The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1894-01-20

Rob Americans for the Benefit of Ev-
erybody Else-Mr. Dingiey on Our
Great Gift to Canada
Washington, January l9.-The House
today went into committee of the whole
on the Wilson bill. The pending amend
ment was that proposed by MI. johnson,
Democrat, of Ohio, putting steel rails
on the free list. Mr. Dalzell, Republican,
of Pennsylvania, attacked Mr.. Johnson,
calling him ''robber baron" who paid
his men one third cash and two thirds
scrip, taking advantage of the winter to
drive this bargain with his employees.
Mr.. johnson defended himself He
acknowledged that he had tried to mon
opolize the steel rail business by means
of his patents, but the courts had not
sustained them. Mr.. johnson said it
gether or paying partly in scrip and he
chose the latter. In his opinion. it was
better to do that than close the mill as
was done at Sparrow's point, and was
advocated by the steel rail trust. There
would be time enough to complain of
that issue of scrip when his company
failed to redeem it.
Chaii man Wilson appealed to the Dem
ocratic members not to adopt the John
son amendment. The bill, he said, was
drawn up carefully and conscientiously.
He did not think it wise thing to put
such an important article as steel rails
on the free list. 1t would be unwise to
make such sweeping change without
due deliberation, but, if it seemed apar-
emit, in view of the new light turned on
the question, that the committee had put
too high rate upon steel rails, the COM
mittee would reconsider the matter and
lay the result before the House. Under
the present law, the tariff on steel rails
was Sl3.44 ton. The proposed tariff
was 20 per cent advalorem, which, at
the present price of steel rails, was
equivalent to SAL ton, reduction of
more than two thirds. If steel rails
were put on the free list, there wassiust
as much reason for putting pig iron and
everything else in the iron schedule on
the free list. He wanted to draw the
fangs of the steel rail serpent, but did
not want to injufe the industry.
Mr.. Cannon, Republican, of Illinois,
wanted tariff put on steel rails that
would leave sufficient margin of profit
to those engaged in the business, or who
might hereafter enter it. He was not
willing to lower the tariff below that
limit Of safety. In the matter of pools,
he admitted that probably there were
steel rail pools just as there were COM
binations in every other product. He
upheld the policy of protection ON the
ground that it enabled manufacturers to
continue in business.
After further discussion vote was
taken on the johnson amendment and it
was lost on vote by tellers of ayes 70,
nays 100.
Mr.. Henderson, Republican of Iowa.
offered as an amendment to the agricul-
tural schedule of the Wilson bill the cor
responding schedule of the Mckinley
law. Mr. Henderson's speech in sup
port of his amendment was largely di-
rected to reply to the recent speeches
of Mr.. Cochran, Dem, of New York
He ridiculed the idea of Mr.. Cochran
posing as reformer Or liberator of the
people from the thralldom of the tariff.
He stated that Mr.. Cochran had de-
nounced the Republican party because it
was not wide enough to take in the
whole of humanity; but he, Mr.. Hender-
son, did not understand it intended to do
SO. All it was supposed to take in was
the people of the United States. Refer
ence had been made to the Republican
policy of protection as fraud and rob-
berry," and to the benefciaries of that
policy as ''robber barons." But" he
added, eff we are robbers, we rob Amer
leans for the benefit of Americans. The
purpose of the Democratic party is to
erybody outside of America" TRepub-
lican laughter and applause. In attack
ing the Presidents pension policy, he
said. ''You are sending out your sieuth
hounds after the poor, crippled soldi err"
He said it could not be expected that he
would sympathize with the proposition
to put another mortgage upon the Amer
lean people by selling bonds. Republi-
can applause "Give the country a
chance" he said. land it will come
around all right. 1t is strong, powerful,
rich" Great applause greeted Mr.. Hen
derson as he took his seat.
Mr. Bryan, DEM. of Nebraska, believ-
ed the bill would bring more advantage
to the farmers in the reduction OF duties
on the things they had to buy than dis
advantage to them from the reduction of
duties on the things they had to sell.
Mr.. Bryan was asked to explain why
the committee on ways and means left a
duty OF IS OF 40 per cent on wooden
goods, after putting wool on the free
list. -
Mr. Bryan replied that under the Nc
Kinley act, the duty on wooden goods
was about 96 per cent, SO the manufac-
turer could charge, on an average, %
per cent more for his goods than he could
without tariff. He believed it good
deal better for the people to have the
duty on wooden goods at SO per cent than
at 90 per cent. He was willing to admit
that tariff even of ten per cent, levied
purposely for protection, was just as in
defensible as tariff of 1000 per cent
levied for protection. He said ''the tariff
on wooden goods was left in this bill for
a double purpose. 1t was left in to
bring revenue to the government. The
other reason was that the Democratic
party found it harder to do justice to the
consumer than the Republican party had
to do injustice"
In the further course of Mr.. Bryan's
remarks, he yielded to Mr.. BoutelIe, Re-
publican, of Maine, and rather anus
ing and, at times, exciting colloquy took
place between them in regard to the re-
bate OF duty on salt for the benefit of
the fish curerS of New Fnpland