The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1894-05-04
NO.. 20.
Washington Letter.
From our regular Correspondent

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The free traders in the Senate have
become so discouraged, because of the
revolt in their own party, the broad
sides poured into them by the repub-
licans during the general debate on
the tariff bill, which is to close to-
morrow, and the unmistakable trend
of public sentiment against the pre-
sent bill, that they have opened nego-
| tiations with the revolving democratic
| Senators which, it is believed, will end
in their complete and abject surrender.
Republicans have not, of course, been
made acquainted with the exact ma
ture of these negotiations but enough
has leaked out to cause many to be-
| ieve that the income tax is to be drop
ped and the present tariff bill practi-
ally abandoned, something like the
old Mills bill being substituted there
for
The impression left by the represen-
tatives of the National Workingmen's
Protective Tariff League-more than
1000 in number-who met in conven-
tion here Saturday, has been decided
ly good. The democrats of the Sen
ate Finance committee refused to hear
their personal protests against the
tariff bill, but they were compelled to
hear them read on the floor of the
Senate by Senator Quay, and the
members of the League occupied the
galleries of the Senate as pleased lis
teners. These men and women did
not come here to attempt to coerce
Congress by threatening to remain in
Washington until some absurd de-
mands were complied with, as Coxev's
army proposes to do, but merely in
the exercise of their rights as Ameri-
can citizens to protest against being
deprived of their bread and butter by
vicious legislation; and having filed
their protest they quietly returned to
their homes. They neither walked
nor came on free railroad transpOrta-
ton, but on tickets purchased with
the money of the laborers they came
to represent. Nor did they ask dona-
tions of food they paid for everything
they got, as self-respecting people
usually do. Washington people will
be glad to see them again under hap
pier circumstances.
There are times when nothing but
plain talk will fill the bill, and Sena-
tor Hawley thought one of these
times was at hand when he replied to
the extraordinary speech of Senator
Allen, of Nebraska, in favor o. the
PETER resolution, which provides for
the formation of a new Senate COM
mittee to hear the petitions of Coxey's
army and similar organizations. Sena-
tor Hawley paid particular attention
to Mr.. Aliens denunciation of the
laws which prohibit parades in WASH
ington without permission of the
authorities, and the marching of any
organized body of men across any
portion of the Capitol grounds, laws
which Mr.. Hawley declared TO be right
and proper and said would be enforc-
ed to the letter. But the striking part
of Mr.. Hawley's speech was the con-.
clusion in these words, calmly and de-
liberately uttered: ~ am sorry to say,
but I feel bound to say, that the
speech of the Senator from Nebraska
was one that would have been receiv-
ed with tumultous applause in
meeting of anarchists. 1t had in it,
not requiring microscope, but visi-
BILE to the naked eye, the bacteria and
bacili of anarchy" Rough, but de-
served.
The populists in Congress, while
pretending to be opposed to the alb
surd idea which is causing so many
ill-advised men to move towards
Washington are in reality doing
everything in their power to encour-
age the movement. Representative
Boen. of Minnesota, has introduced
resolution in the House directing the
Secretary of War to furnish camping
grounds and tents for all organized
bodies of "laboring people" who may
come to Washington to obtain "redress
from Congress. The adoption of
resolution like that would invite every
tramp in the country to spend the
encamped in the suburbs of
Washington, and what the result of
bringing such an enormous body of
men together, whose respect for law
and order are not their most striking
traits, would be no man can tell. 1t
would certainly be nothing good. But
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