The evening times., 1897-04-01
TARIFF BILL IN THE SENATE
Debate Will Be More Specific
Than i'm the House.
OTHER MATTERS In THE WAY
Consideration of the Bill Will Be
Deliberate and ProIonged-Dem-
ocrats Believe 1t Failure as
Revenue Producer-NO Great Im-
pediment Expected.

Now that the Dingley tariff bill has
passed the House, the great question is
as to the fate that will bcfall ii in the
Senate Ii is well understood that it will
be greatly delayed in consideration by the
freedom of debate permitted under the
rules of the body, and subjected to exten-
sive amendments both in committee and
in the Senate.
The Senate Committee ON Finance, or
rather the Republican members of that
committee, have been holding conferences
on the bill for the last fortnight. and are
believed to have already covered con-
siderable portion of the bill The measure
will also be subjected 20 adequate dis
cussion in the Senate, which has been
practically denied in the House.
The debate in the so-called popular
branch of Congress has been wholly gen.
eral in its character. In the House there
was no opportunity to consider specific
amendments calculated to cure irregu-
larities in the bill, or TO test features of
the measure conceded TO be local in their
character. In the Senate, after the bill
is presented by the committee, there will
be extensive debate, and afterward OPP
portunity will be offered for the Senate to
pass upon any and all amendments.
1t i s unlikely that the bill will be laid
before the Senate by the committee before
April 10, if indeed il is presented before
May l. Other matters have the right OF
way in the Senate, notably the arbitration
treaty, which is still undisposed of and
promises to consume great deal of time.
Therefore, it is certain that the time limit
fixed by the House as To when the provis-
ions of the bill shall become operative will
yearrivedseveralweeks perhaps months,
before the bill can become law.
II the expectations of the Republican
managers are correct, the conditional tariff
imposed upon importations subsequent to
April l will result i n great falling off
of iInportations, and subsequent increase
in the revenues from the bill. But even
with this attempt to pass retroactive legis-
lation, tits freely predicted that the Dingiey
bill, if IL becomes a law, in anything like
it's present form, will be a failure as
revenue-producer On the Democratic side
of the Senate the prophesy is freely made
that it will prove far less effective in
this regard than was the Mckinley bill.
IL is becoming more apparent that the
Senate is not likely to impede the progress
of the bill as much as has been anticipated.
Undoubtedly the course taken blythe Popu-
lists and silver Republicans in the House
yesterday will be folio wed by a considerable
number of the members of those parties in
the Senate.
If several of the Senators who profess
the silver faith refrain from voting this
IL e.. In De-
publicans to pass their bill with ease. 1t
is still an open question as TO whether the
silver men above mentioned will confine
their silence to the final passage of the bill.
II they vote upon amendments and unite
with the Democrats in endeayoring TO alter
the provisions of the bill they will greatly
embarrass the majority. But If they carry
out their present policy logically they will
make no effort to amend the measure; for
their position, broadly stated, is that the
Republicans should be left free to make
the high-tariff experiment. The silver men
are all united in the conviction that the
experiment will be CHASTITY failure
The length of the extraordinary session
depends very largely on the extent to
which Senators will desire to debate the
bill. There is no likelihood that any at
tempt will be made to filibuster. The de
liberation with which the Senate will pro-
ceed to consider the bill may be criticised
in some quarters as obstruction, but as the
bill will reeeive7ts only real consideration
in the Senate, this charge will fan of its
own weight.
The best estimate which can be made at
this time as to the duration of the special
sessions is that the Senate will take at least
as long a time to dispose OF the bin as
the House has taken. 1t is claimed by
Republican leaders OF the House that they
have passed the bill in two weeks; but as
a matter of fact, they have had it under
consideration, In committee and out, since
just after Christmas. Presumably the
Senate will not be content with q shorter