The Somerset reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1868-1909, 1888-02-01
At Washington.

The dependent pension bill introduced
by Senator Henderson, and known as the
Grand Army bill, has been reported fay-
orably from the committee on pensions.
II has the unanimous Endorsement of the
committee. and it is claimed that the prin-
cipal objection raised in the Presidents
veto have been obyiated in the present
form of the bill The application Of
this bill Is limited to those who served in
the War of the Rebellion, while the veto
ed bill has no such limitation, including
soldiers in any war in which the United
States has been engaged. Pensions are
granted under the present bill to widows
or minor children under II years of age,
or to dependent parents without regard to
the cause of death of the pensioner.
Democratic members of the ways and
means committee will lay their tariff bill
before the full committee next week. The
general contents of the bill have been
agreed upon, and are now being talked
over with revenue reformers on the floor,
with view to getting the bill into such
shape thst it will command the full sup
port of the largest possible number of
Democrats. When it is in satisfactory
condition, it will be presented by Chair
man Mills in committee, formally conSid-
cred and ordered reported by majority
vote, the Republicans or the committee
presenting minority report
The majority bill as it now stands. puts
wool, salt, lumber, hemp, iute and some
other raw materials, including chemicals
on the free list: cuts the duty on sugar
% per cent and the duty on rice about
the same amount. 1t rearranges the dut-
les on woolens and worstedS so as to make
them Uniform and this rather by lowering
the duties on wOolenS than by raising the
duties ON worsteds. Reductions are also
made on other nccessarieS. The sched-
ules covering silks, jewelry, fine china
and glass, liquors, cigars, and other lux
urieS are left practically untouched. The
bill also cuts down the taxes on tobacco
and fruit.
The Pilots Association was well rep
presented before the House Committee on
Merchant Marine and Fisheries Saturday.
The subject under consideration was Rep
resentatiye Dingleys bill to relieve YES
sells from the necessity of employing
State pilots in certain cases. Several adj
dresses in opposition To the Bill were
made. II. h. Edmund's, of Philadelphia,
representing the National Ship Owners
Association, made long address in the
afternoon in advocacy of the bill.
Congressman Dinglcy has presented to
Commissioner of Internal Revenue Mil
Ter, atiidavits of Maine officials showing
that Collector Page continue to omit from
the lists of liquor tax payers the name
and number of the street where the tax
payers does business, as the commission
er decided, in the opinion of Dec, 18th,
it was his duty to give. He has also pre-
sented evidence of other omissions in
the lists. The commissioner has promis-
ed to give immediate attention to the
matter
There are Indications that the fishery
conference is approaching a conclusion
and that the commission may adjourn
without any formal announcement. The
! first of the commissioners to depart is
/ Putnam of Maine, who goes tomorrow
and will not probably return The attor-
ney general of Nova Scotia, follows i'm
mediately. Political matters in England
will probably demand Chamberlain's pres
ence there very soon and Sir Charles
! Upper will not be able To tarry much
/ longer in Washington, if he gets home in
i time to prepare for the meeting of the
/ Dominion parliament on February 2jth.
4 The commission has nothing to show for
its two months work or for the labors of
the Canadian lobby that came here with
the Dominion commission. Although
President Angel and Mr. Putnam are re-
ported to have come to Washington, last
November, prejudiced in favor of the adj
ministration's policy of granting free
fish to the Canadians, it is reported that
their investigations have convinced them
that such policy is neither called for nor
admissible under the present circum-
stances and that their advice to Secretary
Bayard has been that the United States
ought not to make any of the concess-
ions asked for by Canada
Mr.. T.. c. Aliens movement to revive
fractional scrip is making Roadway