The New York herald., 1922-07-18
Let the Tariff Wait.

In the tariff situation which has
arisen in the United States Senate
member after member is reaching
the conviction that this country never
can have sound tariff and a>safe
tariff under the present system Of
tariff rate making.
1t is nothing more and nothing
less than a hit or miss system. A
rate, is not adopted because the tariff
makers know that it is the right rate.
They do not know enough of the
facts in the case, they do not know
enough about economic conditions in
this country and about economic con-
ditions in the countries exporting to
us, they do not know enough about
the general matter or the particular
matter under consideration, to know
whether it is right rate or a wrong
rate that they are making. In the
majority of cases about all they know
is that some industry wants a certain
rate, some individual or political in
fluence or power demands it, some
bloc or clique threatens reprisals Nm
less it gets it.
The persons or groups selfishly in
terested in having a rate put through
are represented before the rate max
ing committee. are working in the
lobby, are in strong force at every
stage of the procedure. Nobody rep
resents the consuming public which
pays the bills. Nobody worries about
the consuming public. Nobody cares
rap about the consuming public.
The consuming public doesn't get
thought from anybody in Congress
until it is discovered later that the
consuming public is on the political
warpath over the tariff mistakes,
abuses and evils that the consuming
public finds insufferabie. Then the
tariff makers are in a state Of panic,
not over what they have brought
upon the consuming public but over
what they have brought down upon
themselves and their party. But then
it is too late.
So more and more Senator'S are
now coming to favor the principles
embraced in Senator FRELINGHUY-
SENS proposal for permanent COM
mission of wide enough scope and big
enough powers to obtain and keep be-
fore the tariff makers all the funda-
mental conditions of an industry, all
the, facts in the case at home and
abroad. all the information and
knowledge necessary to the making
of a tariff rate that will stand the
test of sound economics, practical
experience and plain sense.
And this new and better system Of
tariff making will have to come. But
1t cannot come in time to do any
thing to improve the tariff now be-
fore Congress. 1t may not come un-
til after the next Congress has been
brought into being and has passed
into history.
But since this Senate is coming to
a realization of the impending neces-
sity of new tariff making sys-
tenn to avert the blunders and dan
gers of the present hit or miss sys-
tenn this same Senate should be able
to see the imperative necessity of go
ing carefully with the Fordney-Mc-
Cumber tariff, which is the worst hit
or miss measure ever thrown to-
gether in the history Of American
tariff making. There is no need
whatever to rush the new tariff
through before the November elec-
tions. The party in control Of Con-
gress has nothing to gain by such ac-
ton. 1t has everything to lose.
Unless the Congress tariff makers
can beat the Fordney-McCumber
measure into much better shape than
there, now seems to be anytchance OF
doing with it, let the tariff wait until
after the elections.