The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1897-07-19
This WEEK WILL SEE END
Tariff Bill Will Be Law Before
Another Sunday,
THAT'S THE WAY 1T LOCKS IN
WASHINGTON NOW.

|
tion in the Senate-Fight May Be
| Made Against Report.
tonight are that the tariff bill as agreed
to by the Republican conferees yesterday,
probably will have passed both houses of
Congress and be law at the end of the
present week.
Delays and complications, now unan-
ticipated, might somewhat prolong the
final struggle. The Republican conferees
have been working hard all day, consult
ing and arranging the details of the re-
port which they now believe they will be
able to submit to their Democratic col
leagues tomorrow morning. The bulk of
this work has fallen upon the shoulders
of Senator Allison and Representative
Dingley, who are preparing the state
ments Of the effect of the changes made
by the conferees which will be submitted
to their respective houses.
| They have had small army Of clerks
at work throughout the day in the room
of the Senate committee on finance, pre-
| BoIlAS Uu0 Ulll LUZ Uuc pIlutCI. Ii uulo
task can be accomplished tonight SO that
the printed bill can be laid before the
| Democrats tomorrow afternoon it is not
believed that there will be any dis
| position on the part of the Democratic
members Of the conference to delay the
bill in full committee, but the Democrats
have had no meeting to determine their
course of action on this point.
Mr.. Dingley expressed the opinion to-
night that an hour would be sufficient
time in which to explain the changes
made by the conferees to the minority
colleagues on the committee. One or two
of the Democrats are tonight inclined to
insist upon a day for deliberation on
changes, but they, of course, realize they
are helpless if the majority desire to re-
port the billover their protest, and mas
much as the Republican leaders of the
House decided tonight to give two full
days for the discussion of the report in
the House they probably will acquiesce in
the decision of the majority to make the
report tomorrow. All along the Republi-
can leaders have been disposed to allow
but one day. for debate in the House, and
while they still believe one day would be
| sufficient, after discussing the question to-
night they decided, more to disarm the
points the minority would be sure to
make and the general criticism that the
report was to be dragooned through the
House, to give two full days for debate.
The report must, of course, be acted upon
by the House before it is considered in
the Senate. The committee on rules will
will meet tomorrow morning and prepare
rule which will bring a vote on the re-
port before adjournment on Tuesday.
| The rule will be presented and adopted as
soon as the conferees make their report,
probably soon after noon tomorrow The
debate will Immediately follow.
| The South Carolina dispensary bill will
/ be used to consume time until the report
| is brought in. 1t is not believed that a
single Republican vote in the House will
be recorded against the report.
The programme in the Senate is much
more indefinite on account of the wide
| latitude allowed for debate, and the alb
sence of any parliamentary method of
| bringing the report to a vote. The Demo-
cratic Senators, it is safe to presume from
| their talk today, intend to assail the com
| promise on sugar to which the conferees
agreed, and to make pretty stiff fight
against the restoration to the dutiable
list of cotton bagging, cotton ties, bur-
ioI
aid of the Populists and one or two Re-
publicans, in placing on the free list.
They also will make strong opposition to
the restoration of white pine to the House
rate of 50 per thousand Some of the
Democratic Senators today discussed the
possibility of defeating the report in the
| Senate on the presumption that they
might be able to secure as many votes
against the report as they did to place
these articles on the free list. They be-
lieve vote will be reached within three
days in the Senate.
| A question has arisen as to the parlia-
mentary practice. 1t is the established
procedure to consider conference reports
as an entirety, SO that no vote can be
taken on separate feature of the report.
This practice becomes important in view
of the desire among those opposing the
bill to secure separate vote on sugar,
lumber, cotton, ties, cotton bagging and
other items which have aroused ex-
ceptional interest,
Some of the opponents of the bill in the
Senate hold that motion to recommit
with instructions as to separate items,
would be in order before the vote is taken
on accepting the report as an entirety,
but the best parliamentarians in both
branches say that the practice is well
settled and that the vote must be taken
first on the adoption or rejection of the
report. If rejected then any other motion
would be in order.
1t is learned today that there were some
changes of verbiage in the sugar schedule
not noted in the Associated Press report
last night and that the provision for the
ratification of reciprocity treaties by the