The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-05-16
GAGLAW ON THE TARIFF.
THE ENEMY NOW READY TO RUSH
THE BILL THROUGH.

A Rule Adopted by the House That
Assures the Closing of the Debate
at the Appointed Time-The Repub-
1icans Make no Effort to Conceal
Their Object.
WASHINGTON, May 15.-Speaker Reed,
through Chairman Mckinley, put on the
screws again to-day and squeezed out of the
House, in spite of the resistance of the
democrats, an agreement to the republican
caucus decree that all amendments and de-
bates on the Mckinley tariff bill should be
cut off on Wednesday next at noon and the
bill reported from the committee of the
whole to the House. The obvious
pmrpose to hurry the bill through
the House without giving opportunity
for deliberation was we'll brought out by
Mr. Blount, who for the first time appeared
in the House as a member of the commit
fee on rules. Messrs. Turner, McMillin
and w. G. P. Breckenridge, in fact Mr..
Mckinley himself, frankly admitted it.
Incidentally, in trying to hold the demo-
cratic party responsible for MIR: Randalrs
defeat Of the first Morrison bill, he dramat-
ically apostrophized Mr.. Randall as the
abIest democrat who ever sat on the
floor, amid thunderous applause from the
republicans. 1t took several roll calls to
get the order adopted but finally it was
accomplished, and the democrats can now
do little more than stand by and look on
while the bill is being railroaded through.
They will, however, take all the chances
thew get to call public attention to this
arbitrary and dangerous way of doing busi-
ness
DETAILS OF THE PROCEEDINGS.
In the House this morning Mr.. Nc
Kinley, from the committee on rules,
reported a resolution providing that
hereafter the House shall meet at IL
o'clock, that after the reading of the jour
nal and the disposal of the conference re-
ports, the House shall go into committee OF
the whole on the tariff bill, that the bill
shall be read through, commencing with
paragraph III, and shall be open to amend
nent on any part OF the bill following par
agraph ITO, and that on Wednesday next, at
10 o'clock, noon, the bill, with the pending
amendments, shall be reported to the House.
Mr.. Blount of Georgia criticised the ma
1ority of the committee on rules for report
ing the resolution. The majority OF the
House had adopted code OF rules which
recognized the right of debate in committee
of the whole IL had given the committee
power to limit the debate. 1t had provided
that 106 should constitute a quorum, and
vet, after all these restraints were thrown
over the consideration of the bill IN COM
lnittee it was proposed to set aside the rule
governing the committee. 1t seems to be
the policy of the majority whenever any
matter was of magnitude, requiring debate
and careful consideration, that this rule
should be suspended and become nugatory.
RNHAT IT AMOUNTS TO.
The majority said to the minority: "We
will allow you to debate until II o'clock
noon. Wednesday. At that time we intend
to stop this discussion and pass the bill
through the House." 1t mattered not
whether a paragraph of the bill had not
been considered. IL mattered not whether
the ways and means committee had taken
weeks to gather the points involved upon
which to base their report; it mattered not
that the measure involved the business re-
lations of all the people in this mighty
nation; it mattered not that 1t involved our
commercial relations with all the countries
of the world; it mattered not
that it involved one of the great
political issues of the times; it mattered not
that it fastened a system upon the people
for years. The majority had determined
upon the measure, and was impatient with
debate. A powerful minority was asking
for freedom of debate. The Republican
party had elected its government by a mi
nority of the people. 1t was to the vast
body of the American people that the ma
jority was declaring that 1t meant to sus-
pend the operation of the rule in regard to
committee of the whole on the most i'm
portant question to which it was applica-
ble.
Before the bill had been considered at all
q fiat had gone forth that four days would
be permitted for general debate, and eight
days for debate under the five minute rule.
TIE very announcement had repressed de-
bate The gentlemen on the democratic
i. g IL a 70 for
discussion. He protested against the reso-
luton as un-American, unwise and vio-
lative of parliamentary procedure. Jap
plause.]
M'KINLEY DENIES THE CHARGE.
MIR. Mckinley denied that the resolution
had any purpose to stltie the debate. 1t
had no such purpose. 1t was intended to
concentrate the debate on the
paragraphs and provisions Of the BILL Any
gentleman who had listened to the discus
sion for the past three days must have been
convinced that everything was discussed
but the real question to be determined.
The resolution was not to deny to the mi
nority freedom of debate, but TO deny to it
the right to delay public busi-
ness by dilatory motions and OBJ
structive tactics. The House had
been given thirty-five hours of general
debate and fifteen hours under the five
4AAAulO dCDdOo, anu Az Heto w " o. - -
days more. Did the gentleman from
Georgia remember that in the Forty-tourth
congress but one day had been given to con-
sideration of the tariff bill? In the Forty
fifth congress the tariff bill had been con-
sidered six days. In the Forty-eighth con-
gress it had been considered nine days.
Mr.. McMillin suggested that they were
nine days of general debate :,
Mr.. Mckinley replied that that was all
the democrats wanted. The enacting clauses
had been stricken out, and that was In a
democratic congress.
WANTED TO QUOTE REED.
Mr.. McMillin inquired whether the gen.
tleman would allow him to read what the
present speaker had said upon the subject OF
limiting the debate.
Mr.. Mckinley would not. He had no
doubt that when the speaker was in the mi
nority he was clamoring for debate.
lLaughter.l
Mr.. Springer said that in the Forty
eighth congress there were on the demo-
cratic side twelve or fifteen members who
voted with the republicans to strike out the
enacting clause.
Mr.. McKinley-Yes; and among those
t"elve or fifteen or twenty members was
tne noblest democrat that has ever stood on
that side-Samuel j. Randall. [Applause.
a true leader of the democratic party, he
led In that resistance to stop consideration
OF bill which he believed would destroy
Jle great induStriac oF ho TTniYad Gfatag