< Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 77.djvu
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388
THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY

of the United States, and that such foreign country pays no export bounty or imposes no export duty or prohibition upon the export of any article to the United States, which unduly discriminates against the United States or the products thereof, and that such foreign country accords to the products of the United States reciprocal and equivalent treatment, thereupon and thereafter, upon proclamation to this effect by the president, all articles from such country shall be admitted under the terms of the minimum tariff; that is, without the addition of the 25 per cent, ad valorem. The proclamation may extend to the whole of any foreign country or may be confined to, or exclude from its effect, any dependency, colony or other political subdivision, having authority to adopt and enforce legislation, or to impose restrictions or regulations, or to grant concessions, upon the exportation or importation of articles which are, or may be, imported into the United States.

It is further provided that whenever the president shall be satisfied that the conditions which led to the issuance of the proclamation no longer exist, he shall issue a proclamation to this effect, and ninety days thereafter the provisions of the maximum tariff shall be applicable to all productions of such country, whether imported directly or otherwise into the United States.

Then the amendment in the senate closed with this important clause:

To secure information to assist the president in the discharge of his duties imposed upon him by this section, and information which shall be useful to congress in tariff legislation, and to the officers of the government in the administration of the customs laws, the president is hereby authorized to employ such persons as may be required to make thorough investigations and examinations into the production, commerce and trade of the United States and foreign countries and all conditions affecting the same.

This amendment passed the senate and went with the rest of the senate bill to the committee of conference of the senate and house. The provision in regard to the maximum and minimum tariff board clause was cut down and made to read as follows:

To secure information to assist the president in the discharge of the duties imposed upon him by this section, and the officers of the government in the administration of the customs laws, the president is hereby authorized to employ such persons as may be required.

In this form it was finally passed by both houses of congress, signed by the president and is now the law.

What are the powers of this board under this act and what further authority, if any, ought to be given to it in order to make its usefulness as effective as possible?

The purposes of the board are twofold: (1) To secure information to assist the president in the discharge of the duties imposed upon him in the maximum and minimum section. (2) To secure information

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