The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1929-12-05
PROGRESSIVE SENATORS HAVE OP-
PORTUNITY TO PROVE THEY ARE
FRIENDS OF AGRICULTURE

Congress has recconvened and within a
few days the United States Senate will again
take up the tariff mudde.
With the recent deaths among the men,
bers there will necessarily be reaignment
of the committees and leadership.
The "young Republicans" men who have
been elected to the Senate within a few
years, are demanding the selection of Senat-
or McNarry, of Oregon, as assistant floor
leader of the Republicans.
In an effort to clean the decks of the
tariff muddle this group have suggested that
Agriculture be given, within reason, every
tariff increase asked. They would leave the
Industrial schedules practically as they are
in the Fordney- McC CHAMBERLAIN now operative
These suggestions are in Zine with the
promises of President Hoover in his cam
paign pledges.
The lowering of tariff on industry will
have tendency to materially decrease pro-
duction with the natural result that thous-
ands would be thrown out of employment in
the East and the best consumers of the pro-
ducts of the farm would not be in position
to buy in the present quantities.
The coalition group in the Senate who
successfully blocked tariff legislation up to
the present, have set up the excuse that they
were opposed to the passing of any schedule
until it had been freely and fully discussed
Rudolph Lee, editor of the Long Prairie
Leader, who is covering the Congress for the
Minneapolis Journal, in an informal talk be-
fore group of rural editors in Minneapolis
Saturday, exploded this full and free discus
sion bunk in the following statement:
The coalition in the Senate to which
lie mad nOfth o
and the so-caed Progressive Republican Sem
ators. Together they controI. The regular
Republicans do not control They have a to-
tai of only forty-two votes. It takes forty
nine to make majority. So it is that the
tariff bill has been in the hands of the coali-
ton practically from the time It was report
ed to the Senate by the Senate Finance Com
mittee.
Bearing in mind that Northwest agriculture
is being seriously injured through delay in
passing the bill, it is well to call attention to
the fact that the bill has been delayed for days
and weeks in the Senate by the demand of
the coalition Senators that every controversial
rate be examined and discussed in complete
and minute detail. To insist such discus
sion sounds WELL but in practice it really means
tme-klling and endless speech making. Days
and weeks have been devoted to oratory that
was largely time-kiing. While the coalition
members have insisted there be no restriction
senate debate, claiming that the welfare
of the nation requires it, the facts that not
even the Senators themselves pay attention to
the speeches. 1t is an unusual thing for
many as twenty Senators to be in their seats
when another Senator is making set speech,
Whenever Senator starts long speech, most
of the others get up and go oct. When the
Senator gets through someone suggests the alb
sence of quorum, the bells ring, the Senators
return, usually to stay until some other SEN
ator starts a speech 1t is doubtful if Senate
speeches influence single vote; yet week after
week the tariff bill. much needed by North
west farmers has been held back and delayed
because of the refusal of coalition Senators to
permit vote to be taken until they had fin
ished their speech making
If the alleged progressive group coalated
with the Democrats are honest in their de-
sire ITO see tariff bill passed which will
be of benefit to agriculture they will join with
the "new Senator" group and pass tariff
measure before Christmas. Business condi-
lions are always upset while tariff bill is
in the making