Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-01-09
TARIFF AND FINANCE
Representative Wilson Expects No
Legislation on Either Subject.
THINKS AN EXTRA SESSION LIKELY
Senator AIdrich Says Democrats
Are Shifting Responsibility.
THE REPUBLICAN POSITION

THE REPUBLICAN POSITION
It is worthy Of note that some of the
most distinguished democrats doubt very
much whether there will be any financial
legislation at this session. Chairman w. l..
Wilson Of West Virginia says: II do not now
see how 1t is possible that any financial
or tariff legislation shall be accomplished
by this Congress. The action of the steer
ing committee OF the republican Senate
would seem to indicate that it is not pos
sible to repeal the one-tenth differential on
sugar, which, it is claimed. is the basis of
the opposition Of the Germans to our tariff
law, and which has resulted in the embargo
upon the Importation into the German en-
pire Of American beef products. There
seems now to be no reason to believe that
the republican Senators will cooperate to
secure the passage of the bill which have
introduced to repeal this one-tenth differen-
tial. That being the case, of course, there
Is no possibility that any legislation Of that
sort can be adopted.
Az to an Extra Session.
"And as for the currency legislation, it
does not seem to me to be practical to pass
any law to reform the currency. In fact,
as look at the situation, do not see how
it is possible to avoid an extra session Of
the next Congress- I have had no CONVEX
sation with the President upon this sub
ject. I do not know what his views may
be- I do not assume to speak with any au-
thOrity Of him. But, speaking as ! would
II 1 were in the place of the President. l
must say that I can see no way in which
an extra session of the F'ifty-fourth Con-
gress can be avoided. I certainly. If were
the President Of the United States, would
not remain here for nine months, and as
sumo the responsibility for the continued
issue of bonds, in order to maintain the
government. 1t seems to me that the
proper democratic policy Is to enact some
currency legislation in this Congress which
will relieve the government from Its en-
barrassment. But If that shall prove to be
impossible, it seems to me that the only
course for the President to pursue is to
call the next Congress together, ana to In
form them that he has appealed in vain to
the Fifty-third Congress for legislation
which is necessary to save the government
from embarrassment, and that, having
failed in that, he will ask the Fifty-fourth
Congress to attempt to do the work which
the F1fty-third Congress has failed to &C
complish.' -,
very great importapce.i as indicating what
some of the gentlemen. who are very near
to the President think of the situation.
Senator Alarich's Views.
As to the proposition Of Chairman Will
son. and of some of the western cattle men.
for that matter, that the German embargo
could be removed H the one-tenth dferen-
tial upon sugar should be repealed, Senator
Aldrich of the Senate finance committee
and of the republican steering committee
said today: f. o.,
1.-The agitation in foreign countries. which
is taking the form Of retaliatory measures
against American exports, is caused, IN
my opinion, not by the imposition Of u diff
ferential rate on sugar, but by the demo-
cratic abrogation Of thu reciprocity treaty.
And in this connection it is we'll to relnen-
Der one fact The differential against sugar
imported from ounty-paying countries ex-
listed in the Mckinley law, but 1t formed no
cause of complaint from Germany or Aus
tria or any of the Mountaineering countries.
There was then no complaint from them
about the differential rate of the Mckinley
law, and If the objection had been made to
that phase of the tariff bill Germany would,
undoubtedly, have undertaken retalatory
measures when the Mckinley act was en-
forced. But that was not the case. The
reciprocity provision of the Mckinley bill
was enforced, and under it the countries
which are now affected most seriously by
the repeal of these reciprocity features were
greatly benefited The republicans in the
Senate and in the House warned the DEM
ccrats what would happen If the reciprocity
treaties or agreements, or whatever they
NAV be called, which were entered into by
virtue of the reciprocity provision Of the
Mckinley law, should be abrogated. But
the democ did not heed these warnings.
They persisted in carrying out their the
orics and in abrogating all of these rect-
procity provisions. The result is now ap-
parent; and the democrats are endeaVor1ng
to shift their ground and to evade the re-
sponsihilty for their actions by claiming
that this whole situation is created by the
I'm of the Cno-tentl dlttecelt1ll uD-
on the sugar from the bounty-payfng coun-
tries. They are not frank enough, or
candid enough, to admit that that very
differential existed before, when the rela-
ticns between these countries and the
United States were friendly, and when, I'M
der the beneficent operations OF the rect-
procity provisions OF the Mckinley law, and
the treaties which were framed under it,
the markets of the world were open to the
United States.
Value of the Reciprocity Treaties.
."The democrats are endeavoring to shift
the responsibility by claiming that, If this
one cent differential should now be re-
pealed, the old relations would be restored.
Yet they make no proposition to restore
the reciprocity features Of the repealed
Mckinley law, which was the basis of
the prosperity of the United States in the
matter of it's trade with foreign countries.
The democrats are entirely mistaken IN
thinking that they can cause this for
eign opposition to be withdrawn and can
raise these embargoes upon the cattle trade
of the United States if only this one-tenth
dffferential duty on sugar from bounty
paying countries shall be repealed. Such
would not be the case. No such relations
would be restored by the repeal of this
provision. But the attempt to repeal it
would have very different effect. The in
PRODUCTION of the question in Congress
could not fail to reopen the entire tariff
question, to precipitate a tariff debate, to
unsettle the business of the country, which
is only just beginning to reach a normal
basis, and to destroy any beneficial results
from what it had been hoped was to be
an adjustment Of the tariff situation for
at least two years. u
The Republican Position.
This, in brief, is the republican position
he cd