Birmingham age-herald., 1894-08-10
The Conferees on the Tariff Still
 Far Apart.
GOAL, IRON ORE AND SUGAR
Continue to Hold the Confer enCe in CheCk-Repubii-
 cans Talk.

WASHINGTON, Aug. 9.--The democratic tariff conference had expected to be able to announce an agreement today. Instead of reaching any definite conclusion, the day closed with the bill in quite as uncertain stage as ever before in its history, with the situation in no wise improved, and with the feeling between the friends of the sem ate bill and tue house bill intensified in- stead of allayed, and with no one prepared to say what the outcome would be or when the end would be reached.
 It was apparent at the very beginning of the conference that those who had come to the conclusion at the adjournment of yes- terday's session that an agreement would be arrived at to-day had not taken sutfi- cientiy into account the possibility Of misunderstanding or change of mind. This discovery was made when tue senate conferees prepared to go on with the bill npon the basis of a duty of 40 cents per ton on coal and free iron ore, Whereupon the house conieree5 announced their unwilling ness to accept this arrangement, and stated that they would insist upon reversal of these terms with coal free and iron ore dutiable if either was to be, as they understood that they were to have choice between two. The avowal of this proposition produced confn- RlOn and lea 10 an eXCnaDBS Ot FGiudTkh which were not altogether polite.
 The senate conferees thereupon decided to report the state of affairs to the conser- vative senators, and when the conferees ad- journed called Senators German, Brice, Smith and Murray into consultation. The whole situation was outlined to them. They were not only made acquainted with the demands of the house conferees for free coal, but were also given to understand that other concessions would be expected L oln lists, including woolens, cottons, metals, glass and earthen ware. They decided upon an emphatic negative ln reply to these propositions, saying that if the body of the bill was not preserved virtually as It passed the senate the report of the conference, when made, would not be accepted by tue senate.
 Senator Brice proposed an innovation in the shape of a proposition that the house copferees be given an opportunity to secure free sugar. His idea in detail was that the senate conferees should volunteer to recede entirely from the senate sugar schedule, leaving both raw and refined sugar on the free lisG as provided in the house bill, and accepted virtually in it's present shape with both commercial coal and iron ore on the dutiable list at the rats Of 40 cents per ton. In urging this upon the conferees, he said it would necessarily produce one of three results. If it should be declined by the house conferees it would place the Responsibility for the sugar duty upon theS If it should be accepted and the senate should on this account refuse to adopt the commit tees report, the house conferees would still bear the odium for insisting upon amending the senate bill. "If, tbirdly,' he said, f1hey should accept; if report should be made upon these lines, and if the report should be accepted by both houses and should become law, we should all be happy.o
 The conferees adopted the suggestion and presented the proposition to the afternoon session of the conference between the me m- bers of the two houses. 1t is understood that the proposition created some surprise on the part of the house members, who at first evinced disposition to &C., cept it, but after considerable discus sion of the merits of this feature of this proposition and otber features, involving the acceptance of the other senate amend ments, declining to voucbsafe an answer without further consideration. The ques- tion was therefore undisposed of when the con ference adjourned for the day
 The republican senators were also in consultation with the senatorial tariff con- ferees during the day, and it is understood have given notice that if there is material change in the more important schedules re- lating to manufactured articles, they will resist the immediate disposition of the committee's report when madc and have stated that in that event more tariff oratory may be expected.