Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-11-24
BY MARK SULLIVAN. -


gress and now will be renewed
Il in the regular session, is goine
to be decided, so far as the pub
lie mind is concerned, partly-though
of course, not wholly-by phrases and
symbols With that as an opening
sentence, the reader will expect this
article to 60 on to show that the
tariff fight is something different from
what the PHRASES suggest. But this
article won't do quite that. The phrases,
in this case. really run parallel to the
situation as it is.
All that is here said for the moment,
is that the public is unlikely to I'M
derstand the details of this or any other
tariff bill; that the public often gets
many of its ideas about public affairs
through phrases; sometimes CONES to
its conclusions as a result of emotions
aroused by particular words, phrases
and-as the New York term for some
phrases goes-"Wlse cracks
If any one doubts that minds are
not ordinarily made up on the details
OF tariff, let the best informed reader
ask himself just how much he knows
about the details of this tariff bill.
As to Debenture Plan.
Can he say just what the debenture
the alternative provisions about the
flexible tariff PROFESSIONALISM is the
point probably on which the climatic
controversy between House and Senate
will turn? Can the reader say whether
the Senate bill puts or does not put a
tariff on manganese-that was one OF
the important points in the Senate de-
bate? Can the reader say whether the
House bill or Senate bill puts tarih
on shingles? On lumber? On hides
and leather?
Yet the fact is. the public in vary
ing ratio, depending on localities has
made up its mind about this tariff bill
as whole. Public opinion is regarded
by every politician as having crystal
LIKED That is what most of the poll
ticians have been waiting for. The
whole battle has been to get verdict
from the people. In the beginning
during May and June, and even July
and August, the people we're not much
interested; that was the report brought
back to Washington by obssrvers-tak-
ing "soundings" of this sort is part OF
every politicians routine. At that time
reports used to say that the news
papers didn't take much interest and
that the public took less. Recently,
however. the universal assumption of
politicians is that the public mind is
made up. The verdict varies somewhat
in different parts of the country, but it
Is made up.
East Versus West.
The controversy is pictured in the
public mind as East versus West
Speaking roughly that is accurate: the
public picture in this case does not de-
part materially from the way the fight
Is changed. The fight is synnboiized
as certain Western communities and
Western leaders versus certain Eastern
communities and Eastern leaders. 1t is
symbolized largely as. on one side, Borah
and lido hn- The Ofhar otSn vRtll ha cEyyHa-
bolized as Connecticut and Senator
Bingham, New Hampshire and Senator
Moses, Pennsylvania and Senator David
Reed-with Grundy and Ware as addi-
tional symbols Of Pennsylvania.
In this rough symboliZing of the fight
there is, as always some incidental in
accuracy, leading often to failure of
publican leader of the Lower House,
John S. Tilson, happens to come from
Connecticut. Because of that accident
of geography Tilson is going to be as
ISOLATED in the public mind with Bing-
ham and the Republican majority in
the Lower House is going to be thought
of as a part of the general Eastern
effort to do something the West does
not want done. The fact is that in
Connecticut politics Tilson does not be-
long in the same school as Senator
Bingham. The incidental inaccuracy and
injustice involved are unavoidable, con-
sidering the public habit of thinking in
terms of broad symbols.
While the controversy is symbolzed
geographically, 1t by no means follows
that the public verdict on the bill runs
along the same lines. According to the
Judgment of competent observers,
much of the adverse verdict on the bill,
much of the sympathy for the West is
found in the East, especially in rural
sections. Similarly, in some parts of the
West, notably California, much of the
verdict on the bill is said to be favor
able
In this tariff fight the phrases have
all gone against the East Not that the
phrases were invented in the West nor
thrown from the West. What happened
was that phrases and epithets invented
in the East and thrown at the West
turned out to have, unintentionally,
what is known in the game Of billiards
as reverse English" The phrases proved
boomerangs.
The series began with Senator Tess,
who, coming from Ohio, is not exactly
an Fastener, but III one conspicuous
episode was pictured in a role which
Western Republican Senators resented.
Some months ago Senator Fess spoke
Of the Western Republican Senators as
pseudo Republicans" Whereupon the
the phrase, turned it to their own ad-
vantage and made it conspicuous
Later, very recently, Grundy of Phil
adelphia, principal arguer in the world
Of business for a high tariff, spoke of
the communities represented by sew
eral of the Western Progressives and
Southern Democrats as backward
States" To the Senators supposed to
be thus reflected upon the phrase was
q gift from the mouth of the enemy
With hardly a doubt in the world
every Senator from any one of the
States thus designated by Grundy felt
little more secure in his seat, little
Campaign Material.
Without any doubt at all Grundy's
remarks will be reprinted in the Con-
gressional Record and widely circulated
as campaign materially and in be.
half of the very Senators whom GrundJ
thought he was rating downward.
Parenthetically, one would like II
know just what is the test by which
Mr.. Grundy is able to determine the
difference between backward" STATE
and a forward" one; how he deter.
mines that Idaho, for example is back
ward. while his own State of Pennsyl
vania Is forward. Does the test con
SiSt of the number Of factory chimneyS'
Then Senator David Reed of Penn
sylvania gave rise to a phrase. tn,
Senator was writing letter to
Minnesota publisher, E. Murph,
of the Minneapolis Tribune. as an In
cident in vigorous campaign tn
Minneapolis paper has conducted Il
have a tariff written with what it re
CARDS as fairness to farming. The Penn
sylvania Senator, in his letter, woun.
up with a sting, saying:
Ny best suggestion is that you sem