Asheville daily citizen. [volume] (Asheville, N.C.) 1890-1900, 1894-01-22
THE TARIFF BILL CONTEST
A DECISIVE WEEK FOR THAT
MEASURE.
There Will he An Attack On The
Bill All Along The Line, hut II
Will Not he Greatly Amended.


WASHINGTON, Jan. 22,-The third and
last week OF tariff debate in the House
opened with slim attendance of men,
bcrs and visitors. After the reading oi
Saturdays journal and some executive
communications, the House went into
committee of the whole to consider the
tariff bill.
This week will see the conclusion ol
the tariff debate in the House. Accord.
ing to the special order the voting on the
bill and pending amendments will begin
a week from today noon. During the
past week no amendments Of substantial
Importance have been voted on with
any chance of adoption except that fix.
ing the date upon which free wool would
90 into effect, which was carried over
the protest of the Democratic members
of the ways and means committee.
This week, however, will witness the
fight over the big amendments to be
offered from the Democratic side. The
full measure of the Democratic opposi-
ton to the bill will then develop. The
first fight will come on the sugar sched.
ule. Three hours have been set apart
for the consideration of the propositions
to be offered by the sugar men. Four
amendments will be offered to the para.
graph putting sugar on the free list il
the present plan is adhered to.
The first will be that of Mr.. McRae OF
Arkansas to abolish the provision relat.
ing to the sugar bounty on the Wilson
bill, which contemplates its gradual re-
ductior of one-fourth Of a cent year for
eight years until it is wiped out. To this
Mr.. Price Of Louisiana will offer an
amendment to substitute in place of a
bounty, duty of one cent per pound on
raw sugar, A substitute for this to re.
tain the Mckinley bounty of two cents
will be offered by Mr.. Meyer Of Louisiana,
and MIR. Boatner will offer an amend
ment to the substitute to place one
and-a-half cent duty on sugars. This
will exhaust the amendments that can
be pending The vote will be taken in
the reverse order.
The sugar men will make a strong
fight on the ground that the sugar is
revenue article and in accordance with
the dictates of the Chicago platform
should be made dntiable to supply the
deficit which it is estimated the customs,
schedules OF the Wilson bill will cause.
They will have the support of all the
Democrats who are opposed to the in
come tax, including Mr.. Cochran, Mr..
" ilson ard others of the ways and
means committee.
While it is generally admitted that
they will probably be able to muster a
majority OF the Democrats, the Republi-
cans. who are pledged to the free sugar
feature of the Mckinley law will give
them no aid. The chances of the adop.
ton OF a sugar duty ~, the above rea-
sons are slim.
Tuesday has been set apart Tor the
consideration Of the amendments to the
fiee coal and iron ore schedules. The
present duty on both these articles IS
Is cents per ton. The coal men, es-
peciallv of Virginia. West Virginia and
Alabama are at the back of this opposi.
ton and have the support pretty gen.
orally of the Democratic representatives
from those states. The iron interest OF
the South. Alabama and Tennessee and
of the Lake Superior districts, is fighting
against free iron ore. Railroads will
yield a portion of the duty and amend
nents ranging from 35 to so cents per
ton will be offered. Raw materials are
made the backbone of the Wilson bill
and a herculean effort will be made to
prevent defeat here.
The Republicans, if they join with the
coal and iron men. as they probably
will, may make the vote close, but the
Democrats of the Wavs and Means COM
mittee manifest no alarm.