The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1921-07-12
PERIODIC BATTLE OVER
TARIFF HAS STARTED
THE FORDNEY BILL APPEARS
AS THE REPUBLICAN PLAN
TO RAISE S7Oo,ooo,OOo.
FREE LIST is A SAD WRECK
Proposed Duties in New Bill About
Equal to Those of Payne-Aldrich
Law. Lumber Promises to Be Bone
Of Contention New Argument.

The periodic battle of the tariff is
about to begin in Washington. The
administration permanent tariff bill
has made its bow in the lower house
of congress and is now ready to be
praised by its friends, the republicans,
and damned by its enemies, the demo-
Gratis. The wordy war over protection
versus free trade, waged in the marble
halls OF the capitol with every change
of administration, is to be the press
diet from Washington for the next two
or three months. Denunciations, lauda-
ton, recriminations and praise will
abound for a season. Legislators may
even shake their fists at each other
over a gross injustice to a defenselesS
constituency" but in the end the bill
will pass because the republicans will
have it So and the country will again
be deriving the blesses, or the curses,
of a protective tariff for its industries,
Big Revenue Is Promised.
The ways and means committee OF
the lower house, which prepared the
measure, makes the unofficial estimate
that the duties under the new law may
reach as high as $700,000,000 year
Chairman Fordney says they are GER
tain to exceed $500000,000 a year. The
last high protective tariff, the Payne
Aldrich law, yielded about $300,000,-
600 a year.
The average rate of the tariff bill
now in congress is between Is and ~
per cent, according to Chairman Ford
ney, as against 1885 per cent under
the Aldrich law and per cent under
the Underwood law passed by the
democrats.
Republicans in defending the bill
have developed the new argument that
the revenue from the proposed tariff
will mean lower taxation, yielding as
it does more than half billion dol
lars year But the stock arguments
continue to be the redemption OF cam
paign pledges, the development OF
American industries, and the protec-
ton OF American workmen against the
cheaper labor of Europe.
Democrats, in attacking the meas
ure, declare it was framed with an eye
to the profits of vested interests" and
maintain that it will cost every man
woman and child in the United States
$50 year and add at least $4,000, 000,-
| 900 to the already high cost OF living
Lumber to Be the Schedule K"
Lumber promises to be the bone OF
contention in the Fordney tariff bill
| lust as wool was in the Payne-Aldrich
| law. If there is another Schedule X
battle at the present session it will be
! fought. not on wool-rateS on which
have not called forth much criticism
so far-but on whether rough lumber
and shingles should be placed on the
| free list, together with dressed lumber
! The fight i'll the way and means COM
mittee over the lumber schedules was
bitter, the original proposal being to
place a heavy duty on all lumber as
retaliatory measure against Canadian
| import duties THIS, however, was final
! " defeated. manly by reason OF the
argument that such "a duty would add
from $500 to S5A0 to the cost OF build
ing an ordinary home.
The house leaders hope to FINISH de-
bate on the Furdney bill, pass it and
send it to the senate by the end OF
/ the month, bun 1t is doubtful If such
schedule c4n be kept. The demo
Gratis are certain to fight the removal
of so many ARTICLES from the free list
of the Underwood law, while the re-
publicanS are I4tent on restricting this
feature of the proposed new law to
print paper, wood pulp, leather, har-
ness and agricultural implements.