The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1892-02-26

: I
last night by lion. John W. Foster Of the
| State Department. whom he repeatedly
| designated "a Secretary Foster. lie
said Mr.. Foster claimed that reci-
procity with the South American States
! had been ominently successful and that this
result had been brought about by releasing
| from restrictions South America products and
| commodities which did not come into conpe-
titi0n with the nted States He (Mr. Vest)
would undertake g. Sow that In ten months
/ Of reciprocity with Brazil the only increase
! OF exports had been In steam euoiues and
machinery. upon which Brazil did not charge
any import duty and had not prior TO reel
! procitl. Commentng upon Mr.. Fosters at
/ tempt TO establish "a difference between the
/ reciprocity propositions of Canada and the
arrangement entered into with Brazil IN
/ which Mr.. Foster had asserted that
| Canada was entirely under the influence of
/ treat bhtlan. Mr. Vest said Dir. Foster
/ seemed 10 be entirely ignorant Of the fact that
/ IN tarlh matters Canada was entirely indie
! pendent OF the British Crown. and that al
though the Queen OF England bad a nominal
/ veto power she had never once in a hundred
/ years exercised 1t in matters relating TO the
/ tauh OF Canada. Mr. Vest quoted from Mr..
/ Blame reciprocity letter to Senator Frye
/ ana uade frequent references TO the reports
/ OF Mr.. William T.. Curtis. head OF
lureau OF American Republics, whom he
/ termed the 'adiutant general of the
reciprocity arrangement" lie contrasted
inc original reciprocity resolution as intro
| duced by Blr. Hale and drafted under the
supervision If Secretary Blaine with the
Aldrich amendment embodied in section Of
the Mckinley bill. and said that while the
original Blaine and Hale resolutions applied
10 all products of any nation of the Ameri-
can Hemisphere which imposed any duty. i'm
! port or export on American products. and
was stated TO apply exclusively 10 products
which did not compete with the United
Statos, yet of the four products
/ named in section of the Mckinley bill two
were products of the United States. lie ana
/ lyzed IN detail the conditions of our trade
with Mexico showing that the great bulk Of
the ore smelling industry Of the United
| states had beep transferred TO Mexico under
the Mckinley bill. Tie denied that the Dem
ocratic party was opposed TO reciprocity. 10
| had always been in favor of freer markets and
broader commercial Intercourse. but 1t was
| opposed 20 sham reciprocity South
! America offered no market for American
agricultural products. Every man entitled
TO vote knew that the market for
our agricultural products lay In Great
Britain and not in South America. lie
proclaimed the reciprocity treaty with Brazil
o. be q fraud md a mOckery and all the al
ditiunal duties imposed by the Mckinley bill
are a robbery OF the American people
ME. nALE's REPLY.
Mr. Hale in reply said the reciprocity plan
didn't smt the senator from Missouri and his
associates This did not surprise HIM Mr..
| Hale). What tho senator and his friends
wanted was SIMON pure free trade. Ihe
dream Ol the men who made the COnfederacy
and TOOK IL into rebellion. the dream of Mr..
Davis, the Rhctts. the anceys the Ben A.
minis. the Slidells the Mas0ns and others
who furnished the senator from Missouri
n his younger days with his theories. was
of an agricultural cOmmunity-the white men
to do the governing and fighting and the black
men TO do the labor and produce the cotton.
rice. sugar and tobacco TO be shipped o.
Europe and exchanged for manufactured
Goods free OF duty This system had no homo
manufactures in II. no reciprocity which, as
he Mr. Hale had SAID before. was the hand
maiden of protection. Discussing the Aldrich
amendment 20 the Mckinley bill, Mr.. Hale
said the powerful leverage which the sugar
duties gave the nited States TO negotiate re-
cipr0city treaties with the West Indian and
South American countries was not even at
first understood by the Republicans them
selves.
Mr.. Vest interrupting. asked why the Sem
atOr from Maine did not put this leverage In
his original amendment TO the Mckinley bill
/ for which he MI Vest bad voted and from
which Mr. Hale bad run away,
Mr. Hale replied that the original plan was
based upon the retention of the sugar duty in
order to negotiate reciprocity. When the Re-
/ publican party determined TO put SUGAR on
the breakfast table. then the original project
had 90 be abandoned and the only way 10
get the leverage was 20 give the President
/ the power TO relmpose the duty on
sugar in case those counties denied reel
procitv. lie MIR Ilale) had taken
measures 10 ascertain directly the result
of reciprocity. lie held III his hands cable
/ message from the nited States COnsul-Gen-
eral at Havana. ca q. showing that the inn
/ ports OF flour into that port for the month OF
| January 1891. were From Spain 3s. $50 BAGS.
I . r,.ff % " o. Iara In Ian
nary l-g2. From the United States. 62.3ll
/ baes from Spain, none. I'm the first month
! OF reciprocity old SPAN had been Knocked
/ out of the Cuban flour market. lie had also
/ a statement of the Ward line OF steamers
/ showing the shipments 10 Central and South
/ America which showed since the establish
ment of reciprocity an increase OF % hundred
per cent in shipments Of potatoes OF thirty
| per cent IN lard c0rrespOndingly largo in-
creases lnthe shipments of pork. hay, oats, etc.
Mb. 1T-r's RJonDrr.
Mr Vest claiming few minutes for reply.
/ said he had no apologies - offer for the school
i'm which be had been brought up. 1t be-
lieved IN bringing down the system OF taxa
tiOu to q revenue basis. lt had gwen thls
country tho greatest statesmen. soldiers and
diplomats in its history. IL had invaded New
England and given Massachusetts tariii re-
form government. and IN less than twenty
five years would dominate the country lie
Tcle0fet tutt WItu ItcliiOclth WAS ii0t
suggested it was opposed by the senator
from Maine Mr.. Ilale. 10 was denounced by
Mr. Morrill,, of Vermont, the father OF the
tariff. and this opinion was concurred in by
the most distinguished lawyer in the Senate,
Mr.. Edmunds The Republicans were now CON
testing tho constituhOnality of the enactment
before the Supreme Court OF the United
States. The Republican party had been forced
by popular Indignation to adopt reciprocity,
which was simply free trade IN limited and
distorted form. The whole reciprocity
scheme was an attempt on the part OF the Re.
publcans 10 steal portion OF the system OF
the Democrats.
Mr. Hale accepted Mr. Vests suggested
amendment TO his resolution but when the
question of It's adoption came mp Mr.. Allison
said IN view of the remarks which had fallen
IN tie course Of debate on the third section OF
the Mckinley bill he thought that Dir. Aldrich
(wno was not now present or some other
gentleman familiar with the process by
which the third section got into the tarih act
ought u be able 10 give some useful niOrma-
ton. lie therefore suggested that the reso-
luton be LAID over.
MI voorhees, made a similar request. saying
that hls side OF the chamber would have
somethlng 70 SAY when the question came up