Evening journal., 1919-12-18
PROTECTIVE TARIFF vIND:c,rED.

rrSHE Republican Publicity Association through its
4 President Hon Jonathan Bourne Jr. today gave out
the following statement from rs Washington hoadquar
ters.
'Repubucan editors may well nnd satisfaction and
pride the fact that President Wilson has finally given
his express recognition to arguments they have advanced
for years the face Of Democratic opposition In his
message Congress- the President said touching on
the tarin:
1.-The preudlces and passions engendered by dec
ades OF controversy between two schools Of po
Itlcal and economic thought-the one believers in
protection Of American Industries, the other believers
in tariff for revenue ony-must be subordinated TO
the single consideration Of public interest in the light
OF utterly changed conditions. Before the war Amer
lea was heavily the debtor Of the rest Of the world
and the interest payments she had to make to for
eign countries American securities held abroad,
the expenditures OF American travellers abroad anu
the ocean freight charges she had TO pay 10 others,
about balanced the value Of her pre-war favorable
balance OF trade
Those three advantages enjoyed by other countries
in their trade with America forth repeatedly by
Republican editors In support Of protective arfI while
President Wilson stll urging his arin-for-rovenuc-
only programme He ignored those three advantages
joyed by other countries, he s fails TO mention two
other important drains upon American ananoes-lnsur-
premiums paid to foreign marine-insurance com
panes and the of money sent TO their European
Asiato families by foreigners earning wages In this
country, taken home with them when they returned
their native lands Because Of those five heavy expend
lures by America absolutely necessary that Amer
lean industry the protection OF an import duty 10
prevent our sending abroad money pay for goods
made in foreign factories by foreign labor But Pres
ident Wilson could not that necessity In 1912 when
he was candidate for the Presidency. in 1918 when he
helped frame the Democratic free trade law in 1911
when American mills closing and imports from
Europe and turning the balance OF trade against
u.s. II took him years accept facts which Republic
editors had laying before their readers whenever
The tarin question was under consideration.
I'm his statement quoted above President Wilson vir-
ualy acknowledges the unsoundness Of his tariff views
before the He Is certainly rsht in now agreeing
with the Republican assertion that before the war the
money sent abroad by Americans to pay expenses Of
tourists interest and dividends shipping charges, etc.
about balanced her pre-war favorable balance Of trade
And that balance OF trade made possible only by
protective tariff The records Of the Wilson admnIsra-
ton prove it beyond question In the month Of October
1918 our favorable balance Of trade amounted to siS-
0000O0 The devastating work Of the Wilson Underwood
tariff law is shown in the rapidly diminishing balances
Tor succeeding months. In November the balance was
only 9000OOO; December s49OO0O00; in January 1913
practically the same; in February s26OO0OOO; in March
100000 and In April the balance was against us 10 the
extent Of sii,OOOOOo
when payments to foreign countries about
equaed our favorable trade balance President Wilson
helped enact law which wiped out that favorable bal
ance and forced America TO draw upon her capital re-
to pay debts to Europe Aud he stll has the
audacy 10 pose economic advisor Of the nation"
Through the next election the protective tariff will
come into its own.