Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-09-24


The republican members Of the conference
on the tariff, who have been at work since
Saturday without the assistance of the demo-
Gratis. have agreed On all things in the bill ex-
cept sugar and binding Irvine. 1t IL hard
for them to say themselves whether or
not they have made any prog
ress on these two items Apparently they
are as far apart as ever. About half hundred
propositions for compromise have been made
and discussed to greater or less extent. but
each has been rejected in turn ana the matter
still hangs.
TALKING IT OVER TO-DAY.
The majority conferees were ins esson until
- o'clock today and notified the democrats TO
meet them at 2 o'clock. 1t was tho expectation
when this call was issued that everything
would be settled by that time, and the purpose
Of the meeting was for final action on the re.
port. II may be at this meeting an agreemen mt
will be reached, but members cannot see their
way clear to IT.
WHERE TEE TROUBLE re. .
The trouble does not lie in the conference.
but with members OF the two houses. The con-
ferees would have no trouble in reaching an
agreement on both the sugar and binding
Irvine, but anything they propose to do in
one house or the other.
Tho majority Of the republicans in both
Senate and House arc opposed to tree binding
Irvine, but in both there arc q considerable
minority who insist on free Irvine and threaten
to fight for it. 4
Certain republican members in the Houso
say they will never accept report that does
not give free sugar up TO 16. while ON the
other hand the Senate republicans refuse to 60
above Is.
THE REPUBLICANS DILEMMA. !;
This leaves tho conference committee be-
tween the devil and the deep sea and they
feel the necessity OF being either fire proof or
expert swimmers.
They must bring in their report pretty soon
and it is important that full agreement be
reached and the report be complete. A divided
open the way for fight over the whole quos-
tion again.
Therefore the committee will endeavor to
make complete report. bringing the oppos-
ing interests rs close together as possible and
then let the whole report stand together.
TRUSTING TO PARTY DISCIPLINE.
While many threats arc being made it IL
not likely that the republicans would
smash the whole bill because of certain
items they did not like. Whatever the
committee do they must force through
they can to bring about an agreement between
the opposing factions they will probably ect
for themselves finally, doing the best they can,
and trust to party discipline for tho rest.
wAYLAYING THE CoNFEBEEs.
On every hand there is the evidence Of any,
ioty. which marks the closing Of the contest
The doors Of the room Of the finance commit
tee are besieged and no member of the
conference puts his nose in one of the
corridors without being seized by some one
seeking information or having an argument to
make. Senators who are not on tho conference
are among those who hang about the corridors
to wnylay the conferees.
When the informal meeting OF republican
managers broke up today, Mr.. Mckinley said
that he had every reason to believe that the
report could be presented to the House to-
morrow.
DEMOCRATS WILL NOT oBSTRUCT.
The republican members of the House COM
mittee on rules also got together this morning
and discussed the pending proposition to
change the rules so rs to compel members to
vote by fine or otherwise.
1t was suggested that some such provision
might be necessary to compel the democratic
and thus ensure final action upon the tariff bill.
consideration to assurances given by certain
prominent democratic members that the final
passage of tho bill would not be delayed or Cb-
structed by them it was decided that the action
proposed would be premature, and that it would
be we'll to wait until the minority had betrayed
a purpose to refrain from voting before adopt
ing stringent me asures of compulsion