The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-03-14
TARIFF REFORM ASSURED.
Representative Montgomery Says the
Bill viii Please the Country.


Representative Montgomery Says the
Bill viii Please the Country.
Washington, March 3.-Representa-
tive Montgomery, leading member of
the ways and means committee, and who
will make one of the conference commit
tee, which viii have final charge of the
tariff bill. IS eagerly sought after for his
opinion OF the Senate bill, aud tine ulti-
mate outcome of the measure. To the
MORNING NEWS correspondent he gave
/ the following interview bearing on the
bill as 1t emerged from the finance COM
mlttee, and what effect it will have in the
November elections
In the glass, iron and fruit schedules
the Senate committee have slightly in
creased the rates in the Wilson bill, and
IN the WOODEN and some other schedules
I they nave slightly reduced them. The
! Senate bill puts iron ore and coal on the
dutiable list at 40 cents per ton, as against
% cents in the Mckinley bill, and sugar
on the dutlable list at from / cent per
pound for the lowest grade to %
cents per pound for the highest
grade These three articles, iron ore,
coal and sugar, were made free in the
| Wilson bill The Senate bill adds 10
cents more per gallon internal revenue
tax on whisky, making it S11O instead of
81 as in the Wilson bill, and on cigars So
per thousand instead of So in the present
law, which was not changed by the Will
son bill
DEMOCRATS WON'T BE DISAPPOINTED.
These are the substantial changes,
and none of them except the duties on
iron ore, coal and sugar, are likely TO Gre
ate any serious friction between the two
Houses. l do not now think the demo-
Gratis who have made such a persistent
hight for the last twenty years, will be
disappointed by the failure of this CON
gress TO pass tariff bill, and if there is
no more departure from the Wilson bill
than now seems probable, the reduction
in tariff burdens will be so radical
and so far in advance of the Mills
bill or any other measure of relief at
tempted since the war, that when under
stood the surprise will be that with so
narrow margin in the Senate-indeed
with majority of that body really un-
| friendly to tariff refOrm-We should have
given the country so good a bill. With
an income tax and the other revenue we
can easily realize under our in
| t6rnaI revenue system, we can
easily secure all the revenue the gov
erument needs without imposing a dol
| lar burden on the people that does not go
| into the treasury, ana if the Wilson bill
becomes a law it will be a long step tow
ards this much desired end"
THE PROBABLE EFFECT ON THE PARTY.
''What do you think will be the effect
| of the passage of the tariff bill on the
Democratic partyl"
Its immediate effect on the party de-
ponds on the restoration Of business pros
perity. And as the depression in bust
ness is the result of a com bination of in
fUences, Of which eXorbiJant and unequal
tariff taxation is only ore, it can not
be expected that partial relief from this
system Of taxation will alone and i'm
mcdiately restore business prosperity If
between now and the fall elections bust
ness revival comes, the Democratic
party will carry the country in
the fall elections. If the de-
preston continues, many are so
prone to hold the party in power,
resi- OnsiblC instead of the party which
enacted the laws that bro light acout the
trouble that il is likely our ma GRITTY may
be smaller in the next congress than this
But IN the end there is no doubt about
the popular effect of tariff reform With
the Wilson bill in operation there need be
no fear of democratic success in 1895. And
with it once on the statute book the pro
tectionists can never get it o f till they get
control again OF the presidency aud both
houses Of congress, from which cOntin-
gency we can, / hope trust the good Lord
to deliver us
AGBEEABLY DISAPPOINTED.
son examination of the bill reported by
the democratic members of the Senate
finance committee, l am agreeably disap-
pointed in finding the changes from the
Wilson bill so few. and outside of iron
ore, coal and sugar, 50 unimportant.
feel more certain now that the two
Houses viii reach an agreement on
tariH bill and pass it than l ever have
since the ways and means committee of
the House began It's work six months ago.
And the bill when passed win 90 further
towards the final relief OF consumers from
tariff burdens than those who take into
consideration the practical and political
dimcuities that endangered tariff reform
had reason TO expect. ] hope that the
iron ore, coal and sugar schedules will
be adjusted more satisfactorily than they
are in the Senate bill before we get
through with it; but even if they should
not be, the bill will be such a long step
towards free trade that | do not believe
any political party or power can ever in
fluence the people of this country TO re-
turn again 10 McKinleyism.
in one feature I am better pleased
with the Senate bill than was with the
Wilson bill as it left the House. 1t fur
nishes abundant regenae, and ! always
offered with the views of ma GRITTY of
my colleagues on the House ways and
means committee who believed that the
House bill furnished enough revenue.
prefer bill raising revenue sufficient to
enable US at the earliest possible time to
further reduce tariff rates and add to the
free list more of the cheaper articles
necessary for the comfort of the poor"