The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1922-04-26
Says Bill Is Based On Err
roneous Assumption of
Facts Pre- 8 i d e n t
w ould Be Clothed
With Unheard-of Leg
isIative Powers If Bill
Is Passed AS 1t Now
Reads

Washington. April 26.-The admin
istration tariff bill if passed in its
present form. will lead to higher
costs of living. reduced production
employment and the further mono
poliZation of American industries, so
Senator Simmons of North Carolina
the democratic leader in the tariff
fight declared today in the Senate.
- careful study of this bill in
connection with existing conditions
here and abroad" Senator Simmons
said make ii perfectly clear that it
was framed with a view to maintain
in" present prices and to enable the
industries which it protects to furth-
ier advance these excessively high
prices without incurring the risk Of
foreign connection.
"A comnarison of the rates i'm
rosad in this bill with those of the
Payne Aldrich bill will show that on
the basis of the price of production
during the two periods-the only
basis of fair comparison of equivalent
ad valorems-the proposed rates ap-
FLIED to present import prices average
the average Payne-Aldrich rates for
any year during the life Of that act"
Il think there can be no doubt"
he added. that the potential rates
Of this bill are almost if not quite
double those of the present law"
Senator Simmons asserted that the
rule manifestlv adopted and followed
bv the finance committee in fixing
rates violates every theory or prin-
ciDle heretofore adopted or proclaim
ed nv the champions of protection.
including the Republican party in
this country and with the super-add-
ed rate. making powers conferred on
the President makes rate fixing al
most as much a matter Of politics
and persor2l patronage as the distri-
hutton of Federal Offices"
Pronosals in the hill under which
the executive could change the class
ificatiOns or forms of duty and in
crease or decrease rates were declar-
ed by the North Carolina Senator to
clntha the President with legisla-
tive powers such as were never here
tofore conferred upon any President
or administrative officer in this or
any other Anglo-SaXon country and
which if conferred bv the parliament
of England unon the King and his
ministers. would under their sum-
mary method, result in an instant
overt brow of the government"
"This section Of the bill'' the
sneaker continued undoubtedly gives
the definition of the principle upon
which rates are made and it is the
~
i ti0n in trade Not to poualize diff
fprerces based on cost of production
and abroad. Not to enualize differ
pnces baeod on cost. plus reason
able profit enuallv accorded to the
Democratic producer and the foreign
nroducer. Not to enualiZe differ
ences in intrinsic values at all But
to measure the difficulties in COM
netion in trade. That is to fix a
rate which will bring the foreign.
nr's nrice to the price al which the
American producer sells his produce
in the American market without any
reference to what mart of that price
renresents production cost and how
much of it represents profit
THE theory of the tariff bill Is
! that however high the selling price
of the American article is however
eXtOrt iCnate the nrofit covered up in
that price may be the price Of the
/ foreign article is to be raised so as
to make the two articles competi-
] tive"
| Senator Simmons said the bill was
"based nrimariv on three erroneous
assumntions of facts:
"That present importations are ex-
cessive and menace to the business
of the country
"That the home selling price and
! thd exnort selling price of foreign
merchandise is so much lower than
'he selling price of like or compara-
HE domestic products that much
higher rates of duty than those OF
the nresent law are needed to bring
about fair conditions. "That the ex-
mort price of foreign merchandise as
| found in the Investigations and re-
mort of the REYNOLDS commission is
based unon such selling prices in
| August. 1921. has not changed since
that time and are the same today"
| Turning to the question Of the eff
feet of the bill on the farmer. the
sneaker declared that thte prosperity
ot the farmer was dependent upon
the sales abroad Of the American sur
Mus of farm products and that It
was "a trnism which .nobdy DISPUTES
and a trnism which even the presi.
dent OF the United States has empha-
siged--that no nation can expect to.
sell abroad. even under normal con-.