The Superior times. [volume] (Superior, Wis.) 1870-1912, 1882-12-23
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER.
REGULAR CORRESPONDENCE

AsHINGToN Dec. 9.-Congress has
now been in session for one week and
there are indications of an intention
to work and make up for the lost time
of the previous session. One appro-
priation bill, the Indian, has been al
ready passed, it being S274, 200 less
than the appropriations for the cur
rent year and S,516,776 less than the
estimates. The ways and means COM
mIttee, at Its meeting yesterday morn
ing, unanimously adopted resolution
to proceed at once to the considera-
ton of the tariff commission report;
and to frame tariff bill. The clerk
OF the committee Was directed to pre-
pare schedules of the rates now exist
ing and of those prepared by the COM
mission.
Mr.. Bingham, of Pa, chairman of
the House committee on postofices
and postroads is engaged in the pre-
paration of a report urging the inn
portance of the passage at this session
Of Congress of "a bill reducing letter
postage to two cents per half ounce
Mr.. Bingham has called meeting of
his committee for this morning, at
which time he will submit his views
on the subject and endeavor to OBJ
tain authority to report bill to the
house.
Mr.. Flower of New York has made
an argument before the judiciary COM
mittee in favor of his proposed amend
ment Of the Constitution so as to give
the President the power to veto speci-
fic items in bills appropriating money
while approving of other portions of
the measure.
The first bill of the session in the
Senate looking to the abolition of the
internal revenue system was introduce
ed yesterday by Mr.. Brown, of Geor-
gia. 1t is the intention of Mr.. Brown
to force his measure to an issue at the
earliest practicable time The bill re-
cites in preamble that it has been the
policy of the United States from the
earliest times to support the Govern
ment by a tax on imports; that the
internal revenue tax was a war ex-
igency; that the exigency has long
ceased to exist; that tax on imports
affords incidental protection to Ameri-
can industry, and it concludes by en-
acting,-First, that the act entitled,
an act to provide internal revenue to
support the Government to pay inter
est on the public debt and for other
purposes, passed the thirtieth of June,
1864, and all acts adding to, enlarg-
ing or amending the same, and all
laws authorizing the collection of in
ternal revenue be, and the same are
hereby repealed, from and after the
first day of July, 1888.
1t is evident from talks with mem
bers that those who are in favor of
tariff revision are generally we'll pleas
ed with the report of tariff commits
sion. The Northwestern members,
particularly the Minnesota delegation,
who did not favor the appointment of
the commission in the first place, and
who maintained that the object was to
defeat tariff reform, are now disposed
to accept in the main the result Of its
labors. The prevailing feeling among
this class on both sides is that the re-
concentrations of the commission,
while, perhaps, not meeting all their
wishes, are the best they can expect
and they say if a bill was brought into
the house embodying them they would
vote for it without hesitation. These
members generally oppose the repeal
of the tobacco fax, as they think its
passage would interfere with the ac-
complishment of all they desire with
respect to the tariff.
Southern members, as well as West
ern and Northwestern members, seem
to desire tariff revision in preference
to any other proposition to reduce the
revenues of the Government. 1t is
more and more apparent, after talks
with members from all parts of the
country that the tariff question is be-
coming sectional rather than political.
Fargo Argus: The many old ac-
quaintances of Thomas B. Harris, for
merly agent of the Northern Pacific at
jamestown, but more lately connected
with the Manitoba road at Larimore,
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