Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-13
If the Tariff Bill Fails.

The position of the Democratic
party, in Congress and before the
country, should all tariff legislation
fail, may require explaining. The DEM
ocratic leaders already, perhaps, sense
this fact, and Senator Robinson OF
Arkan sas. the minority leader of the
Senate, has just put out a state
ment through the Democratic nation
al committee declaring that If the
tariff bill fails, it will be the fault
of the administration and not of the
Democrats. The Democrats will have
some dificulty, however, in convincing
the country that such is the case. In
the Senate they have lined up al
most solidly with q group Of progress
sive Republicans from the West, prac-
tically the same lineup which OPP
posed the administration during the
consideration Of the farm relief bill, to
fight the tariff battle of 1929 and per-
haps 1880. If they and their allies
insist upon their attitude toward GER
tain provisions of the bill against the
House and the President, and no legis-
lation is forthcoming. the Democrats
will certainly be given the credit for
defeating legislation, whether they are
entitled to it or not.
If there is no new tariff law and
the customs duties remain as they are
today, what becomes of the issue of
the tariff which the Democrats have
sought to make their own for the
coming congressional campaign? Who
would be able to say with certainty
whether the pending tariff bill, II
enacted into law, would have benefited
or injured conditions in this country?
The Democrats will be faced with the
argument of the Republicans that If
they had been permitted to carry
through their legislative program the
people would have been aided; that
the farmers would have been given
measure of relief which the DEM
ocrats have denied them, and that the
industrial workers and manufacturers
we're similarly denied measures of relief.
A policy of obstruction, which pre-
vents all legislation when legislation
is needed, is not a policy that COM
mends itself to the people generally.
The farmers of the country have been
promised much from a revision Of
the tariff. They are entitled to have
that revision. If it Is to be denied
to them now because certain members
Of the Senate, acting not along party
lines, but in coalition, wish to at
tack a policy of the present tariff
law and thereby gain q victory over
the administration, such tactics will
scarcely make their appeal to the
great agricultural communities of the
West.
The farmers are entitled to the bene-
At of higher rates of tariff duties on
many Of the things they produce. BY
the same token they are entitled to
justice in the matter of duties on
articles which they are compelled to
buy. But there Is measure Of justice
also due to the workers in industrial
plants who suffer when business is bad
because of large importations Of goods
from abroad. The farmers of the West,
to too great an extent. have had the
small end of the tariff horn for too
long a time. They are entitled to
better treatment. If they are accorded
such treatment, In the end 1t will be
manifestly tremendous advantage to
the manufacturers and industrial work.
ers Of the country. For every de-
velopment of the purchasing power Of
the American farmer increases just
so much the domestic market for the
products of American factory and mill
A policy Of obstruction, therefore
which prevents all tariff legislation, Ia
not likely to rebound to the credit OF
the obstructionists. The minority party
in Congress can obstruct or it can
cooperate in the framing of legisla-
ton. Tariff legislation has always been
the result of compromise. If that
spirit Of compromise is neglected now
and there is no legislation, the Demo
Gratis are likely to bear the brunt OF
such criticism as arises.