Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1894-05-12
4 TARIFF FOR TRUSTS ONLY.
The Coxey Crowd-Docking Members
Sugar Is King.

1ux0h - NthSs /
From our regular correspondent.l
WASHINGTON. May !, rSo4.-The
presence Of 500 men canIped for a
week within the limits Of the National
Capitol. banded together under the
name Of an army and threatening
openly to remain until joined by a
sufficient number of men to intimi-
date Congress into granting the ridic-
ulous demands OF its self-appointed
leader, and the circumstances attend
ant upon their coming and their stay
here presents quite as impressive an
"object lesson" as the financial lob
ject lesson inaugurated by the Cleve-
land administration about this time
last year, and unless the difference
between liberty and license is more
sharply defined may lead to quite as
much misery. That a majority of the
men that this nan Coxey has enticed
into Washington and quartered and
in a pest hole from which he
has moved his valuable horses for fear
of their dying from the foul and ma
laria-laden atmosphere are lazy, good
natured tramps, only intent upon
avoiding work and being fed, is ap-
parent by their refusal of work when
offered them, but it is equally appar-
ert this nan Coxey means mischief
should his force grow strong enough
to make it, and the Populist Senators
and Representatives are doing all
they a to encourage it. When this
man Coxey and two of his followers
were arrested for violating law in their
absurd attemptto speak from the steps
of the Capitol, every Populist in Con-
gress who could make any claim to
being a lawyer appeared in the police
courts, nominally as their volunteer
defenders, but in reality to intimidate
that court. This is the third day of
their trial, which ought not to have
lasted more than an hour.
The manner in which the old law
docking the pay of members of the
House absent without leave, except
on account of sickness, is being en-
forced is extremely farcical. The men,
bers are allowed to certify their own
absence and the highest number of
days that any member has owned up
to being absent was six, while any
number of them who were absent at
times during the month of April re-
turned no certificate of absence and
drew their months pay. The speaker
of the House, who under this law is
required to o. K. the certificates OF
the members before they are paid by
the Sergeant-at-Arms, declines to go
behind the returns made by the mem-
bers, wen if he has actual knowledge
of their l~ncorrectness thus leaving the
matter entirely with the consciences of
the members. Experience has proven
that men, consciences are very much
like rubber when questions arise af-
fecting their pocketbooks.
Sugar has certainly played a star
part in the tariff tinkering farce com
edy that has been going on in the
Senate for five weeks, and unless in
formation that has been received from
Louisiana is incorrect sugar is either
going to get all Of the flowers of the
last act or it is going to break up the
show. Demands have been made up
on Senators Gallery and Blanchard, of
Louisiana, by the sugar planters Of
OF that State. that they repudiate the
forty per cent ad valorem duty put on
sugar by the present bill and demand
a straight duty of two cents a pound
forty per cent is a fraction less than
one cent a pound-and vote against
the entire bill if the two-cent duty is
not put upon sugar. This is very enl-
barrassing to the Senators named.
who have already in caucus agreed to
support the bill as it stands. They
are, it is said, given their choice of
obeying the demand of the sugar
planters or retiring from the Senate.
They both hold g~ubernatorial appoint
ments, and the legislature that will
meet on the 18th instant, will elect
Senators to fill both of the unexpired
terms, as well as one for a full term.
To fully understand the situation it
must be remembered that the Louis
lana legislature is said to be over
whelmingly in favor of a two-cent
duty on sugar, and that it has the
power should Gallery and Blanchard
decline to fight for it to send, within
forty-eight hours after its meeting, as
their successors men who will. 1t must
not be forgotten, either, that with the
votes of the two Louisiana Senators
and that of Hill. of New York, cast
against the tariff bill, even if there are
ne more Democratic defections, that
measure will be killed.
The oil, sugar, whisky, and other
trusts have been taken care of, through
Democratic threats to defeat the tariff
bill, SO who can blame the Louisiana
people for taking advantage of the
power given them by a chain of extra
ordinary circumstances to demand
what they want. Ever since the Sem
ate began its tariff tinkering, it has
been a grab game. Why shouldn't
Louisiana grab her share? 1t is to head
off the action of the Louisiana Sena-
tors that the proposition has been
made in the House to put an amend
ment on the legislative and executive
appropriation bill, repeating the sugar
bounty, but its efficacy would be more
than doubtful, although there is little
doubt about its being put through the
House easy enough. But, if the