Los Angeles daily herald., 1888-03-22

labor, in order to create an aristocracy
of labor.
Bland said that in order to reduce
the hours OF labor throughout the
country, Congress must wiring the
water from the railroad stock and tele-
graph monopoly and syndicates and
trusts and stop taking $500 ,0O0, 900 a
year from the people to be piled up in
the Treasury.
Lane, of illinois, denounced the bill
as being in the interest of Office seek
ers.
After further discussion, Tarsnev
moved that the bill 60 o7er until
April l6 in order that the members
might have an opportunity to inform
themselves as to the merits OF the
case. The committee then arose and
the bill went over.
BILLS WERE PASSED
To prevent the product OF convict la
Dor from being furnished to or for
the use of any department of the
Government, and from being used in
public buildings or other public
works, and in the various depart
ments of the Government.
MORE LABOR MATTERS.
The House then went into Commit
tee of the Whole, with Hatch, oi
Missouri, in the chair, on the bill to
establish Department OF Labor. An
amendment was adopted striking out
the provision for an Assistant COM
missioner OF Labor.
Buchanan, of New Jersey, moved
to strike out the clause charging the
Commission to ascertain, whenever
industrial changes shall make it essen
tial, the cost Of producing articles at
the time dutiable IN the United States
in the leading countries where such
articles are produced by fully specified
units OF production and under class l.
fcations showing the different ele-
ments OF cost, or the approximate
cost, of such an article OF production.
Mills opposed the motion.
Randall offered an amendment to
extend the inquiry to the amount oi
wages paid in the various industries
The amendment was adopted.
Mills offered as an amendment the
words, "per diem, weekly or other
erwise," after the word "wages," in
Randall's amendment. He said that
he wanted to know the difference be.
tween the productive efficiency oi
wages in Europe and this country
whether if man in this country did
five times as much work and got twice
as much pay for it he was not the
cheaper worker of the two. The
amendment was adopted.
On motion OF Mckinley, OF Ohio, ar
amendment was adopted adding to
Randall's amendment the words "anC
hours employed per day."
The following amendments extend.
ing the scope of the inquiry were
adopted. By Buchanan: Whether
any convict-made goods are imported
into this country and where; by
Bland: The profits of manufacture anC
produce OF dutiable articles; by Wash
ington of Tennessee The compare
tive cost of living in this country ant
in Europe; by Milliken: And the
kind of living; by Brown
of Indiana: Extending the inquir,
as to the effect Of the protection
tariff in the United States on agricul
tural industry, and especially as t
its effect on the mortgage indebted
ness Of farmers; by Mills: Extending
the inquiry to an ascertainmen
whether the articles are now con-
trolled by trusts, and what effect
these trusts had had in limiting anC
keeping up the prices.
Randall offered an amendment ex-
tending the inquiry as to the effect OF
the state Of the currency upon the
agricultural interests. He was in
clined to think that the currency had
more to do than the tariff il
the condition of affairs touching
agriculture. That and the natural
law Of demand and supply has re
duced the value Of corn and wheat
and dairy products to an alarming
extent, and Congress ought therefore
in this investigation, to seek to learr
whether this cond ton came from the
present tariff laws, or whether it came
from the state OF the currency.
Milliken offered an amendment
requiring the Commissioner of labor
to Investigate the Mills tariff bill anc
to report what effect it would have or
the labor and industry of the United
States, on foreign industries, and OF
the profits of foreign manufacturers
and the markets Of American farmers
Buchanan's motion to strike out
was rejected and pending action, the
Committee rose and the House ad
journed.