Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1897-07-01
PLAIN TALK IS-GIvEN.,
Republicans Subject 20 the Wishes OF
Democrats and Populists = sugar
Trust Charges Subjected to sharp
scrutiny-D disappointed Populists.
No Unnecessary Delay.

Special Washington correspondence:
The progress OF even,s In Washington
this week has been more rapid than
could have been expected In view of
the fact. that the Republicans are abb
solutely subject to the wishes of the
Democrats and Popnlists as to the
progress made with vhe tariff. This Is
due, Of course, to the fact that the Re
publicans are In minority in that
body. People have grown extremely
anxious about legislation and have
been firing shots at their members of
Congress by the thousand, and these
little evidences of attention by the
dear public have set people saying
some plain things. so the public Is
liable to get some information which
it would otherwise not have obtained.
There has been some especially frank
talk in the Senate, and some OF the
people who are seeking TO make polit-
ical capital by throwing dust with ref
erence to the pending tariff bill bave
suddenly discovered that there are two
sides to almost any story. TWO or
three Democratic leaders seem to have
reached the conclusion that they could
once more fool the people, and that
their most convenient way to do 1t
would be to charge that the sugar
schedules of the tariff bill as agreed
upon by the Republican caucus were
favorable to the suga: trust. So they
proceeded upon the stop thief" plan
to make all sorts Of malicious charges
Of this kind, taking advantage OF The
fact that the Republicans in the Sen
ate have been refusing to discuss any
features Of the bill not absolutely nee
essary to be explained, simply for the
purpose Of gaining time and getting
the bill through as promptly as posi-
ble The gentlemen have found, how
ever, that there is a limit to the en-
durance of the public who are being
imposed upon with this sort OF false
hood. and the newspapers of the coun-
try have suddenly revived the fact that
the very men who are now shouting
sugar trust with reference to the pend
ing tariff bill are the ones under whose
guidance the ''perlidy AMI dishonor'
bill of 1894 was framed and its sugar
schedule so shaped as to create the
greatest scandal that has been known
tention is called to the fact that the
three men, Senators Vest, Jones and
Mills. whose mouthings about an in
crease in prices Of sugar trust stock as
a result of the pending tariff bill have
been the feature Of The week, are the
very men who framed the sugar sched-
ules of the Wilson bill under which
sugar trust stocks advanced GO per
cent, while the advance during the en-
tire consideration Of tie present bill is
only per cent. and this mere incl
dent of the general advance which has
been strongly marked meantime in all
stocks. That the three men whose
manipulations in the schedules OF the
Wilson bill caused an advance of &c
per cent. in the price Of sugar stocks
should now be screaming like madmen
because sugar stocks have increased q
per cent. during the considera ton of
the present bill would be unaccOunta-
BILE but for the fact that they are ap-
parently doing it to not only make
political capital against the Republ-
cans. but at the same time conceal as
far as possible, their own recor1 in
this very line.
Getting Back to House Schedules.
An Interesting feature of the weeks
developments has been the tendency on
the part of the Senate Republicans to
return to the schedules Of the Dingley
bill. Nearly all the important sched-
ules of the House bill have been re-
stored as they have been reached one
by one. until the only important one
now remaining is that relating to wool.
And there is every reason to believe
that when this is reached the House
rates on first and second class woods
will be restored. The sugar schedule
has been brought down to within a
mere trifie of the HoiSe rates. and by
many it is believed that the absolute
lines of the House ill in this regard
will be restored before the bill gets
upon the statute books.
On one other subject there has been
some plain talk and some which the
people ought generally to hear. That
is with reference to the length of time
Congress has occupied upon the tariff
bill. The people generally have grown
very impatient over the apparent de-
lay in obtaining final action upon the
pending tariff bill. This impatience is
being encouraged bv Democrats, Pop
ocrats, silverites and everybody else
who Is opposed secretly, or openly, to
President Mckinley and the Republi-
can party. The fact is, however, that
no Congress since the first one ever
made the progress which this one has
made. especially In view of the cir
cumstances. There is every reason to
believe that the bill will be upon the
statute books early in July. Never
since George Washington's first term
has President been permitted to at
tach his signature to new tariff law
within as brief a space Of time as will
William Mckinley. And when 1t is
considered that the Senate is not con-
trolled by the Republican party, but
that there Is a clear majority against
the party In that body, the speed which
has been made in the consideration
and progress of the bill is not paral-
lefed In the history Of any administra-
ton.
Disappointment follows disappoint-
ment among the Popocratic leaders.
II. m t.x&~ a.