The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1921-06-24
TARIFF WALL
BUILDING MAY
FAIL ENTIRELY
Serious Possibility Apparent
that No Action May Be
Taken in Present Session
of Congress.
B0RAH TAKING REINS
BY MARK SULLIVAN

WASHINGTON. D. c., June 24.-Any
enumeration OF developments in Wash
ington beginning to be apparent just
now probably will start with the SER
ious possibility that no tariff bill may
be passed by the present session Of
congress This would be startling
development, considering how much
emphasis was laid on the tariff by the
Republican leaders at the beginning of
the administration.
The tariff so far as it has gone, is
still in the ways and means committee
of the House 10 weeks after the be-
ginning of the session. Far from ap-
preaching the kind of agreement that
would mean an early perfection Of the
bill, the fact is that in the house dis
agreement becomes daily more appar-
ent and more violent.
Debate Far Off.
After the ways and means commit
tee of the house is through the finance
committee of the senate probably will
spend another 10 weeks on the bill. It
may well be September before the.
debate. on the bill gets under way in
the senate, and under all the circum-
stances IL would be bold to predict
that the debate can be finished and the
hill pa s. e d before the first OF
December.
Within the past few days those Re
publican leaders who believe it is q
mistake TO pass the tariff bill first and
that the revision of taxes is the more
immediate necessity have shown in
creased emphasis will be given to
taxation measures.
Borah Taking Reins
Another conspicuous and unexpect-
ed development is that in the present
state of the senate the man who
comes nearer than any one else to
being a leader OF that leaderless body
is Senator Borah. Borah is uncon-
eerned with leadership in the formal
sense, and as loose in his attach
ment TO the Republican party organiza-
tion as he ever was Probably it
would be most improbable to expect
him ever to take on the responsibility
of formal leadership. The actions OF
formal leadership are such as to be
greatly regugnant to his tempera-
ment. But if leadership consists in
getting what you fight for, Borah
comes as near being a leader as any
body else in the senate. 1t is lead
ership that depends upon the recog-
milton OF popular causes and the earn
est advocacy of them.
Treaty Situation
A third development apparent this
week concerns the question of renew
ing the Anglo-Japanese treaty. Within
this field there are no Official utter
ances and no one can do more than
make deductions from observation
The appearance of things is that our
government looks on this matter as
of interest to US, but makes no pre-
tense to claim that either Great Brl
tain or Japan is called upon to con
suit US. But ii is also apparent that
our government would not wish those
British colonies which object TO the
treaty to be nlisled into Withdrawing
their objection on any theory the the
United States had been consulted.
Outside the administration. in the
senate and elsewhere. where men feel
more free to talk, there is as much
objection to the renewal of this treaty
as lEGIt 10 III INC IOl AlISl NOlOlAlCS
Men who are not in official positions
of responsibility do not hesitate to
say that. however much justification
there may have been for this treaty
at time when Germany and Russia
were active in the east and when
Great Britain had TO protect herself
against them, those reasons do not
now exist as justification for a re
newal of the treaty.
Britan'c Grounds.
The grounds given by friends o1
Great Britain as reasonable justifi
cation for renewing the treaty are
that il is the best way for Great
Britain to preserve and further he!
commercial interests in the east, thai
failure TO renew the treaty would bs
an unpleasant thing for Great Britain
10 do toward as loyal an ally as japan
had been, and finally. the fact that ar
identity in religion between a large
part of Japan and a large part of In
dia makes the treaty desirable tC
Great Britain in the highest advan
tages OF the empire.