The daily morning journal and courier., 1894-08-10
SENATOR'S FIGHT FREE COAL
TT WOW LOOKS WHAT HAD BEEN
 DONE WOULD HE USDOSE.

Demands Made That the wooien. Cotton
 and Metal Schedules be Reduced-senn-
 tor German Sent in m offer for Free su-
 gar-outcome Is Uncertain.
 Washington. Aug. 9.-How much truth there Is In the report that the tariff conferees were to-day far ther apart than ever may be seen from the statement of a member of the conference regarding the situation as 1t stood at thehour of adjournment this evening. This member. who Is a mem- yesterday the proposition was made them that they might have their choice between free iron and coal. While this matter was being discussed Mir. German made q proposition that the house should have free coal and that iron ore should remain at 40 cents
 a. ton. According to this conferee this proposition was accepted and then MT. German sent another offer in the shape of free sugar. This second offer fairly took away the breath of the house members, but after they discussed it for short time 1t was declined with thanks. The house conferees, said this informant, stood just where they did last night for a duty on sugar, iron taxed at 40 cents ton. and free coal. This morning. he said. the senate in- sisted that the proposition be free iron ore and coal at 40 cents a ton, and the house refused to accept it.
 After the conference this afternoon one of the most prominent senators said he would never vote for an agree ment that included free coal, as such a bill could not pass the senate. This senator declined to say whether there was any agreement in sight.
 We may agree In an hour" he said, "and We may be here for several days and possibly forever"
 The coal men in the senate are ID fin arms at the thought of free coal, and it looks as If all that had been done about 1t was about to be undone. While coal and iron ore are playing an important part in this discussion, they by no means occupied all the attention of the conferees to-day. It was said by a senate conferee that as fast as an agree ment was reached on one thing some
 thing that could not be granted by the insisted upon, although it was imperil- ling the success of the bill. The whole conduct of the house conferees appeared to be, this gentleman said, that of people who were seeking to consume
 time and cause delay.
 This afternoon the demand was made l that the woolen, cotton and metal
 schedules be reduced. The senate con- ferees told their associates that they
 could not do 1t, and the assertion was | made, it Is said, that if the schedules in question were changed Senator Smith and Senator Murphy would not vote for the bill and any effort to change
 the metal schedule would start Senator Quay again. A long consultation was
 held, at which were present Messrs Gorman Brice and Murphy. MT. Smith
 was sent for, but could not be found or refused to attend. It was said that MT. Smith yesterday delivered his ultima tum as to the schedules in which he was interested.
 It is known that when the conference adjourned tonight shortly before o'clock the house was still urging that these schedules be pared down and the senate was still arguing that to do so meant defeat. What the outcome will be is uncertain.
 There is 8 probability, and that is all, that the democrats may reach a con- clusion tomorrow and be able to call in their republican colleagues House Conferee Wilson denies the story that the president smashed the compromise agreed upon by the conferees on coal, sugar and iron ore yesterday He says the president has never interfered in the deliberations in the slightest man. ner. He has treated the matter with great delicacy