The Penn's Grove record., 1894-08-10
Washington Letter.

was deferred for a time. Still the Key
| is unfound. As fast as one obstacle is
removed a new one presents itself. Al.
/ fer much consultation a sugar schedule
was drawn that was acceptable alike
| 70 the House. to President Cleveland
| and TO the conservative Senators,
and as the sugar schedule had been the
| principle obstacle to an agreement the
| contest was thought to lie about over.
Not so, however, for before the con-
ferees had fully decided upon that
schedule they were informed that Sena-
tors Gallery and Blanchard of Louist-
ana. and Allen, of Nebraska and Kyle,
of South Dakota, demanded an amend
ment providing for the payment OF the
sugar bounty for the remainder of this
wear. and that failing to get it they
would cast their votes against the bill,
which added to the vote of Senator Hill
would mean defeat. This continuation
of tile sugar bounty was refused by
both House and Senate while the bill
was under consideration, and the de.
mand for it at this time has for the
time absolutely blocked agreement.
While the House committee on Com
merce has taken no formal action on
the subject, opinions expressed by its
members indicate that a bill along the
line of that introduced by representa-
tive Brickner, of Wisconsin, providing
that all interstate railroads shall own
or control by lease all sleeping cars run
| over their lines, will sooner OF later be
fayorably reported to the House. Ii
such a bill be reported an attempt will
be made to add an amendment regulat-
ing sleeping car charges.
A bill has been introduced in the
| Senate by Mr.. PETER and in the House
by Representative Baker, of Kansas,
authorizing the Secretary of Agricul-
ture to establish reservoirs for the stor-
age of rain water in the semi-arid states
west of the 9G meridian, and appropri-
ating 500, 600 therefore.
Nobody takes Representative Bland's
resolution, %instructing the committee
on Ways and Means to report a bill for
an income tax that will produce a rev.
enue of S100, 600, 600 a year, and a bill
putting all sorts of sugar on the free
list, seriously, although it may yet play
an important part in the legislation OF
the session. While Mr.. BANDS object
in introducing the resolution was prob.
ably merely to give the Senators who
have been preventing an agreement on
the tariff bill a hint of what the House
can do if DO agreement is reached, there
is no doubt Of his intention to push the
resolution should the conference COM
mittee fail to reach an agreement on
the tariff bill or should an agreement
he reached by the committee and not
be accepted by the Senate. Bills on the
line suggested could probably get near.
ly Il tWo-thirds vote in the House, but
their getting through the Senate would
be doubtful, as no one "a tell in ad-
vance whether Senators would vote in
accordance with their personal convic'
tons OF the orders of their party lead.
ers.
Among the numerous fights between
the House and Senate that ever the bill
providing for the printing, binding and
distribution of public documents is de.
serving Of special mention because of
the principle involved. This bill was
passed by the House early in the session
and it was recently passed by the Sen.
ate with numerous amendments, among
them two giving the joint committee
on Printing of the Senate and House
control of the appointment of the Chief
Clerk of the G. p. o., the foreman OF
printing, the foreman of binding and Of
the superintendent of documents, q
new position created by the bill. Re.
preventative Richardson, of Tenn,
chairman of the House committee on
Printing tried to get-the House to CON
Cur in those amendments, and there
by got himself into hot water and met
defeat by a vote of 113 to 81. The bill
is now in the hands of a conference
committee. If the Senate amendments
became a law the joint committee on
Printing would thereby acquire abso-
lutte control of the patronage of the
Government Printing Office. 1t would
be a direct slap in the face Of the Pub
lie Printer, and incidentally a blow at
the Secretary of the Interior and the
President. Senator German, chairman
of the Senate Printing committee, is
credited with being the father of the
Senate amendments.