The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1922-07-19
Tariff Riddled
On Long-Staple
Discussion Shows What Easy
Picking Democrats Had
Protectionists Weak. South
ern Cotton State Senators
Confuse Them
News and Co1rierl

Confuse Inem
News and Conriera
Washington. July 14.-Surely
no party in power. ever gave an
opposition such an inexhusatible
wellspring. of stimulation as the
Republican party in 1922 has
opened up to the Democrats by the
foolish attempt to recast the tar
iff at such a time-and in such
spirit.
The wiser Republican leaders
would be truly delighted if they
could go before the people in the
fall and say that the wicked Dem
oeats, by. a successful filibuster
had prevented the enactment of
this in-starred measure. But the
G. o. P. knows only too well that
it will have no such luck.
AS an illustration of the golcon-
da of opportunities which the tar
if blunder is creating for the mi
nority, take a cross section Of the
debate wherein the minority made
ducks. and brakes Of the Fordney-
McCumber bills long staple cotton
schedule when it came up in the
senate a few days ago.
A tariff of cents a pound is
levied by the pending bill on long
staple cotton of tho Arizona length
to protect an infant industry" OF
the Salt River Valley. This is the
same tariff that is now in force in
the emergency act. When the item
came up for debate in the senate,
efforts were actually made (though
heavily defeated) to raise the duty.
to Is cents a pound or to 10 cents
a pound.
The weary old elephant. thick
skinned as he is in tariff matters,
couldn't be induced to stand for
more than cents, and even then
he WINGED when the brilliant and
"scarifying" Senator Stanley, Of
Kentucky, burst forth:
my objection to this tariff is
simply this: One county in Ari-
zona, redeemed by federal aida
little spot of land in the Imperial
Valleys growing long staple cot
ton, and the tax which this bill
imposes is equivalen, to 50 a.
pound upon that cotton. Instead
of having these people raise cotton
we had better have them raise
palms and roses, and erect foun-
tains, and put silken tents over
their heads, and provide trained
servants to fan the flies off them,
and let them live in idleness and
luxury, and keep their hands off the
delicate instrumentalities of the
government, and prevent the in
poration into this bill Of clause
that will be reflected in compen-
satory duties from one end to the
other, and will lay q heavy burden
upon every man with a decent cot
ton shirt upon his back and every
woman in the United States who
buys gingham dress"
At another stage of the debate
Senator Watson, of. Indiana, who
is one of the Chinese-wall type Of
protectionists, undertook with dis
astrous result to defend the long
staple Arizona cotton tariff against
the attacks cf Senators Smith, Of
South Carolina, and Simmons, Of
North Carolina. Here is a sample:
Senator Simmons: Il understood
the senator from Indiana to say
that we never made any Of this;
Arizona long staple cotton until it
was protected %
Senator Watson: '.We produced
a little. It was not introduced in
this country until 1901, and the
production amounted to but little
until 1917, when it ran up to S6,-
100000, and in 1918 to about S11,-
000,e09. and in 1920 to about s20,-
100000"
Simmons: "But there was no
protection on it then
Watson: There was the en-
barge created by the war. That
was the best kind of protection.
the same kind of protection which
started the dye industry and forty
other industries which l might
name"
Simmons: II am not ready to
admit that the war operated as an
embargo upon the importation of
Egyptian cotton into this country" :"
Senator Smith, of South Caro-
lima: cit had nothing in the world
to do with it,
What Competition?
Watson: .What about the sub
marine that swept our MERCHANT
marine practically off the sea ?
Here are the figures showing
where the imports Of Egyptian
cotton fell off from 100000 tons
to 10000 tons, and in proportion
as those imports of foreign cotton
fell off we enhanced the produc-
ton in the United States and used
Arizona cotton"
Smith: May I ask the Sena-
tor. then. why it was that in 1920.
when practically no Egyptian cot
ton was coming in here, that the
Arizona cotton dropped to point
where they could not sell it ?'