New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1921-07-21
Fight Against
Hides duty i'm
House To-day
Republican, Bloc, Including
g Mcnalers Of Ways and
Mcane, OPP poses the
Mong.cll ~Tortlncy Forces
Refuse Con1pensatoryTax
Opponents OF Duly Say the
Packers VIII BE Only
Ores - Benefit From IL

From, The Tribhne's Vnshtn oton Burrnu
WASHINGTON, July 20.-~A deter
mined fight is promised in the House
tomorrow, when the Fordhey tariff bill
comes up for Gnal action, to return
hides to the free list and eliminate the
10 per cent all valorcm duty placed in
the bill last Friday. The contest will
be test of strength between Repubi-
can forces led Jointly by Chairman
Fordncy OF the Was and Means Com
mittee, and Majority Leader Mondell,
and Il considerable bloc Of Republicans,
supported by eight Republican mem
bcrs Of the Ways and Means Commit
tee.
Opponents Of the hides duty con-
tend that it will be beneficial only to
the packing industry and Will be eco
nomicaIiy injurious rather than help
full to the farmers and stockra sers.
They contend that with one exception
1t has been q Republican principle for
the las. fifty years to keep hides on the
free list.
Compensatory Duty Defeated
The split in the Republican ranks
over the hides schedule reached an
acute stage to-day when the House in
the committee Of the whole refused to
vote pcnsatory duties of 10 per
cent on leather and boots and shoes to
Offset the effect on the leather and
shoe industries of free hides.
Representative Snyder, of New York,
one Of those who voted for a duty on
hides last Friday, indicated break in
the Fordncy Mondell following when
he asked Mr.. Fordncy why his promise
to grant compensatory duties to the
leather and shoe manufacturers had not
been kept.
Representative McFadden, of Penn
sylvana. chairman of the House Com
mittee OH Banking and Currency; Rep
resentative Hawley, of oregon, and
Representative Watson, of pennayl-
vania, the two latter Republican mem
bers of the Ways and Means Commit
tee, are among those taking an active
part in the movement to restore hides
to the free list.
Mr. McFaddcn sent personal letters
to-day to many or his Republican col
leagues urging the defeat of the hides
amendment when the tariff bill comes
before the House tomorrow
Many Protests from Tanners
Since the passage OF the hides
amendment protests have been received
by members Of Congress from shoe and
leather manufacturers and tanners.
They assert duty on hides will be a
death blow to independent tanners and
of the tanning industry by reason Of
tI.eir control Of The domestic output Of
hides. The Independent tanners, 1t
was asserted, rely almost entirely upon
imported hiCes tc keep their plants in
operation.
The shoe and leather interests, it
was pointed out, did not ask for COM
pehsatory duty on boots. shoes and
leather, but expressed willingness
to have those commodities placed on
the free list If no duty were placed on
hides. In this way, they declared, the
price of shoes soon could be returned
to normal. 4 duty on hides, they pre-
dicted, would not only add greatly to
keep the price of shoes at a high level
The shoe end leather manufacturers
also informed members of Congress
that farmers and stock raisers had
been misled into believing that they
would benefit from 81 duty on hides
As most of the cattle of the country
Is sold on the hoof, they said, the
farmer derives no benefit from the
sale of the hide, the packer alone being
the gamer from this by-product
1t was shown to-day by the latest
census report that there are now Ia
the United States 4,282,s55 cattle hides,
of which the packers hold cne-half ana
the tanners the, other half. Of the tam
neries in the United States at least SO
per cent by output, it was stated, are
packer tanneries," owned or corr
trolled by packers or in their interest
OF the remaining tanneries large
hrnber have been for some time past
tanning hides for the packers.