Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1894-07-26
HILL DEFENDS CLEVELAND.
He SAYS the Presidents Letter Means
War to che Knife on the
Senate Bill.

rTe Saws the Presidents Letter Means
War to che Knife on the
Senate Bill.
Washington, D. c., July 2O.-Crowds
snch as had not thronged the Senate IN
months packed the galleries today Inc
House and the President had yesterday
thrown down the gauntlet to the senate
on the tariff question and pltched Dal-
tle was expected An ominous hush was
mon the chamber when the president l,io
fem. OIr. Harris of TENNESSEE fappeu VIC
Senate to order. =; /.
Senator Blackburn of Kentucky, IN
mink neglinee shirt, stood watch IN mana
while the chaplain delivered his lnFoCa-
ton. looking like d judge at Neilluohy
Derby. The conservative democrats
Mr. Brice. in an immaculate SUI Oh We le
flannel: Mr. German III a seCate SUI u
blue. and Mr. Smith in long, pl; lS,
frocl, coat. sat grouped together on the
Democratic side Mr.. Hill, sitting far
back, chatted merrily with Gen; Dan
Sickles the one-legged veteran 1a Oh Alli-
son, Hale and Chandler, the leaders on
the Republican side, appeared amused az
the storm which threatened across the
POLITICAL aisle. The preliminary routine
business was transacted III perfunctofy
way. -, oro If
| the Wabash chairman of the finance com
mittee, arose and called up the conference
report on the tariff bill. Without word
of explanation he yielded the floor TO
Senator Smith Of New Jersey, who arose
and read a carefully-prepared speech.
Mr.. Smith had hoped, he said, when
| the bill passed the Senate tive weeks ago
that it had been perfected. But the events
OF the last twenty-four hours had con
possibility of the failure of all tariff legls-
| lation at this session. If so the RESPONSE
bility must be placed where it belonged.
He criticised the President for ''yiolat-
ing" the principles of his party IN at
tempting to interfere with the preroga'
tives of the legislative branch of the gov
eminent. but declared that he should new
er be inundated by threats from the
press or by the utterances OF his party
associates at the other end OF the capltol
who had been so uproarlously applauded.
He called attention to the differences be-
tween the situation in the House and the
Senate. He reviewed the events in the
| House which eliminated in the passage OF
a bill with the loss of II Democratic votes
in that body. In the Senate all changed.
Every Democratic vote was needed to
pass a bill, if it was to be passed as a
! party measure, and the members of
| the finance committee went heroically
to work to harmonic the differences eA-
listing on the Democratic side. They had
accomplished that purpose, to their ever
lasting credit, be it said. He had been
/ one of t.<se who had stood out for con-
cessionS III the interests OF his constltu-
| ents He made no concealment OF his
! position then, and made none now. lie
! then proceeded to deliver a glowing eulo-
gy of the tariff bill as it passed the Sen
ate, which, unlike the House bill, he de-
! clared. contained no menace to the indus
tries of the country, and had not been
! framed by men from sparsely-settled dis
trcts who knew nothing of the great
| al I'M OF
| States. He asserted that the trainers of
| the House bill and a large proportion of
| the Democratic party were not tariff re-
formers. they were free traders.
| Mr. Hill said: "A theory as we'll as a
condition now confronts us. The theory
Of the Democratic party. is that in the
enactment of tariff legislation free raw
materials should always be an essential
that the materials which enter into our
manufactures should be freed from the
burden of tariff taxation. The best in
terests of the manufacturers as we'll as
the consumers Of the land demand the
recognition of this wise discrimination.
question and we cannot retreat and we
| cannot retract. We are honorably bound
to redeem cur professions and our prom
Uses. Justice. good faith and decent re-
| gard for public sentiment all require this
| course Until recently | had supposed
that there was no dispute upon this ques-
ton of principle but that every Demo
crat worthy Of the name was willing to
| cOncede that it there was one thing more
than another to which the Democratic
! party was committed, it was in favor of
the doctrine of absolute free raw mate
rails. The true and honest construction
s! Of every Democratic national platform
for twelve years past irrevocably commits
US to this just and reasonable principle
Mr.. Hill read the Democratic national
platform of 1892 and continued: '"To re-
peal the Mckinley law in form simply;
to re-enact it in effect is keeping this
promise to the letter, but breaking it in
spirit. The platform pointed with pride
and deliberately approved the measures
/ for free iron ore. free lead ore, free coal
and free wool which were pending in Con
gress 1T the time of the convention. The
| Democratic position was plain and is
| so clear that he who runs may read If
any Democratic orator in any part of the
country, forgetting the interests of the
| whole land and subscribing the supposed
interests of locality promised the peo-
! pie of any state or section that there
would be any exception made to the en-
| forcement of the general principle of free
| raw materials when the Democrats
! should obtain power, he exceeded his
authority and misinterpreted our posi-
| ton.
| TT is said by some in justification or ex->
cuse for the present action that the Presi-
! dents letter of acceptance in 1892 modi-
| fled the extreme demands of our platform
1t is true that some portions of his let
ter may tend to bear that construction
It was not that bold, ringing and explicit
declaration in favor of the platform
! which his party had a right to expect.
but was regarded by many as timid. eau.
tious and conservative; but whether this
criticism is or is not well-founded the
fact remains that he had no power or au-
| thority to change or alter one line or
sentence or provision of the national plat
| form which had been deliberately atopt-
ed in the national convention duly as
! sembled. No President can be above his