The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-06-29
The Tariff Conference Committee.

The Tariff Conference Committee.
Within day or two the tariff bill will
be in the hands of a conference committee.
Someof the democraticpapers are insisting
that the House shall reject the Senate
( amendments, and restore the bill u
the condition it was when it passed
the House. The New York World, par
/ ticularly, administers a great deal of
/ taffy to Representative Wilson, and tells
I him that he can make a lasting name for
himself by insisting that the changes
made in the bill by the Senate shall be
rejected. In the course of an article
entitled "Alr. Wilson's opportunity" it
says:
Mr.. Wilson'S position as chairman of
the committee on ways and means will
make him the leader of the House con-
ferees on the tariff bill. II is fortunate
for the country, for the Democratic party
and for Mr.. Wilson himself that this is
the case. Mr.. Wilson is a tariff reformer
who believes 10 a reform that reforms.
With a scholars and a stateman's knowl-
edge of the subject he has that rarer gift,
the courage of his convictions-the dar-
ing of his duty MIR Wilson believes,
likewise, that party's solemn pledges
are made to be kept, not simply 10 gain
votes.
The Wilson bill was constructed
throughout upon Democratic reform
lines. If the duties were not lowered as
much in some schedules as the ardent re-
formers had hoped-if the bill was really
a strongly protective measure-it was
due to the fact that Mr.. Wilson and his
associates recognized the obligations inn
posed upon them by the treasury needs
and the depressed condition of business.
But it was an honest bill, promising sub
stantial relief to the consumers of the
country.
The bill as it will come back to him
from the senate is a very different meas
use. 1t is tainted with jobbery and armed
for robbery. 1t is a new tariff of abomi-
nations --McKinleyism with the thinnest
veneering of reform. Its rates have been
dictated by greedy trusts or imposed at
the behest of senatorial agents of odious
monopolies. The issue thus raised will
give TO Chairman Wilson the greatest
opportunity Of his life.
The World seems to forget that Mr.
Wilson is, to a very great extent, respon-
sible for the changes that have been made
in the bill by the Senate The bill, when
it left the House. was defective in two
very important respects, namely, it did
not provide a sufficient revenue for the
needs of the government, and sugar was
on the free list. Mr.. Wilson knew, and
so did every other democrat in the House
know, that the bill in that shape had no
chance of becoming a law. The very
first duty of the House in the matter of
the tariff was to frame bill that would
afford the government a sufficient reve-
nue.. When it failed to do that it opened
the way for the Senate to make what
ever changes it thought advisable. If
the Senate had accepted the House bill
without changes what would have been
the consequence Why, either the House
would have had TO amend its own meas
ure before permitting it to become law,
or congress would have been forced to
pass supplemental bill to raise revenue.
Again, it would have been the worst
kind of mistake to put sugar on the
free list after having repealed the sugar
bounty. Legislation of that kind would
have ruined the entire sugar planting in
terest Of the country. 1t is doubtful if
any considerable number of the demo
Gratis Of the House expected that the
Houses action in respect 20 sugar would
stand. In order to get rid of a trouble
some matter quickly the House sent the
bill to the Senate in an unfinished state,
and claimed the credit for having passed
a genuine tariff reform bill.
We do not know what action the House
will take on the Senate amendments, but
it is certain that it is not entitled to very
much credit for the bill it sent to the
Senate. MIR. Wilson'S chances of winning
fame are in the direction of getting the
bill to the President as quickly as posi-
BILE rather than insisting that the bill
shall be restored to the shape in which it
was when it passed the House. There is
nc doubt that the Senate has added OBJ
jectional features to it, some of which
will doubtless be changed, but the coun-
try is il no frame of mind to have the bill
fought over month or two in the con-
ference committee.