The daily Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1878-1???, 1884-03-28
House.,

House.
After some unimportant business, at
l2:l5 the House went into committee of
the whole on the bonded whisky bill. A
general debate ensued, closing at As.
Mr.. Randall said this measure was
more important than anything before the
present Congress- There were others
watching the action of the House than
those directly affected by its action. The
course of legislation has been to crowd
out men of small capital He opposed
the bill because its tendency was to per-
petuate the system of internal taxation,
which he abhorred, and with Thomas
Jefferson regretted that 1t hadn't been
prohibited by the Constitution.
Mr.. McAdoo (of New York; opposed
the bill favoring the wiping out of the
entire internal revenue system. To de-
feat the bill he believed would result in
the abolition of the internal tax system.
Referring to the caucus resolution on to-
bacco, fruit and spirits, he said the Nor
riSOn men proposed to the tobacco men
a feast, at which they could have quail
on toast, but before coming to the quail
they must fill themselves with crow. He
wanted no feast of crow.
Mr.. Storm (of Pennsylvania stood
pledged to repeal the whole internal tax
system, which was war measure, de-
nounced at its origin as inquisitorial, OPP
pressive and unjust; one which had been
so shown by over twenty years eX-
perience. 1t was literally a statute of
pains and penalties, starting out on the
idea that every man is thief, and sur
rounding him with spies and informers.
The whisky ring was strong enough to
send men to the United States Senate and
boast of its power in the House. Why
had they not made an effort to repeal this
law? The answer is plain. Distasteful
as it is, it was agreeable to them because
it gave them a monopoly of production by
crowding out men of small capital
Mr.. Blackburn took the floor for the
closing hour and said: This was bust.
ness proposition, admitting of neither
sentiment nor sympathy, and as such
should be considered by the House. He
regretted that this idea had not more
fully prevailed during the discussion of
the bill. In reply to Dunn's remarks of
yesterday, that but three members of the
Ways and Means Committee favored the
bill, he SAID the chairman reported by
the direction of the committee with the
statement that there wasn't an unani-
nous report. He insisted that the bill
was just and proper; that it took no
money from the treasury, and
was approved by the Secretary of the
Treasury and the Commissioner Of Inter-
nal Revenue. He said it was not clear
that tax upon the production of whisky
was constitutional. 1t was only upon its
consumption that Congress had the power
to levy a tax. The manufacturer of
whisky would export and store it abroad
for q charge varying but trifle from
the four and One-half per cent. for two
years, so it was merely business ques-
ton whether the money is to 90 into the
Treasury or into foreign warehouses, and
dealers backed by banking capital and of
unlimited credit, could export and store
the whisky, while poorer men would be
subject to forced sales, or eXtOrtional
taxation, and he was glad to find with
search warrant that there was one mon
opoly, of which Randall wasn't the
champion. The explanation probably
was that it was not located in his section
and that he wanted monopoly on mon
Opoly.
In reply to the argument that money to
pay the tax to carry the whisky could be
had from the banks, he said that no
banker would be such an ass as to loan
money while there was standing threat
to repeal the tax and take away the secur.
ity.
He incidentally referred to the fact that
to-day was the anniversary of the pas
sage by the House of the original extern
sion resolution of 1873
He found it was originally passed without
limitation, the tax to be paid when the
whisky was withdrawn for consumption,
and stated his willingness to withstand
the monopolzing interest Of four and
one-half per cent. in advance. Although
he denounced the Internal Revenue sys-
TEN when it was adopted, he wanted, now
that it was here, to have it stand as long
as revenue was needed by the Govern
ment.
Mr., Brumm said that if the profession
that the whisky would all be taken out IN
two years was sincere, why not amend
the bill so as to require one-cighth to be
taken out each quarter. Will you vote
for the bill if so amended? | don't think
will.
The bill was then read for amendment,
and Mr.. Blount moved to strike out the
enactng clause. The motion was agreed
to, l3l to 81, when the committee re-
ported its action to the House.