The Washington herald., 1916-01-28
The Proposed Tariff Board.

Just as there were comparatively few persons
to condemn President Wilson for changing his
mind upon the question OF the nations military
needs during the progress Of the war, so there
will be few to find fault with him for changing his
mind on the question of creating board to in
vestigate the whole subject of the tariff, which
viii present many new aspects as the result
OF the war and the peace that is to follow in a
Europe of revolutonized conditions. At no time
in the eountrys history has the necessity for TAX
ing the tariff out Of politics and adjusting it upon
the basis of conclusions drawn from careful and
comprehensive investigation by thoroughly quail
ned, nonpartisan economists been so apparent
And yet, it must be confessed, the emergency
finds the prospect of tariff adjusted without re-
gard to political affiliations better than it has
ever been.
In the two letters which he has recently ad-
dressed to Representative Kitchin the President
makes it clear that he has in mind tariff invest-
CATION of almost unlimited scope. The proposed
board is to study every phase of the subject that
has claimed the attention of former boards and
commissions and in addition is to undertake to
solve the many new problems that have arisen and
that will arise as result of devasting war and
the reconstruction that must follow. The task
is almost appalling and if the President and his
advisers believe that the services of the proposed
board will prove of value, they of course realize
that it should be set to work immediately The
President is not specific to the manner in which
the board should be chosen, or from what walks
of life, his most direct reference to this being:
l am convinced as l suppose every disinterest-
ed person must be, that it would be mistake to
provide for such board with the idea of serving
any particular theory of fiscal policy. What we
would need would be, above all things else a
board much possible free from any strong
prepossession in favor of any political policy, and
capable of looking at the whole economic situ-
alton OF the country with a dispaSsonate and dis
interested scrutiny. ! believe that we could OBJ
tain such board if the proper legislation were
enacted.
The President emphasizes the fact that he has
mo thought whatever of a change of attitude to-
ward the so-caed protective theory" an admission
that merely serves to remind US once more of the
difficulties in the@way of taking the tariff out of
politics. Who would permit himself to expect that
a board OF which the majority were protectionists
would be created by Democratic administration,
or that Republican administration would put a
board of low tariff at work investigating? 1t
is no easier to imagine board of tariff neutrals
As to the time when the board would be able to
report no one would undertake to guess, and while
it might gather vast amount of important infor-
nation, the spectacle of Republican Congress
calmly proceeding to wipe the Underwood law off
the statute books and replacing it with one of
their own while the Democratic board is still at
work is not difficult to contemplate.
The country may have tariff board and the
work it will do may be useful; but there is as yet
no sign that the tariff is be taken out of politics