Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1883-01-24
A Setback.


WArcnMAN, received significant setback
in the house of representatives on Thurs
day of last week. After long debate in
the senate, in which the arguments oil the
friends of the bill had been utterly demol |
ished and their real purpose exposed, 1T
passed that body by small majority An
effort was made Thursday to take the bill
from the speakers table for immediate con-
sideration, but it was defeated on a yea and
nay vote by majority of seventy-six. This
action of the house is not conclusive, but as
this session will end in less than six weeks
and other measures of the gravest national
consequence are pending, the possibilities
that the bill can be brought up are materi-
ally diminished. 1t must, however, be re-
membered that this same house of represent
tstives passed at the last session, almost
without debate, much worse bill than that
which now comes from the senate-a bill so
yoluminous and so brazen in its demands
that no man was found in the senate to
stand sponsor to it and so the brief measure
now on the speakers table was reported as
a substitute. The leopard may not be able
to change his spots, but events of the past
few months show that the temper of house
of representatives can be radically modified,
and the vote of Thursday gives not unrea-
sonable ground for hope that it has in fact
changed front in its attitude towards the
bonded spirits bill. In any event the fight
is only postponed, not ended. The whiskey
ring will not so easily surrender. Its inter
ests are too numerous and the stakes too
immense
Considered merely in its economic as
poets the question is one on which the peo-
pie should be informed and with reference
to which public opinion should be deci-
.ively expressed. A few years ago whiskey
distilers robbed the government by run
ming off the products of their stills through
underground pipes. Now it is considered
cheaper and less dangerous to rob the gov
eminent under cover of legal enactment, and
to accomplish this end the whole power of
the whskey interest is enlisted. The
banks are carrying forty million dollars of
whiskey paper Stockholders of these banks
are either members of congress or have init
mate social relations with congressman and
all their influence has been brought to bear
upon legislation. Attorneys of wide &C
duaintance and influence are working in
the interest of the ring. 1t operates
through thousand channels. The ramifi'
cations of its lobby are wide-reaching.
Eighty million dollars in taxes now owing
the government is the stake it is playing
for, and it means to win this year or the
next, or the next unless broken up and
brought under proper legal restraint such
as existed before the extension of the
bonded period to three years.
The demand for the extension of the
bonded period as to the S0,0O0,O00 gallons
now in the distillery warehouses comes
from only one branch of the trade. This
appalling accumulation is chiefly Bourbon
whiskey, Kentucky product. The distil"
leries in other parts of the country, in gen.
eral, make different class of whiskey,
known as high wines which are taken out
of the warehouses and sold within few
months of their manufacture. The annual
consumption Of this class of spirits is re-
ported at 100000 gallons. This branch
of the trade protests vigorously against the
continuance of the three years bonded Pc
Rod So it is for the Kentucky whiskey
that relief is asked. Many senators were
willing to grant relief if it could be &C.
al bu q du not ha
renee of similar demand and several
reasonable amendments were proposed de-
signed to check over-production in the
future, all of which were spurned by the
advocates of the bill, so that the inference
drawn from the inconsistency between
their claims and their arguments was en-
tirely warrantable that instead of desiring
measure of relief to enable the whiskey
men to avoid bankruptcy it was the deliber-
ate purpose to postpone payment till such
time as the tax can be reduced or entirely
removed and thus avoid altogether the pay
ing of the tax. In this view of the case
an individual thoroughly informed well says
-Four years ago the distillers secured an ex-
tension on 900 gallons, by promising to
taper off production. Instead of doing that they
began to force production. Now they threaten a
crash by precipitating 100000 gallons on the
market, unless congress agrees to their demands
II congress does, why, two years hence they will
come to congress and tell the same old story and
make the same threats. Then they will have
120,0O0,000 gallons on hand. They will ask that
they be released from the payment of all taxes,
which at the present scale would be over $780,
COCOON and at fifty cents gallon would amount
to S6O,0000O0. This threat of financial ruin to
the country will be more potent because the sum
in jeopardy will be larger and banks and innocent
holders of whiskey and whiskey securities will
be interested to the extent of from Sl20 600 00C
to S150,000,000 instead of about S80,000,000 as
now. Should congress refuse to grant relief,
there would be smash, bonds would be worth
less and the government would find itself loaded
down with whiskey which it would have to take
for taxes Better have this crisis now than in
two, three or five years. The country is in con
dition to stand it now, and later it may not be
The extension asked Is merely a postponemen
Of the evil day, with the full knowledge tina
what will be shower to-day may be a whirl
wind then"
Presidential Disability.