Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-04-16
PERKINS COULDN'T WAIT.
A KANSAS MEMBER SUBMITS SOME RE-
MARKS ON THE TARIFF,

which Reminds Allen of Mississippi OF n
Little Joke-A Backward Session IN APP
| ons-The senate in IS0O-The
Lafayette Monument-sawyer's Mary
land Bonanza--Labor Legislation.
WASHINGTON CITY, April l6.--Although
the date for the consideration OF the tariff
bill is close at hand, the members Of the
house are all primed and ready TO fire Off
tariff speech at the least provocation, or no
provocation, A debate on the Indian APP
preparation would seem to be as inopportune
a time To drift Off on the tissue of the cam
paign" as could be imagined, but Perkins OF
Kansas managed it without apparent effort.
He got the floor while the house was in conf
mittee of the whole on the above mentioned
measure, and after brief allusion TO one OF
tho provisions of the bill struck the tariff sub
ject and proceeded TO argue that the great
wealth Of the country was attributable in
great degree TO the present system of protec-
ton, and criticised the Mills bill because
almost every article raised by American farm
ers was put upon the free list, while
whatever protection was left, was
left for capital. He hoped that in the coming
debate on the tariff there would be no
hypocrisy, and that the mask of hypocrisy
would be- removed, and the hideous face Of
free trade exposed with all its deformites.
While the Townshends and Springers, and
others had been allowed To indulge in plati-
tudes, the gentleman from the south had
been admonished to sit still, but he hoped
that now they would demand to be heard
They gave to the Democratic party 1873 cleo
toral votes, and il was well that they should
be consulted. After they had filibustercd
against bill which proposed to pay $1,000
900 to the northern states, 1t was right that "A
Democratic house should surrender to them.
Allen of Mississippi thought that it was a
great pity that the gentlemen from Kansas
could not get his head out of the cupboard,
and walk squarcly up to the ISSUES of to-day
instead of going back to slavery and REBEL
ion. Perkins, Allen said, reminded him OF
the story of the two men who when travelling
went To sleep in a room with a cupboard in
it. In the night one asked the other to look
out of the window and see what kind of day
it was going to be. The latter by mistake
opened the cupboard window, and after look
ing around awhile, exclaimed: at is dark as
hi, and smells like cheese" Perkins in
stead of getting his head out into the day
light of 1855 had got into the cupboard of re-
beilion and everything was dark as HI, and
smelled of slavery. Laughter.
1t was to the credit of the Democrats OF
the house. Allen said, that they had some
thing better to talk about than the issues
which had been dead for twenty-five years;
and if any Democrat got up and instead OF
discussing living issues had nothing to talk
about but dead issues he hoped that he would
be expelled from the Democratic side and
made to take a seat beside tho gentleman from
Kansas, where he could stick his nose in the
cupboard, where the gentleman had his.
Perkins said he simply wanted to know
whether the sentiments of southern gentle
men had changed on the questions of free
trade and labor.
Allen declared that no man on the ways
and means committee was in favor of slave
labor. They all had as much respect for
white labor i'll this country as the gentlemen
from Kansas
"How about black labor2" asked Perkins.
at Is as free an / independent as white
| abor in Kansas" replied Allen.
"How alb out votingN asked Perkins
McMillin of Tennessee-Th vote as they
please.
Perkins-How about the chain-gang in Ar
kansas and Texas!
Allen-There is no law in Mississippi or
that docs not consign white felon
to the chain-gang just as quickly as "A black
one, and if the gentleman We're there do not
know what his prospects would be.
Adams of Illinois said that the object of
the gentleman from Kansas in quoting from
the Confederate constitution was not to
awaken bitter memories of the war, but to
remind the country that the gentlemen who
reported the bill had believed in free trade.
The proper answer to that would have been
for them to say that they had changed their
but that answer had not been
made.