Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1921-10-30

To Be Busy
On'Tariff
Resumption of Hearings Nov.
] Will Keep Solons Busy
During Long Winter
Months Is Claim.
Retain Valuation Plan
BY ARTHUR SEARS HENNING.
Chicago Tribune Omaha Bee Leased Wire.

Washington, Oct. 29.-With the
resumption OF tariff hearings by the
senate finance committee on Novem.
Der !. congress will settle down for
an all winter grind on the revision
OF customs laws.
Although February has beer
fixed as the date TO which the emerg-
ency tariff expiring November q
will be extended. no one seems to
believe that congress will complete
the enactment of permanent tariff
lgislation by that date. The date
February !, was selected admittedly
with view TO speeding up the prog
ress of the permanent bill. When
that date arrives, congress undoubt-
edly will pass a bill again extending
the time OF the emergency tariff.
As matters now stand the perma-
nent tariff bill is not likely to reach
the statute books before March or
April or possibly May or June. In
doubtedly it will be enacted into law
at some time during the coming reg
ular session of congress. The lead
ers have made tentative plans to end
the session not later than June.
Radical Valuation Plan.
The radical departure determined
upon is the American valuation plan,
which contemplates the abandonment
of the policy of assessing import
duties on the foreign invoice value,
followed by the United States prac-
tically all the time for more than a
century has been the primary cause
OF the slow progress made in revis-
ing the tariff law. Contributing fact
ors have been, of course, the diff
Guilty of determining rates of duty
satisfactorily in view of chaotic con-
ditions and also the fact that the
same committees, the ways and
means committee in the house and
finance committee in the senate,
which have charge of the tariff leg
islation, also have been engaged in
the revision OF tax laws.
The American valuation plan is
becoming more and more to be the
storm center of pending tariff legis-
lation so far as business interests
thre ughout the United States are
concerned. Strangely enough, the
agitation against the plan, which was
started originally by New York inn
porters and has gradually spread
over the country, with commercial
organizations and business men OF
various classes behind it, has failed
to make much of an impression upon
the republican members of either the
house or senate.
Demos Take Advantage.
The democrats naturally have not
failed to take advantage of this issue.
The tariff, however, is so much of a
party question that opposition by the
democrats does not assume the same
significance which it might have, if
there were any likelihood that party
lines would be ignored in the final
vot,. Although many republican
members of the house strongly OBJ
jected to some~of the duties in the
bill, as reported from the ways and
means committee, not voice was
raised from the republican side IN
opposition to the American valuation
plan.
Republican members of the senate
committee already have gone so rar
as to definitely approve the Ameri-
can valuation plan, substitute pro-
vision having been framed in place
of the section of the house bill cover
ing this subject. The substitute plan
also has been concurred in by re-
publican members of the ways and
means committee, so that as the situ-
alton now stands the republican ma
jority in both committees are so far
committed to the principle that there
seems no likelihood of its abandon.
ment at any later stage of the pro-
ceedings.
Oppose Dye Embargo.
In the case of schedule l, the COM
mittee attempted to reach definite
decision on the question of an em-
barge on imports of dyes. The
proposed provision for control of
imports of dyes which was approved
by the house ways and means conf
mittee was stricken out on the floor
of the house through combination
of minority of republicans and the
democrats. While the republican
members OF the finance committee
have not announced a difinite de-
cision ON the matter they have in
dicated opposition to an embargo.
The plan under consideration con-
templates the imposition of psohibi-
tive duties in the case of dyes which
are manufactured in sufficient guam
titles in the United States.
The committee in its hearings only
scratched the surface of the agricul-
tural section and will begin on that
schedule when hearings are resumed
next week. The plan as worked out
in conjunction with the agricultural
bloc OF the senate is to start with
the live stock sections of the agri-
cultural schedule. All the agricul.
tural organizations are to have repre-
sentatives on the ground, and extern
sive consideration will be given.
While the house bill gives agricul-
ture a greater degree of protection
than in the past, there are number
of features of the schedule with
which the farm interests are not sat-
isfied.
The hearings on the agriculture
fTurn to Page Four. Column One.)