Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-03-06
The Political Mill
Bv C. Could Lincoln.

Sugar. it now appears, is likely to be
an Issue In, the coming congressional
CAMPAIGNS. When the Senate yester-
day, bv vote of AZ to 80, adopted the
Smoot amendment to the tariff DILL
increasing the duty on 1mportatlons OF
sugar, it practically determined tnat
some kind of an increased duty Is gong
to become the law. The House mas
raised the duty even higher than the
Senate and the conferees must include
some measure of increased duty In the
bill. The Democrats in the coming
campaign will ring the changes on the
sugar duty, asserting that 1t has IN
creased the annual sugar Dill OF the
American consumers by $3OOOO,OOO 10
100000 depending upon the mai
measure of the increase in conference
bill. This is an issue which may go
well In the industrial centers OF the
East. Out in the sugar beet-producfng
States of the West, however, there may
be another story. But, whatever the
effect of an increase in the sugar duty,
the Republican party will be held re-
sponsible, notwithstanding the fact that
nine Democrats supported the increase.
Incidentally, 1t may be mentioned that
several of the Republican Progressives
from the West were lined up for the
increased duty, including Nye and
Frazier OF North Dakota, Howell OF
Nebraska, Pine of Oklahoma and john
son Of California. After all, sugar,
though it Is in a schedule all by itself,
Y an agricultural product. and the
senators from the farm States OF the
West believe they can advance good
reasons for voting for 1t.
What the Senate will do with other
important items in the tariff bill, now
that the coalition" wall has been
preached by the increased duty on sugar,
is still only a matter of conjecture
There is to be a drive for a duty on
lumber, for duty on oil and for a duty
on hides with compensatory duties on
boots and shoes and leather, all of
which are now on the free list. The
vote on the proposed lumber duty was
close when It came up in the Senate
when the bill was in committee of the
whole. It lost by the narrow margin
Of votes. A shift of 8 votes would
carry 1t. OIL lost much more decisively.
II in the end these duties, which are
not likely to be popular throughout the
country, are placed in the bill, the pro-
posal for q limited revision" of the
tariff will again have been discarded,
just as it was in the House. Placing
building materials on the dutiable list,
oil and boots and shoes, and increasing
the duty on sugar will have the effect
OF giving the Democrats a real tariff
issue. II enough of the Democrats see
this, what Is to hinder them from al
lowing the increases to be made? Ali
they have to do is to stay away when
the votes are taken. But that would
be laying down on the Republican
Prosressiyes, who have been the heart
ana soul OF the coalition" The
Democrats may reply, however. that
failed to stand hitched when the vote
on sugar was taken. The coalition has
been effective in the Senate up to the
present time, but its weakness after all
lies in the fact that the Progressive
Republicans are welded to the idea of
placing the Democrats in power, nor
are the Democrats anxious merely to
play the game of the Progressive wing
Of the Republican party.
4 ~
Unless all signs fail, Secretary James
J. Davis of the Department OF Labor is
to resign his cabinet job and enter the
race for the Republican senatorial i1onii-
nation in Pennsylvania against Senator
Joseph r. Grundy. This means that
President Hoover will have to find a
new Secretary of Labor who is salts
factory to all branches Of labor. That's
Q tough job. Indeed, the administra-
tlon may be sorry to undertake 1t Just
now. If Mr.. Davis retires from the
cabinet, it will be the first break in the
Hoover cabinet except that caused by
the death OF the late Secretary Good
Of the War Department.
) There seems no doubt that Mr.
Davis is anxious to get into the race.
His supporters believe that he can
capitalize the friendship which labor
bears him in this particular contest, for
Mr.. Grundy has been the target many
times of attacks by labor and as preSi-
dent of the Pennsylvania Manufac-
turers' Association he is charged with
having been hostile to legislation sought
by labor in the Keystone State. The
reports from Philadelphia are to the
effect that Davis will have the backing
Of William S. Ware, veteran boss of the
Republican organization there. Mr.. ware
himself is entered In the senatorial race.
He is in Florida. His lieutenants have
sought to speak for him in the past,
but have not been particularly sue
cessful In doing so. There is still con-
siderable Skepticism that Ware will with
draw and throw his influence behind
the candidacy Of Davis and Of Francis
Skunk Brown, who Is seeking the guber-
Material nomination. If Ware should
follow this course, Mr.. Grundy will have
a real fight on his hands. He has never
run for Office before, although he has
backed many candidates for ONCE.
Grundy Is expected to have the Mellon
backing, although Mr.. Mellon sits in
the cabinet along with Mr.. Davis. But,
Notwithstanding that fact, the Davis
Brown ticket, If 1t is put forward, will
have support in Allegheny County as
well as in Philadelphia. Already it has
been reported from Pittsburgh that Jo-
seph G. Armstrong, chairman of the
Republican county committee, has an
nounced his support OF the Davis can
didacy. It will be remembered that
Notwithstanding the strong support
tary Mellon in the 1925 campaign
Ware received a very large number Of
votes in Allegheny County.
= IS
There is a brisk contest on in Iowa
for the Republican senatorial nomina-
ton, where John Hammill, present gov
ernor, Is opposed to Representative L.
J. Dickinson. They are scrapping for
the seat now held by Senator Steck,
q Democrat, who Is likely to be the
Democratic nominee to succeed him.
self. Iowa is considered good Republic
an pasture, even in this day Of
fluctuating advantage by the G. o. p,
and the Republican nomination is re-
garded as pretty much the same thing
as a Democratic nomination in Ala
bama. Steck was elected-which Is still
disputed by Senator observation-disclosures
Brookhart left the Republican national
ticket In 1924 and supported the late
Senator Robert M. La Toilette for Presi-
dent. The State Republican organiza-
ton thereupon got behind Steck and
put him across by close vote, although
Brookhart still claims the Senate de-
cided the contest against him unfairly.
X X *
SanoknS nraokbnrt a. knI.s..- - .,Sn.