total. as Of
our free imports under the Democrat
ic tariff, were, during that period, no
greater, indeed, not so great, as the
average annual increase under the
Payne Aldrich tariff during its whole
life. Indeed our imports for that year
were $120.000,00O less than estimat-
ed when I was chairman of the Fin
ance committee, reported the bill to
the Senate in 1913"
Democrats point out that this is a
further confession of failure Of the
Underwood Simmons law. If the bill
did not encourage imports, as Sim
mons declares it did not, then the
Democratic tariff theory goes to the
discard, and what is the use Of giving
publicity to it's failure? The people
know that the law was failure as a
revenue producer, that it did cause
business depression, and now Sim
mons has robbed the free traders of
their last argument in favor of the
Democratic law by declaring it was
not an encourager Of imports, false
hood which the party is estopped to
deny Altogether, Senator Simmons
has got himself in "Dutch," and will
probably keep quiet the rest of the