Arizona republican., 1922-05-25
EPUbL|CANS To
HOLD CAUCUS IN
EFFORT To RUSH
TARIFF ACTION

WASHINGTON. May 15-Practi-
cally all the daylight hours today
We're spent by the senate III a fight
over the tariff duties on graphite,
which split both the Republican and
Democratic ranks but left the fl
nance committee majority victorious.
Assault after assault was made on
the committee proposals but the
duties were approved as recommend
edo per cent ad valorem on amor
phous graphite; 20 per cent crystal
inc lump. and two cents a pound on
crystalline flakes.
After a sikh hour Q ruggle over
this one item the senate settled down
to it's tenth night session since the
tariff bill was called UP. Attendance
of majority senators continued to be
unsatisfactory to Republican leaders
who issued a call for a party confer
ence tomorrow at which Republicans
again will be urged to stay on the
job.
The split among the Democrats over
graphite was made the subject of Jest
by several speakers on the Repub-
lican side today, and brought a state
ment from Senator Borah of Idaho.
that there wasn't such wide differ
ence between the two parties on the
tariff question. the Democrats fa-
voring protection for their state
products. This was disputed by Sen
ator Stanley, Democrat, Kentucky,
who declared he never would vote to
use the taxing power of the govern
ment to subsidize industry. Senator
Gooding of Idaho. chairman of the
Republican agricultural tariff bloc
expressed the hope that the division
of the minority presaged the day
when the two parties would come to-
gether on the question with protec-
tion of all industry.
Senator Nicholson. Republican
Colorado. opened the fight for higher
duties than those proposed by the
committee on graphite.
Exhibiting pound cans OF finished
graphite, such as is sold to automo-
bile users, Senator Nicholson told the
senate these retailed for from 7o
cents to $3.50 each while the cost
of the raw material to the manufac-
turers was from to cents pound.
IF the federal trade commission
were attending to its business. this
imposition on the American consum-
ers would not be possible the Colo
RADIO senator declared.
Senator Nicholson and Senator
Heflin, Alabama. insisted that
higher duty was necessary to enable
the American graphite mines to oper-
ate in competition with those in
Mexico, Ceylon and Madagascar, With
their peon labor. Disputing this con-
tention, Senator Townsend Michigan.
and the New Jersey senators argued
that American graphite was not
suitable for the manufacture of some
graphite products and that foreign
products did not come into competi-
tion with the American products.
Senator Heflin in whose state flake
graphite is produced. said this was
a war industry in it's infant stage
and deserved some measure of pro-
lection. He added that Senator
F'relinghuysen had been willing to
put a tax on salt used by every man,
woman and child in the country, but
was unwilling to place tax on gra-
phite used by a great trust"
Early in the night session there
was difficulty in obtaining quorum
but later the attendance OF the nee
essary 40 senators was obtained The
senate then approved a committee
rate to $50 a ton of flourspar after
rejecting. Is to SO an amendment by
Senator Jones. Democrat. New Mex
leo, 10 reduce the duty to S1.50