The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1890-09-10
WASHINGTON LETTER.
WASHINGTON. d. G.. Sept. S. 1876


Harmony of the monkey and parrot kind is
that which now prevails among the republican
Senators. and the closing debate on the tariff
bill. particularly upon the reciprocity amend
ment would have been amusing were it not for
the fact that the prosperity of this country for
some years to come is involved therein. This is
the way Senator Edmunds paid his respects to
Mr.. Blaine's idea: "As to reciprocity with
Central and South America, the demand of a
country for commodities does not depend as
much upon numbers as upon the state of its
society. its wealth and its civilization. When
look at any Central American or South Ameri-
can State, 1 think that any one-hundred average
people in North America have, during the last
year. consumed more of the products. merchan-
disc. food and clothing that go to make up the
comfort. luxury and happiness of mankind than
any one thousand average people in the Central
or South American States. Therefore the ex-
pectation of the United States being able to
dispose of a large increase of its products there
is. in my opinion. one of the greatest illusions
that brilliant men or sober statesmen have
lately fallen into.' Senator Sherman in adve-
eating his Canadian reciprocity amendment
was equally emphatic in condemning the Blaine
idea. 1t is not that these gentlemen have any
thing specially against reciprocity. but they
hate Blaine-in fact the republican Senators all
seem to hate each otLer anyway.
OF course the reciprocity amendment will be
adopted when the time comes to vote. and I'll
bet horse cake that both Edmunds and Sher-
man vote for it.
Senator Vance had some fun with Senator Ed
munds by giving the old gentleman rope enough
to get himself tangled up as to the duties upon
the products of North Carolina. Mr.. Edmunds
is an able lawyer. but he knows simply nothing
at all about the tariff, and every time he has at
tempted to speak on that subject he has but ex-
hibited his ignorance of it.
The House mas, after a debate which should
raise blush of shame to the cheek of every
honorable American Citizen unseated Repre-
sentative Breckenridge, of Arkansas.
Representative Cannon having undertaken by
cooked up" statement to show the House
that the receipts of the government for the
present fiscal year would exceed the appropri-
ations made by Congress for the same period.
Representative Sayers. of Texas. who has to
large extent taken the late Samuel J. Randall's
place on the Committee on Appropriations,
punctured the Cannon bubble and demonstrated
by q carefully prepared statement that for the
first time since 1866 the appropriations will for
the fiscal year ending June 30th. 1891, exceed
the revenues of the government. The deficit
will be somewhere between $60OO.OO0 and
$l2 600, providing. of course, that the major
ity springs no new and unexpected appropria.
dens to increase it Mr.. Sayers also presented
q detailed statement showing that nearly $50,
100000 will be necessary to meet the deficien-
cies of the present fiscal year. All of which
shows that If the United States was compelled
ON the 30th day of next June to pay all of its
floating Indebtedness, it could not do it, not
withstanding the enormous surplus of cash
which the democratic administration turned
over to the republicans on March 4, 1885, These
facts speak louder than columns of argument
Speaker Reed got so frightened over the re-
ports from his district that he took off his silk
sash and russell shoes and started for home this
week. Senator German laughed when he saw
the detailed accounts which certain republican
papers gave of his going to Maine to carry
money to beat Reed. AS matter of fact. Mr.
German has never been in the state of Maine
in his life.
Secretary Rusk should hang Dayy Crockett's
motto" Be sure you are right and then go
ahead"-where he can see it all the time. Then
perhaps he would not make another such bad
break as he did when he stated in an official
communication that barley is the only cereal of
which there is not raised a suficiency for home
consumption. Wednesday, Secretary Evarts
presented to the Senate communication from
the Oswego, NY, Board of Trade. contradicting
Secretary Rusk and showing that we raised
25. GOO 900 bushels more than we consumed last
year.
1t looks very much like Mr.. Harrison would
be given an opportunity to veto the River and
Harbor bill. as he threatened to do early in the
session 1t has been reported from the confer
ence committee and the Senate amendments are
practically unchanged. 1 predict that Mr..
H.
which it carries.
Representative Kennedy, of Ohio, compared
Senator Quay to Judas Iscariot in a speech in
the House. More republican harmony.