Evening star., 1932-10-23
Capital Sidelights
By WILL p. KENNEDY.

By WILL p. KENNEDY.
\ This country's first tariff act was
signed by George Washington on July
4, 1889, and was hailed with rejoicing
as a second Declaration of Independ-
ence. Capt. F. x. A. Eble, United States
commissioner of customs, tells interest
ingly about tariff history. "One Of the
first laws enacted by the First Congress
under the Constitution was a tariff
law" he points out. This was the be-
ginning of a long series of tariff acts
which have ever been the storm center
Of American politics.
when the First Congress of the
United States met in New York in 1899
a resolution for the levying of duties
on imported merchandise was one OF
the first presented. 1t was introduced
bv Representative Madison of Virginia
who later became the fourth President
of he United States.
"The Madison resolution Capt. Eble
emphasizes, was strictly a revenue
measure, since the public purse, was
empty and the country was deeply N
debt. But the law, as it was passed
three months late-, differed radically
from the original resolution. The young
American industries needed protection.
The new duties were declared to be
necessary for the support Of the Gov
ernment, for the discharge of the debts
OF the United States and the encourag-
ment and protection of manufactures.
THE first vessel to arrive in the Port
of New York under the tirst tariff act
was the brigantine Persis from Leghorn
with q miscellaneous cargo on which
duties amounting to $7747l were COL
iected.
"since then there have been 80 gen.
eral revisions Of our tariff laws"
$3.50
Intrigued by an item In this column
several weeks ago about the electoral COL
lege system, correspondent asks for a
concrete illustration of the viciousness of
the unit voting system The answer is
supplied by Representative Clarence F.
Lea Of California. who in this presi-
dental campaign year sees an opportu-
nifty Of focusing the attention of the
voters on the "evils" of the electoral
college system, hoping to effect a
change
Representative Lea says: Suppose
two candidates run for President One
candidate carries New York over the
other candidate by 5000 majority and
the rival candidate who lost New York
carries Nevada by 5000. Thus the
popular vote of these two candidates
would be exactly equal, but the man
who carried New York receives Al cleo
toral votes and the one who carried
Nevada receive only three electoral
votes
rs it possible" Representative Lea
queries, that a system of allocating
electoral votes SO in disregard of in
herent justice should have no ill effect
upon the political life Of our country?
The selection of minority candidate
over plurality candidate. which has
occurred three times in our history. is
a political injustice of the first order
The only legitimate purpose of a popu-
lar election Is to effectuate the will of
the voter. A system that operates to
produce result directly opposite to
that intended by the voters is con-
demned by its own inc opacity to do DO
ltical justice. There can be no lust
system of electing the President which
does not apportion the State electoral
votes among the presidential candidates
in proportion to their popular vote in
each State"
Most members of Congress like to
be remembered for some human touch
entirely aside from their legislative and
political activities. Uncle Joe" Cannon
was homely moralist and philosopher
Champ Clark quoted holy writ and had
matchless memory for dates and his
toric incidents, one House member in
recent years was proud of his monkey
gland farm in Florida. another swan
the Hellespont and fell down the side of
an Alaska mountain, another was an
10 ho ~
OF the finest collections of postage
stamps in the world-and so it goes,
Representative Louis Ludlow. a for
mer Washington correspondent and
former president of the National Press
Club, while intensely interested in poll
tics these days. Is still a writer, author
OF several books of cornfield days in
Indiana and rugged "reminiscences of
childhood.
since being a member Of Congress
ne had made speeches both political
and erudite on many subjects. but
or all he has ever written or spoken
the one small BIZ that has attracted
most attention, and for cCries Of which
ne receives manv requests dai,v. an5
which is displayed as school-room mot
toes throughout his district, is the fol-
lowing tribute to
MOTHER LOVE
Mother love has no Yesterday and
70 tomorrow. but reigns eternal. There
Is no limit to its bounds. There is
no plummet than can sound its depths.
1t reaches all the way from earth to
heaven. With tneffable tenderness it
leads the tottering infant past the dan
gers and pitfalls of life and guides him
through the struggling wears of child
hood and maturity. so that when the
miracle We call dea h euds his earthly
journey he is fit to take his place
among the stars by the side of his
Creator
No tongue can explain mother love or
trace its origin. The least We can say
OF 1t is that it Is one of the mysteries
that spring from God We know that
1t Is something real because there is
no sacrifice too great for it to make.
From the time of Eve, VINO laid her
very own on the altar of grief, down
through the ages to Mary, who wit
messed the unspeakable tragedy of the
cross. and on and on, century after
century, the word mother" has always
been the symbol of devotion. every age
presenting in myriad repetitions and
varying forms the soicisuoes and sac
rtdces OF mother love.