Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1892-03-31
WASHINGTON LETTER.
From Our Regular Correspondent.

WASHINGTON, March 2i, 1892.
The dangerous illness of Senator Morrill,
has cast a gloom over the s-nate wing OF
the capitol, where everyone is the friend OF
the senior Vermont senator. His age gives
him but a slim chance in fighting pneumonia
which is the dreaded foe OF the strongest
men. Mr.. Morrill, has been in congress, first
in the house and then in the senate since
1855.
Secretary Blaine continues to improve,
although he has not yet ventured out of
the house. He has not decided upon TAX
ing trip to the south, but he may do so.
Secretary Foster has returned much im-
proved in health by his flying trip to
Europe, and he also picked up while in
England in an unofficial way, some finan-
cial information that will be found useful
to him in his official capacity.
Commissioner Raum took the wind out
of Representative Cooper's sails by telling
the house investigating committee that
| while ready and willing to answer any ques-
tion or to give any desired information
| apout the pension office or anything relat
| ing thereto he would not answer questions
about matters pertainingexclnsively To his
private business affairs. The com mmissioncr
is generally commended for having taken
that stand. His official acts are properly
under the control of congress, but with his
private acts and business, congress has
nothing to do.
Colombia, Hayti, and Venezuela are the
only countries that will feel the heavy
retalistnry hand of Unlce Sam, all of the
rest of the countries concerned having either
completed reciprocity agreements with us
or got them so near completion as to lei
them out The presidents proclamation
ISSUED last week restores the duty upon
sugar, hides coffee and tea from the above
named countries until such time as they
shall give public notice of their having re-
moved the duties they now impose upon
the agriculture and other products of this
country. 1t speaks volumes for the success
OF reciprocity that only three countries
have to be retaIiated upon.
A more absurd statement was never
made than that OF the Democratic major
| ity of the house ways and means commit
tee that they had concluded to postpone
| tHe taking Ol n vote on the Tree wool Dill
on the 2lst inst, to some indefinite date
in the future in order to accommodate
members who wished to speak on that
measure. The speeches that the Demo
Gratis have made on that bill might just as
as well have been made on any other bill.
and the real reason for postpuning n vote
is that the Democrats are not ready to
call up any other free trade bill, there being
a difference of opinion among them as to
which OF the proposed bills attacking the
Mckinley law shall he next called up.
| The Democrats of the house do not eN-
pect to succeed in repeating the act TO in
crease the efficiency of our ocean mail ser
vice, commonly known as the mail subsidy
act, and their only object in reporting a
bill providing for it's repeal, and in pushing
it through the house, as they will probably
do, is to embarass the postmaster genera
in carrying out that act.
Representative Walker, of Massachusetts
said in a speech defending the Mckinley
| tariff, that il the tariff were not in the in
terests OF the farmers and wage workers o
this country, which was the lowest taxed
country on the face of the earth, he woul1
vote to repeal it and adopt free trade. III,
presented figures showing that in one year
under the present tariff our foreign trad,
had increased SIO6 600, 600, or twenty
seven per cent.