Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-05-22
TAX ON IRON
The Committees Amendment at 40
Cents a Ton Adopted.
A LIVELY DISCUSSION IN THE SENATE
Armor Plate Investigation Adopted
in the House.
THE LEGISLATIVE BILL

THE LEGISLATIVE BILL
Early hours do not agree with a majority
Of the grave and reverend seigneurs who
n AXE up the membership OF the Senate.
Nevertheless. thirty-three Senators. twenty
three democrats. six republicans and three
populists, were in the chamber when the
Vice President dropped the gavel at 10
O'Clock this morning. Half an hour was de-
voted to the consideration of unobjection-
able bills on the calendar before the tariff
debate was resumed. Three bills were
passed as follows: On motion Of Mr.. Quay.
| to pay the heirs Of John Wightman OF
Williamsport, Pa, $500 for star route
service in 1859; on montion of Mr.. Cameron.
authorizing the Pennsylvania Railroad
| Company to construct a bridge across the
Delaware river at Philadelphia. and on
| rrotion of Mr.. Gallinger, to pension the
widow of William Loring Spencer at the
rate of $50 per month. Mr.. Spencer was a
| United States Senator from Alabama dur
Ing reconstruction days.
Mr.. WaIsh's Personal Explanation.
Just before the tariff bill was taken up
Mr.. Walsh, the new Senator from Georgia.
srose to personal explanation in con-
nection with a newspaper paragraph from
st. Paul, printed this morning, stating that
the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers
had yesterday adopted resolutions condemn
| Ing him for introducing bill making the
retarding of the United States mails pun
| ishable by Imprisonment for twenty years.
Mr.. Walsh explained that the bill aimed
at heavier penalties for train robbery; they
had construed IL as an attempt TO punish
trainmen who should tie up" a train In
strike.
Mr. Walsh said that he had served his
apprenticeship at the printers trade and
had never known day or an hour when
he did not sympathize with labor. hut he
also recognized the fact that capital had
/ rights as well as labor. Labor orsaniza-
tions he believed had a perfect right 10 d.
\ rect their members TO discontinue work, II
| by doing so they believed they could ao-
complisn their purposes, but he declared
emphaticaly that they had no right to in
terfere with other laborers who sought 20
/ go to work. They had the right to work or
not to work: their rights extended 10 fur
ther. This was a land of liberty; IL was
also a land of law and order. As long as
labor sought a redress of its grievances
under the forms of law. sought to work out
its problem in lawful way. he was with
labor to that extent and no further. The
bill he had introduced, he said, was loosely
worded and possibly liable TO the construc-
ton the locomotive engineers had placed
upon il. but IL was not intended either di-
/ recty or Indirectly TO be subject TO such
| construction. In conclusion Mr.. Walsh re-
| introduced his bill in a modified form 20 40
to leave no doubt of its purpose.
The Tariff Again.
The tariff bill was then taken up and the
debate on the proposed duty Of 40 cents q
| ton on iron ore was resumed. The pending
amendment was that of Mr.. Platt to In
crease the duty from 40 to 60 cents.
Mr.. Platt who was speaking when the
Senate adjourned last night. took the floor
again today. The difference between the
Wilson bill as IL passed the House and the
| bill as IL was now being considered In the
Senate he said, was the difference between
electrocution and slow poisoning. Under
the Wilson bill the destruction Of American
industries would be sudden, complete and
perhaps painless; under the Senate hin IL
would be slow and torturing.
Mr.. Platt proceeded to go at length into
the question Of the extent OF the iron ore
trade and the wages paid in its various
branches in order to show the necessity for
the duty OF GO cents which he proposed In
ms amendment. In conclusion, Mr.. Platt
declared that while he should not filfbuster
against the tariff bill. he would insist upon
full, free and fair discussion He pre-
dicted that the bill never would pass the
Senate.
Mr.. Berry Against FfIibusterinr.
When Mr.. Platt took his seat Mr.. Berry
(ArkD precipitated an interesting discus
sion. The Arkansas Senator entered a yig-
orous protest against the republican hHbus-
since March 20. he said. The people. in
! 1s92. had declared for tariff revision by an
overwhelming majority. Yet the republi-
cans had been here for months trying 20 de-
feat the will of the people by obstruction
and delay. From che end of the country 10
the other there was the greatest impa thence
and anxiety as TO the fate of this bill. He
thought a spirit of patriotism on the other
side should lead them 10 allow this bill TO
come to a vote. IF there were forty-two
other democratic Senators here who believe
as 1 do said he. with great force, this
bill would pass without further delay. We
should have action on this bill. and have
speedy action
Mr.. Hoar wanted TO know upon what
foundation MIR. Berry had stated that the
people I'm 1S92 had given an overwhelming
majority in favor Of this bill. What did the
Chicago platform, upon which the demo-
cratic candidate had been elected, declare?
Mr.. Berry replied that the people in 1892
had voted first for the repeal of the Nc
kinley law. and secondly for the passage CT
a tariff bill for revenue only. The plat
form declared all tariff taxes, except for
purposes OF revenue, robbery and unconsti-
tutiCnal He had believed IL TO be the duty
OF Ms demoeraue associates TO pass such a
revenue tariff bill; to defy any democrat
who opposed such a bill. While he believed
any bill would be an Improvement on the
Mckinley bill. and that the democratic
bill passed, he believed II would have been
entitled TO infinitely more credit had II had
the courage 10 pass a bill on the lines OF
the Chicago platform.
Mr.. Hoar's Reply.
Mr.. Hoar said, IL what the Arkansas Sem
ator said were true. according TO his own
admission the people, in 1892. had decided
unanimously that 1t would not be right TO
pass the present bill. Republicans had voted
TO naintain the Mckinley law, and demo-
Gratis had voted against all protection Yet
MI. hoar said, the other side wanted 10
crowd down the throats of the people what
II was acknowledged they had condemned
Inc Dill was crazy quilt OF protection
The Senator from Arkansas had said that
the bill had been before the Senate since
March 70. One bill. said Mr. Hoar. had
be IN before the Senate for that period But
what Mr. Hoar wanted to know was when
the plunder, the eXtortion and the pocket
picking on which the people had set their
heel in 1892 had been brought into the Sem
ate. The bill containing the plundcr, he
said, had been before the Senate less than
ten days. 1t was rot the Mills bill. al
though there WAS a Mills bin here; IL was
not a Mckinley bill. although a Mckinley
would be here or elsewhere soon IL the
people had their way: il was not a Wilson
bill. although Wilson was reported as in
ambush at no distant point ready 10
slaughter IL when fl EMERGED from this
chamber What was il? Somewhere. some
place at some time. he understood. three
Senator'S like the three witches In Macbeth,