The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1890-07-30
The nominations were confirmed.
MR.. BLAINE's PROPOSITION.
Why His Views Were Not Indorsed by
the Committee on Ways and Means.


BOSTON, July 29.-The Journal today
prints the following sent by Webb. its Wash
ington correspondent:
The letters Of Mr.. Blaine relating to reel.
procity are still discussed among the mem
bers of both Houses. There are very marked
differences OF opinion as to the prOpriety of
acting upon the recommendation which Mr..
Blaine makes and as to the facts upon which
his recommendations are based, but the gen.
eTal opinions among the leaders Of both
Houses agree in this, that it Is not practica-
Bile at the present time in connection with
the pending tariff bill to embody in the form
OF law as part Of that measure the sssees-
tions which Mr.. Blaine has made. A gen
eral remark IS that these suggestions have
come too late and that the majority of the
House, at least, Is definitely committed
against them. IL has been aseertained that
Secretary Blaine sent to the Treasury and
State Departments for what information
was obtainable In connection with the sugar
production of the Central and South Ameri-
can states. and of Cuba and Porto Rico. The
information was forwarded him at Bar Har-
Dor. The expectation was that this would
have been used in connection with the cor
respondence. with Mr.. Frye, but no portion
OF that relative to the Spaai h West Indies
was used. 1t is said by those who are pre-
sumed TO be familiar with the facts that the
reason was that the government has no late
information as to the disposition Of Spain
with respect to the sugar Of Cuba and Porto
Rico. The President told prominent men,
Der Of the House recently that the adminis-
tration had no official or other information
tending to show that Spain has any new dis
position with respect to this matter, or that
the government has any information that
Spain would be willing to cooperate in the
reciprocity. 1t is probable that before very
long In the Senatea speech will be made
which will embody all the information that
the government has, and which will be made
Tor the purpose OF opposing the views which
nave been put forth In the several letters Of
Mr.. Blaine.
A curious statement was made here today
by those who are disposed to make trouble
In the character Of busybodies The story
Is that the reason why the Republ lean MEM
oers Oh the COMMITTEES on ways and means
paid no attention to the recommendations of
Mr.. Blaine at the Ebbitt House on February
10th last was that they were Oyerruled. as
this member Of Congress put it, by "high-
er power" meaning Speaker .Reed, and that
i was not possible for them after that time.
to do anything. Speaker Reed, referring TO
this story today. said that there was abso-
lutely not the slightest possible foundation
for 1t, that he knew nothing whatever
about the conference Of Mr.. Blaine with
on ways and means at the Ebbitt House nn-
I'll long after that conference had been held,
and Till very considerable period after sthe
Republican members of that committee had
uecIueu not 10 MAKE any recommendation in
accordance with the line Of the policy which
was suggested to them by Secretary Blaine.
A member Of the ways and means commit
tee was today the authority for the
statement that none Of the Re-
publlcans on the committee at that
time were ready to accept the view Of
Blaine, except alone Chairman Mckinley,
and that he was overruled by the prepOnder-
atlng Influence OF the majority Of his col
leagues. The truth is that the Western men
In the House Of Representatives were very
determined that there should be a recon-
mendation for free sugar More than ninety
Republican Representatives petitioned the
committee ON ways and means to recon-
mend in favor of free sugar. The western
men had adopted that as their policy. They
had met in state delegations and had formal
ly signed these petitions to the committee on
ways and means, and it was not deemed
practicable by the Republican members of
the committee on ways and means, in view
OF these recommendations, to attempt to set
them aside. 1t was very clear that If the
committee on ways and means had adopted
the policy which was recommended to them
by Secretary Blaine that unless there should
have been a remarkable change ON the part
of the opinions Of the Western Representa-
tives, the committee on ways and means
would have been overruled in vital part of
its bill.