Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1888-04-09
THE MILLS TARIFF BILL.
The Agents Of Protection Seriously
Alarmed.
Mr.. Kandalps Boosted Following Rapidly
Dwindling Away and Now Re
ouced 60 Fourteen.
New York Times.

New York Times.
WASHINGTON, March Silt should be
reasonably encouraging to all persons
VINO believe that the way to stop the &C
cumulation of surplus in the treasury is
to reduce taxation, and to make the re-
duction uponShose articles most used by
the great usass of taxpayers, to notice
how generally the agents of the protected
n .apfec.urers are alarmed at the pros
.peef of the passage Of the Mills bill. As
Hong as the bill was in course of prepsra-
ton, and its provisions were kept secret,
the leading Republican protectionists in
the House maintained chorus OF ridi-
cule directed at the chairman Of the ways
and means committee and the ozark
Lantern" bill. The measure was declared
In advance Of It's appearance to be
doomed to instant destruction. IS wholly
absurd, criminslly destructive, and alto
gether lacking in power to attract sup
port. Since IL was agreed upon, the Re-
publicans have been amszed to find that
it did not "fall dat" that 1t has steadily
grown stronger in the estimation OF the
House and of all persons who have taken
the trouble to read it. It hiss
even appeared to find favor
among some of the Democrats who
had been "claimed" by Mr.. Randall as
among his willing followers, and to have
commanded the approval OF not few
Republicans. To arrest this tendency
| the Republican leaders have been power
less. They have been shouting that their
| opponents were mere "generslizers" and
"theorists," without "hgures" to
prove their theories or arguments
to support their propositions. Now,
when the Republicans ought to be
ready to produce fgures and argu-
ments, of which they had assumed to
control monopoly, they are distressed
to find that they cannot agree; that they
have no bill; that there is no general de-
mand that they should have bill, and
that they are bringing down upon them
selves the curses of the men in whose in
terest they have always been working to
keep up the high protective duties. Be-
fore the Mills bill had been completed Mr..
Randall WAS reported to be preparing
one of his own. His workshop was
the room of the appropriations
committee, and here, it was understood,
Mr.. Joseph D. Weeks, the secretary Of
the American Protective League, aad one
of the secretaries Of the Republican ma
tional committee, was assisting Mr.. Ran
dali to prepare bill that was to receive
the support of from forty to fifty Demo-
Gratis. The bill came out. 1t "fell nat, :"
according to an excellent Republican su-
thority. The cry of alarm sent up by the
Tribune was echoed by the Philadelphla
Press, whose editor, after personal in
quiry here, came to the conclusion
that the Times estimation Of Mr.. Rsn-
dall's strength was more correct than
that of the Tribune and the Press. Mr..
Weeks, who left here just after Mr.. RIn-
dall's bill wss brought out, has been back
again, and he is quite as contemptuous in
his remarks about the impotence of the
Republicans IS anybody. Bearing In
mind that Mr.. Weeks helped to prepare
the Randall bill, II he did not prepare all
OF 1t, Il is important, or at least interest,"
ing, to read what he has to say about it.
He ssys:
gThe protectionist wing OF the Demo
Iesxtic party has its proposition before the
Esountry In Mr.. R,ndall's bill, and while
Iii has faults, and such marked ones that
3he protec sionists cannot accept 1t IS q
whole. YET. with changes in certain Of the
scheddiesieswUuld be acceptable" Then
he criticises the Republicans because
having greater ability AM equal op-
.ipsStunity, they have done moth
ing, and are leading the
country to believe that they will do moth
ing. He says in his interview that the
minority has had "access to the same, OF
at least similar and better sources Of in
formation" and has no excuse for not
making bill. "Besides," he says, "the
same gentlemen who assisted Mr.. Randall:
would assist the minority Of the ways
and means" OF course Mr.. Weeks has
always helped the Republicans to keep
the tariff up, and he expected to be called
in sgain
Mr.. Weeks Is probably not more dis
gusted with the men who are responsible
IS leaders of the minority than those
gentlemen are With themselves. They
could not take the bill which Mr.. Weeks
had made TOR Mr.. Randall. They would
not approve 8 bill which made whisky
free anu did not touch sugar. A week
ago they were disposed to offer a bill
lcutting sugar S50,000,000, In order to
reach total CT SIS, O0s. 0Co, the customs
tariff not being approached. Now they
are trying to secure an agreement on q
bill cutting off all the internal revenue
taxes xnd letting sugar alone. Thst is
not4skely to succeed. 1t will get more
Ev6tes than Mr.. Randall's bill, but it will
= not get many Democratic votes.
The probability is that the Democrats
will vote on the tariff bill when 1t comeE
up in substantially solid body. The
measure will be fought BY Democrats in
caucus if they have any fighting to do
and not in the House. It will be laid be
fore alI the Democrats for criticisms and
suggestions. The men who are opposed
to free wool will be heard. Those who
resist reduction of the tax on sugar viii
be Afforded an opportunity to present the
demands and requests Of their constitu
ents. II there are any Democrat
who do not want lumber oil
salt put on the free lis
they, too, will be heard. The party will
,, counsel together, and before they ge