New-York tribune., 1919-02-08
Pinchot Declares
Penrose Endanger
Republican Future
In Open Letter to Senators
of Party Insists He Must
Not Be Given Chairman
ship of FinanceCommittee

PHILADELPHIA, Feb. T. Clifford
Pinchot, who recently wrote a letter to
Senator Boise Penrose, calling upon
nm, IN the interests of Republican
harmony and in order to promote the
party's chances Of victory in the next
Presidential election, not to take the
Craftsmanship of the Committee on FL
nance in the next Senate, to-day ad-
dressed an open letter to all Republican
Senators on the subject Mr.. Pinchot
wrote, in part:
Il want my position in this matter to
be perfectly clear. am a Republican.
The victory Of the Republican partv in
1920 is necessary to the welfare of our
country. am doing what | can to
bring that victory about This letter
may be forgotten long before election
but the facts it describes will remain.
II Senator Penrosc IS allowed TO be-
come master of the Committee on Fl.
nance and virtual Republican leader of
the Senate the Democrats will see that
every voter in the land knows it when
he goes to the polls.
the coming Presidential election
Will be the most important of our time
NO such war and no such period of de-
clslon following it have ever faced the
world before. BY 1920 our politics. now
fluid after the war, will be ready tc
crystalline. They must not harden with
the Democrats in power, for the party
which wins the next election NAV well
hold the government for generation
Republican Efficiency Needed
"lf any proof were needed, the AFRO
CANT costly, sectional, partisan blum.
dering of the Democratic party in its
handling of the problems of the war
and of preparedness before the war
mas proved it unfit to handle the vast
problems of reconstruction These
problems must be put in the hands of &
republican dministration, with the
Republican habit of getting things
done. What we do with reconstruction
Wlll affect every man, woman and chile
IN America for generations to come. II
IS TOO vital matter to be left to the
mercy OF Democratic political manipu-
lation.
"As a most important part of recon
seruc'lon we must have a Republican
tariff which will give fair and ADEQUATE
protection to business, labor and the
farmer. The bill for this tariff will
bear the name of the chairman of the
finance committee If the Republican
Senators turn over to Senator Pcnrosc
the virtual leadership of the party in
the Senate, together with the trcmen.
dous power now exercised by the chair
man Of the Committee on Finance the
tariff bill will lose the confidence of the
rank and file Of the party. MANY will
contend, and with justice, that Senator
Penrosc is incapable Of writing tariff
bill free from the influence Of the cor
porations and monopolcs which in pol-
it'cs he always has served. SO with
the revenue bill which must come from
the Committee on Finance To the av-
cragc voter the name viii tell the
story.
Quotes The Tribune
This is not merely my Indictment
OF Senator Pcnrose. He has long been
indicted by the general opinion Of Re-
publicans.
'On October ], 1914, The New York
Tribune, the historic mouthpiecc Of the
Republican Party, said editoriaIly:
The loyalty Of good Republicans
is shamefully abused by sclf-seeking
bosses Ike Boise Pcnrose, who try
10 blind good men TO work for evil
and clean men to work for corrup-