The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1893-12-16
MAJORITY MEMBERS

MAJORITY MEMBERS
or the Ways and Means Committee Take
q vacation--T Tariff Bill Completed 40 Far
ss Duties and Customs Arc Concerned.
WASHINGTON, Dec o.-The majority
members of the ways and means COM
mittee granted themselves few days
vacation. They were at the treasury
until long after midnight Friday MORN
ing porting over the customs schedules
with. Secretary Carlisle, and when they
adjourned the bill was completed SO
far as the import duties and the cus-
toms administration features are con-
cerned. No meeting of the committee
was held Friday morning, nor is it
the intention to meet formally
again until Monday morning, when
the entire committee including both
democratic and republican MEM
bers will be present The Wilson
bill will then be formally laid before
tho committee and adopted by strict
party vote. 1t is the expectation of
the minority members that they will
be able to file their report on Wednes-
day, when Mr. Wilson reports the bill
to the house together with the minority
report.
No agreement has been reached on
the internal revenue feature os the
bill. Indeed the committee is a. i elp-
lessly divided in opinion regarding the
most important features of internal
revenue taxation namely, as it
was when it first began the
consideration of the subject. 1t has
been definitely determined to double
the tax on cigarettes, and to impose a
tax Of from five to ten cents
per pack on playing cards. 1t
has also been determined that
legacies and inheritances will be
taxed together with the net earnings
of corporations but whether tax will
also be levied on incomes above S., 900
year has not yet been finally de-
cided The majority members are un-
able to state what rates Of taxation
they will levy on these sources of in
come.
They have just received series Of
computations from the treasury indi-
eating how much revenue can be de-
rived by various rates of taxation, but
no definite conclusion has been reach
ed The situation, were it not grave,
would be amusing Chairman Sayres,
of the appropriation, is holding back
his appropriation bills; because he says
he must know how much of a
deficit the Wilson bill will produce
in the revenues of the government be-
fore he can finally determine on his
m lot fr,. a
the government The members of the
committee on ways and means on the
other hand are holding back their bill
for raising revenue by internal taxa
ton until they can learn how heavy
the expenditures of the government
will be under the bills to be passed by
the appropriations committee. The
outcome will probably be that
the haphazard bill for raising internal
revenue will be introduced in the house
with the understanding.tha it is to be
amended while under discussion, and
finally perfected while in the senate.
1t can be definitely stated that no rate
of taxation has yet been decided upon
for whisky. Indeed, it is not even
known that the tax will be in
creased at all. The subject that
arouses the most interest is the
sugar schedule. Congressman Boat
ner, of Louisiana, and the other mem
bers from sugar raising states, who are
most earnest in their efforts to amend
the sugar schedula of the Wilson bill
by imposing duty on sugar and sur
rendering the bounty, find themselves
confronted with a new danger Mr..
Boatner is undoubtedly in position tc
bring abouta caucus of the party but he
is hesitating just now because he has
learned that while the democrats from
the west will support him in wiping
out the bounty feature of the bill they
have canvassed the house and have Sc
cured the support of some forty OF
more democrats who are opposed to the
imposition of a duty on sugar. Thi.
new element Of opposition has showr
Mr.. Boatner and his colleagues that by
agitating the sugar schedule unduly
they run the grave risk of having the
bounty abolished but not any duty or
raw sugar imposed. Chairman Wilson
is understood to be ready to consent tc
a caucus. AS has been indicated il
/ thCoC oiopuCCuCS tuC uCuuduo lOE
caucus has been growing ever since the
members have returned to Washing
ton. The Alabama and the Wes
Virginia members are particularly
insistent in their demand for I;
caucus They believe that no othel
way can they avert the ruin thai
threatens their constituents by the
proposition to place coal and iron or
the free list The agitation for caucu.
will probably reach its head by the enc
of next week, when rs one of the mem
bers of the committee said Friday tina
the party will probably decide that 81
had best wash its dirty linen in its owl
back yard"
Two Children Burned.
KANSAS CITY, Dec. O.-At o'clocl
Friday morning Mrs G. Il. Nichols