The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1894-05-06
PUGET SOUND COAL

PUGET SOUND COAL.
The Bering Sea Fleets supply Dis
cussed In Congress.
WASHINGTON CIrY. May 2-TSpecial. r.
Washington coal has been pretty well ad-
vertised before the country recently The
public orders Of the navy department,
sending two ships to Puget sound for the
purpose of making exhaustive tests, re-
suited in interviews in Washington and
New York papers with Senator Squire
upon the matter of the present adminis,ra-
tion discriminating against home products,
and tho same subject has been brought up
in discussion in both the senate and the
house. During the progress OF Senator
Perkins speech on the pending tariff bill
he was interrupted by Senator Power. who
asked:
ais the coal from the state of Was .as.s E
ton as good as that from Vancouver ISL
and Pc
''In some of the mines," replied Senator
Perkins, "it is quite equal to that of Brit
ish Columbia"
Senator Power then asked why ii was
the government made . contract for the
Bering sea fleet in the last few weeks for
coal from the British country?
IL presume" answered Mr.. Perkins, sit
was done to carry out the foreign policy of
this administration. I am somewhat of q
consumer of coal. being obliged to pur-
chase from 5000 to 10000 tons monthly,
and by actual test have found that coal
from mines in Washington is equal in its
efficiency to that Of any on the Pacific
al
in asking for proposals, advertised only for
foreign COAL"
Senator Davis asked II attention had
been called to the character of the Wash
ington coal.
''The case can hardly be otherwise"
answered Mr.. Perkins, "as the Washing
ton mines have been worked for thirty
years or more. and it is used continually
by the steamships operating on the Pacific
coast"
Senator Mitchell recalled the fact that
the Oregon. Washington and California
senators had united in calling the atten-
tion Of the secretary OF the navy 10 the
matter and that all tho satisfaction OBJ
tanned was that the department thought
British coal the best.
Senator Aldrich sarcastically asked his
''distinguished friend from West Virginia"
(Mr. Faulkner) il he would not use his in
tuence with the administration to see that
domestic Goals are properly tested here
after.
Senator Faulkner said he understood
this coal was excluded on the report Of the
officers who had tested ii.
This gave Senator Perkins Q chance for
q neat retort, and he did not neglect 1t:
II want to say. in justice to the navy de-
partment, that while the Washington coal
10 just as effective and is equal for steam
purposes, yet 1t il not quite as clean. and
the officers prefer harder coal that does
not throw any cinders upon their suits of
clothing made of foreign WOOL"
After the laughter raised by this sally
the senator added as clincher to his tariff
argument: 1.-THE reduction of duty on
coal from IS to 20 cents a ton would not
help the people of the Pacific states. lam
confident that the price will not be re-
duced, though the duty is, and the differ
ence between existing duties and the re-
duced duties will 60 into the pockets of
the foreign ship and mine owner. The
trusts are powerful enough to do just as
they did before, when the duty was re-
duced, raise the price to make up the diff
ference"
In rather roundabout way the same
subject came up on the same day in the
house. Springer of Illinois, as is his
frequent custom, was enlogizing the for
eign policy OF the administration, when
Representative John L. Wilson. of Wash
fngton. asked il he would yield for ques-
ton. Mr.. Springer refused to do so, and
added, 'The gentleman does not want in
formation"
"Weli, probably wouldn't get il from
you if did," retorted Mr.. Wilson, while
the chairman of the committee OF the
whole, in which the house then was,
vainiy endeavored by pounding with his
gavel to keep the Washington member
from talking Mr.. Springer was evidently
getting ready TO say something real mean
and sarcastic, when his time expired and
Mr.. Wilson secured the door for five min
utes.
II desired only to ask the gentleman
from Illinois," said he. ''whiie he was
speaking of the foreign policy of this ad-
ministration, why it was that this admin
istration had gone into British Columbia
and had there inaugurated foreign pol-
icy of letting contracts 20 coat American
war vessels 10 residents of British Coium-
bia. instead of awarding them TO the peo-
ple of the United Staies7 Just across the
line, on the Straits OF fuca, Is TO be found
as fine coal as any produced in British
Columbia; and yet this Administrations sail
ing the American war steamer Yorktown
think of is, with al the old-time honor of
that name--the American man-of-war
Yorktown is coaiing across the line in
British Columbia. and this administra-
ton has given TO those people . contract
for $780, oI0 worth of coal
"Now. my people are in distress. - are
the people ali over the country. They
need work and they want 10 develop their
own coal mines. They want the govern
ment OF the United States TO give its con-
tracts to the iaboring people OF the United
States And l rose, therefore. TO ask the
gentleman from Illinois II he had any In
formation in regard to that subject or
why 3 contract of this eharactsr has been
entered into xith q foreign countryg Mr..
Chairman. should have known that the
gentleman did not have any information
on the subject. because he has but little
information on any subject in which this
country il interested"
The applause which greeted Mr.. Wilson
as he took his seat showed that te had
been atten,ively listened 10 on the Rspub-
liean side Of the house ai least.
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