The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1925-06-20
BANKERS MAY
ASK LOW Err
CUSTOM RATES
Big Tariff FIGHT Looms in
Near Future; Sweeping
Revision Predicted
BY CHARLES Il. STEWART
NFA Service Writer

Washington. June 20 A big tar
if fight looms in the offing. Present
custom rates are i lot too high, IN
the opinion of some mighty power
full 'interestS."
These Interests" are not the kind
to sit still and make he best of
what they don't ike. Desiring tar
if revis. on downward they mean to
try for it
Every indication is that they viii
do this at the next session Of Con
gress.
The protected "intcrests," on the
other hand, viii put up It scrap TO
prevent it that will make the vel
kin ring to beat all records In fact,
it may be THE big muss in Wash
ington next winter.
Considering how overwhelmingly
the party of protection won the last
election, all this may seem queer.
Yet. stopping to think about it,
one recalls that there have been
hints for quite a while of something
simmering.
For instance when the cotton
spinners, in convention here few
weeks ago, suggested higher tariff
sh"' them M With that Aesop story?
of the dog who, crossing bridge
with a bone in mis- mouth, saw his
reflection in the water, mistook il
for another dog, grabbed ut the lat
tiers bone and lost his own over
board in doing so.
Then along came THE Magazine
of Wall Street" with the prediction
that "within IL months We shall be
in the throes of the most sweeping
general revision of the tariff we
have ever known
And now we have George B. Lock
woods National Republic which
speaks for old-line Republicansm if
any publication does, calling for "a
thorough campaign of education" to
prevent such Il national disaster"
The revision movements inspira |
tion is Americas group of big bank !
ers the ones with huge foreign in |
vestments, notably war loans.
within year. according tol
The Magazine of Wall Street,
"the consuming masses Will begin !
y" ~"'''' 20 'ha standard Of our in
ternational bankers and against the
manufacturers.
The outcome remains to be seen,
Of course. but one things certain,
the "interests" referred to b" the
Wall Street publication aren't to be
sneezed at.
If they've set their hearts on tar-
if reduction. though they may
not get it, the ultra protectionists |
will know they've been in first
class row by the time it's ended.
The bankers idea is easy enough |
t. understand. When President
Harding took office and the Republi
cans had everything their own way,
as traditional protectionists. their
first act was TO put the tariff way
up.
There was some talk at the time
to the effect that this was going to
make it hard for Europe to pay her
debts to America hadn't the
money and the tariff wall would
prevent her from paying in goods.
Still, the manufacturers wanted
it, the farmers thought they did and
give it a trial, without kicking much.
Now, however, clearly they've
made up their minds that it's failed.
They've received practically no
interest, to say nothing of principal,
from any of their old world debtors
except England. and lately even the
British have begun intimating that
they can't keep it up indefinitely on
the present basis.
The tariff, while tremendously i'm
portant, generally is dry, tiresome,
technical sub iact hut there ought to
be some real thrills in a battle over
it, with "high finance" on one side,
as challenger. and big business" in
the role of titleholder, on the other.
uJC nav JS CnMJNC