The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1894-02-06

Democrats Object TO Hearings and Propose
to Report the Bin In Tea Days.


wAsHiSGToS Feb. 5.--The resolution intro
duced in the Senate to-day by Mr.. Hale. direct
ing the Committee on Finance TO have hear
ings on the Tariff bill. indicates the feeling on
the part OF Republicans that. perhaps. such
hearings are to be denied. The frequency OF
the statements to day that the Finance Com
mittee would report tho bill to the Senate in-
side OF ten days prot ably caused this feeling
TO become q well-grounded conviction. 1t
seems to have been understood that
at tho last meeting OF tho Finance
Committee tacit agreement was had
that hearings should be given but the
guarded language used by the Democratic
members OF the Finance Committee does not
lead to the conclusion that hearings aro con-
sidered by the Democratic members with
favor. Mr.. Voorhees, says he is willing to have
hearings for limited number OF Industries
that may have been affected. and which were
not discussed before the House Committee.
but in the main he believes that all the leading
trades wero represented there. and that to re-
peat the hearings would be simply going over
the same ground. He believes that the cir
cuars sent out by the committee will accom-
plish as much MS could any hearing that might
In answer to this, the Republicans say that
these replies will not he before the com mittee
in time to do any good. and that after they do
come 1t would req uire months to colats and
prepare the Information contained IN them.
An objection a so made to these circulars by
the Repub icans 10 that the questions asked
are not pertinent to the rates proposed by the
new law. which is. after all. the ain point in
the whole matter.
Mr.. Jones OF Arkansas is inclined to limit
hearings to the shortest possible time. while
Mr.. Vest makes 40 attempt to conceal the fact
that he is opposed to hearings on general
grounds and would not vote to have them. IL
has been stated authoritatively for Mr.. Me-
Iherson. who will be in his seat to morrow.
that he will act in harmony with his party.
He declares that the tariff measure Is party
measure for which the Dem ocrats are res pom
sible and Tor that reason he will coincide with
whatever his col eagues believe is best. The
Indications are that the Democratic m embers
Of the committee will prepare their bill and
then Law it before the Republican mem hers In
its completed state. MS was done in the House
The statement that the bill will be reported
to the Senate within a period as short as ten
days. confirms tn" story that the democrats
have been at work upon bill for some time,
and Il IL said that senators est and Jones OF
Arkansas. aided by Mr. Mills. have. for the
past two weeks been at work In Mr. Mills's
committee room preparing = bill. which has
had for its basis the Wilson bill one OF these
three Senators made the statement this after
noon that he believed the hill would GO through
the senate without material change. and that
lie was confident that the income tax feature
would De kept in the bill. Additional light
may he thrown upon the situation at the meet-
ing OF the Finance Committee tomorrow. At
all events. the Republicans will insist upon
u definite agreement in the matter OF hearings.