Bisbee daily review., 1922-07-27
ASSERTS G.O.P.
 WERE DEFEATED
 BY PUBLISHERS
Attributes l2-Year-Old Defeat to Influence Exerted by
 Country's Newspapers

WASHINGTON, July 26.-iDefeat of
 the Republican party in 1912 was at tributed today in the senate by Chair. man McCumber, of the finance com mittee to the refusal of that commit. tee three years previously to heed the demands of newspaper publishers that news print paper be placed on the free list in the Payne-Aldrich tariff act. His declaration brought demands from the Democratic side for full de tails and was followed by recitals by Senators Watson, of Indiana, Shoot, Utah, and McCumber of incidents they had said had taken place in congress, decade ago.
 Senator Robinson, Democrat, Ark ansas, declared that if Senator Me Cumber's statement that the newspa- pers of the country, because they could not intimidate the finance com mittee into giving free newsprint had turned the Republican party and de- feated it were true, it was terrible indictment against the press of the United States, the men who own it., and the men who control it's policies.
 Assehting that he could not accept it without first having "Gefinite and complete" information, the Arkansas senator, and later Senator Stanley of Kentucky, demanded that Senator Me Cumber give the names of represen- tatives of the publishers who had made threats to the committee.
 Stating that he wanted to give the senate facts" Senator Shoot said, the late John I. Norris, representing the Newspaper Publishers Associa- tion, had appeared before a finance, sub committee of which MT. Shoot was a member; had refused to com promise on the matter of a duty on newsprint, and had stated that if a duty were imposed, "the Republican party will be driven from power" The Utah senator said he supposed this was the statement from which Senator McCumber ad drawn his "conclu- sions." and added that he did not think MT. Norris had been authorized by the publishers to make such state ment.
 Later, reiterating his original state ment that spokesmen for the publish CTS had told the committee give us free print paper and we will support the Republican party and the admins tration; refuse to give it, and we will destroy you if We can," Senator Nc Cumber said he had been present at conferences between the publishers representatives and members of the committee and remembered details of them. He added that on one occasion when there was discussion of compromise as between the duty of ton and $40 a ton on the paper, a publishers representative had stat ed that the would not yield "one damn cent" and that if the committee failed to make the desired recommen- dation for newsprint, the publishers would drive the party from power if they could
 Senator Watson of Indiana told the senate of what he said had been, his personal experience with these same gentlemen" in 1908 when he was a member of the house. He related that MT. Norris and the late Herman Rid der another representative of the publishers had sought to force" through a bill by the then Represen- tative John Sharp Williams of Missis- sippi placing newsprint and wood pulp on the tariff free list.
 Senator Robinson said after the re- citals that the Republicans had been holding "an experience meetingMnot a revival but a confession" and he added, had failed to make out their case.