Evening star., 1894-02-17

pect that the discus
q J
i GAmhlb3 sion will continue for
UlN G.yzrNA two, three or even
sTE tYIN7i four months.
AL EM%ENln The average news
~ IKE Mt paper reader If he
IT1eElPTIl- has not watched the
EIR progress of tariff dis.
I ENSU cussions in the past
will wonder, perhaps
how eighty-five SEN
ators will mar age TO consume three months
In tariff debate If each Senator had an
entire legislative day allotted to him. with
the privilege of speaking from 10 O'Clock
in the morning until in the evening, the
debate would last but little longer. And
there are some Senators who will not
speak to the bill at ALL Yet il would not
be difficult to prolong the debate through
the whole ensuing summer. To balance the
Senators who do not speak there are some
Senators. like Mr.. Call of Florida, who
speak on every possible occasion and some
other Senators who are cften called 10
their feet by questions-whose knowledge
of tariff matters makes them a constantly
consulted authority.
The best authorities on the tariff are not
always the men who say most about il in
public. A great many of the cleverest
speeches delivered on the floor of the Sen
ate are not written by the men who de-
liver them, and the authority for many
another is the private secretary OF the
Senator or a tariff expert who is called
into consultation. 1t is noted of some Sen
ators that they are never ready in debate
unless their private secretaries their
committee clerks are sitting at their el-
bows. One member of the Senate finance
committee, now in political retirement,
made his reputation in the House OF Rep
resentatives on a tariff speech which was
written for him by a well-known news
paper correspondent afterward clerk of the
committee OF ways and means. This
Senator always had some one to prompt
him when he was making one of his stately
tariff speeches. for Senators on the other
side of the chamber had an unpleasant
way of cutting in with questions which
he could not answer and throwing him of
his oratorical feet.
Few Ready Debaters.
There are few ready tariff debaters in the
Senate and the running discussion of the
Wilson bill will be confined to five or six
men. The other Senators will guard local
interests and make set speeches. The Sena-
tors who will be heard most frequently
-
Arkansas. Mcpherson and Harris on the
democratic side; Aldrich. Allison, She--
man, Teller and Lodge on the republican.
These are the men who will debate pend
ing amendments seriously and to the en-
joyment of the Senate and the galleries.
Then there are Stewart on the republican
side and Call on the democratic side, who
will be on their feet frequently as the
rules of the Senate permit. chiefly because
they like to talk. Senator Stewart will
surprise his colleagues if he does not de-
live- at least one silver speech a week
while the tariff bill is under discussion.
AS to Mr.. Call, he is the hero of that IA
nous jest: THE one thing more tiresome
than call of the House is the Call of the
Senate" He talks on every subject and
talks a great deal. The chief sparring will
be between Vest and Aldrich-one of them
next to the last of the democratic members
and the other at the foot of the republi-
can list in the finance committee II is a
singular fact that although Mr.. Vest has
never been chosen to take charge of a
tariff bill-possibly because he is NOT Ruar
anteed to remain in perfect accord with
the administration through thick and thin
ne Is the readiest tariff debater on the
democratic side of the Senate Although
he sometimes makes long prepared snaacbas
he prefers to hold his facts statistics and
arguments until there is an anDroy,-i 30
opening In republican speech. and to put
them In where they will do the most good
AS to Mr.. Aldrich. he is better read on
economic subjects than any other man i'm
the Senate. He is seldom at a loss for
illus,-atlohs ana hgures. and he can take
UP democratic speech at any point and
answer II clearly and directly The Tn-o
men have entirely different stvlas ~
Vest Is short and round-bellied. There &c
an an Ir;i.apie ,i look In his face and a peevish
ne h.
other senator I'm debate and answers b,n,
Two indications which belle Mr. Vast,s
character, for he has the renutat,on 20
S cue oesI ana Jolliest story teller i'm the
senate, ana the commerce committee so,na~
times spends the morning listenine - .
narrative from the Missouri Sena1o, d
stead of considering bridge bills. Senator
Aldrfch is a pleaSant-faced man os ,-Sss oi
height and good figure He looks a. "a uill III,
essentially like what he is-a busina
man. He has none of the cracas nf ~
orator wniie Senator Vest shows his ken
lucky blood in the vehemence with u.hioh
he pours forth his sentences ana IT, .hi anieh d
gestures with which he punctuates them
Allison and sherman Well Eou,nn..,
senator Allison and Senator Sbermap
from many experiences with other ,.r,.
biiis as well as from an excellent person,I
knowledge of the history of business cor
dltlons for a quarter of a century. ara well
lifted to go into a tariff discussion vitbout
preparation. Mr.. Allison will do more WORK
IN running debate on amendments than in
set speech. Mr.. Sherman has an ..au,k-
ward memory, which is of great yalua In
The republican side in tariff discussion
Mr. Lodge is more of theorist than p man
OF pracucal knowledge on the tariff Iur
ne ls good talker and quick al retort Nr
W olcott of Colorado, by the way, will prob-
ably interject some fun into the discussion
II any democratic orator leaves a good on, n
ing for him. but his chief effort will be care
fully prepared and rehearsed before il is
delivered. MIR. Wolcott is making a repu-
tation as the successor of Ingalls, and IKE
ingalls,, he always makes ample prepa ra- =
ton to entertain an audience and gives
timely notice, so as to make sure tha; an
audience will be on hand
Strange TO say, Mr.. Mills is not a ready
debater 1t was noted when the tariff II
which was named for him was under dis
cusSion in the House that he was never
prepared 10 answer interjected questions
lf a member asked for information Mr.
Mills usually had to wait until the next
day to hunt up authorities before he could
give a reply. This weakness is unfortun-
ate. Mr.. Mills was expected to take Mr.
Carlisle's place in defending the tariff b.ll
With the exception of Mr.. Vest Mr. Car
Isle is the only ready debater of the talSff
question the democrats have had in the
Senate since the death of Mr. Beck. In
fact. the democratic side of the Senate is