Jasper County Democrat, Volume 9, Number 24, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 15 September 1906 — TARIFF WAR IN PROSPECT. [ARTICLE]

TARIFF WAR IN PROSPECT.

Protec<j|ontats Will Concede Nothing to Germany. * Protectionism is slowly nearing the end of its string in spite of Speaker Cannon capturing President Roosevelt to a policy of inactivity on the tariff on the score of party necessity. This stand put policy will hold good a few years longer if the Republicans control the congress to be elected next fall and then carry the national election in 1908, as they would then have more than an even chance of doing. Yet there is a cankerworm eating at the heart of protectionism that will compel tariff revision in spite of the stand patters, for the markets of the world are about* to be closed to our manufactured products, although our exports of food aud raw material will still continue as long as we can sell the cheapest to those countries that . ust purchase. '.'l!' ctiakerworm is the avarice of ■ uT-uts cad manufacturers, who r.- > rrevet.ted the ratification of recii ;■ ir -.ties with foreign countries, ’y Germany, and in retaliation. Tie :. tV < • ted a new maximum and vr.: tariff law which as to its u.a rates is virtiftilly prohibitive. Cannauy now holds that we have no favored nation agreement with her In her sense of the term and is incensed at our not fulfilling our agreement to revise some of the administrative conditions imposed on imports as provided in the Payne bill of last winter. Germany appears to feel that our administration has broken faith with her by accepting modifications of her tariff while still imposing the utmost requirements of our own. Germany evidently believes that President RooseVelt, who exhibited such control of congress on many matters he was interested in, showed considerable indifference In urging on congress what he had promised Germany. But the German statesmen do not understand, as we do. how helpless President Roosevelt is directly he runs up against the trusts aud Intrenched monopolists. They never sleep, are never tired and have the men and money to fight tariff revision in any form. The subsidies—every schedule of the tariff gives some one a subsidy— Is the breath of their nostrils. Without those special privileges they would not be able to pay dividends on watered stock and their foster mother would no longer nourish them. Those of the trusts, however, that rely upon exports, such as the beef trust and steel trust, not to mention other manufacturers of smaller scale, will soon feel the pinch of a surplus they cannot dispose of and will be more willing to make concessions for at least some sort of tariff revision. That is thi[ cankerworm gnawing at the heart of protection that is sure to lead to its destruction. How long these protected interests can stand the pain aud strain when the pinch comes is uncertain. They may decide to decay by inches, and then again the long beaded ones may decide that selling their surplus cheaper to our own people is as profitable ln the end as selling it to foreigners. . A Democratic victory this fall will hasten the ultimate outcome aud spare the inevitable “tariff war” with Germany and countries that we should be at peace with. Tariff reform will reduce the cost of living and thus add to the Income of every one but the favored monopolists.