Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1897-07-06
FIFTY-FIFTH CONGRESS.
WASHINGTON, July 6.
SENATE.


ton of his vote yesterday for Mr.. Mills's
amendment to impose tax Of five per
cent. on all manufactured products. he
had, he said, given the amendment his
vote without due elaboration. If the
imposition of such tax could be con-
fined to the sugar trust and other gi-
gantic concerns existing in open viola
ton of the law it would, upon medita-
ton, commend itself to his judgment,
but as 1t would touch every village and
hamlet in the land and lay its hand
upon the most humble he frankly
avowed his regret for the vote cast yes
terday.
Mr.. Bate then took the floor and de.
livered a set speech against the bill.
He announced himself an advocate OF
"fair trade and free silver" and said
the bill was designed to fool the farmer
by giving him fictitious protection on
his products while real protection was
given to all the articles consumed by
him. He criticised the steady exten-
sion OF the protective policy, saying the
slogan of the day was "a tariff for rob.
berry," instead of "a tariff for revenue"
1t arrayed US against the world, max
ing the United States the Ishmael
among nations.
Mr.. Pettus then offered an amend
ment declaring unlawful the importa.
ton of sugar by trust or combination
operating in restraint of trade for the
purpose Of advancing the price of su
gar. The amendment also provides for
the forfeiture of sugar so imported and
directs the attorney general to enforce
the forfeiture and to prosecute trusts,
combinations, etc. The Senator spoke
at length in support of the amend
ment, referring to the gradual absorb.
ton of wealth in the hands of vast
concerns. He denounced az q public
enemy the man who gathered into his
control an article of prime necessity,
for he perpetrated a wrong on all the
people for his personal gain and salts
faction.
Mr.. Chiffon followed with an or
raignment of trusts, arguing that they
were fostered by the tariff. He would
vote for the amendments of Mr. Nelson
and Mr.. Pettus, but he felt that neither
of them would strike quite deep
enough. If on every barrel of sugar,
said be. there were branded the mum
Der of business rivals crushed by the
sugar trust, the number of labcrers
thrown out of employment, the number
of dollars contributed to political cam
paign funds, few American citizens
would welcome cheaper sugar at the
price of so much corruption and dis
grace. Trusts were beyond the reach
! of States. They seemed to be beyond
the power of the federal government.
Mr.. Morgan followed with another
speech against trusts. He favored the
amendment of his colleague MIR. Pet
tus) but said he would attach to it an-
other and more far reaching proposition.
He thought seizure and con6scatiop
provided for by Mr.. Pettus's amend
ment might, as in the case of the sugar
trust, enable the trust to put up the
price of sugar pending action in the
courts and he suggested modification
which would provide for the immediate
sale of articles seized. Sugar was in
many respects the leading feature OF
this bill, because it touched every
human being in the country. 1t would
require good deal of hardihood for a
Senator to support schedule upon
which so much obloquy had been cast.
The pending bill would prove an in
cubator of trusts and the republicans OF
the Senate could not afford to ignore
the issue. If these amendments were
adopted, said he, the trusts would be
trumped. Then if the courts did not
execute the law he should have to re.
greet in the future, as it bad in the past,
the fact that the courts had not the
sense of justice to do their duty. II the
anti. rust feature OF the act of 1894
had been enforced the sugar trust
would have been stopped. Now that
law had to be dug up in de-
bate to ascertain its existence. Mr..
Gallery said what Congress should do
was to destroy the proof of the trust,
which was grounded in the differential
profit of the tariff bill.
MIR. Pettus said he did not expect
With his amendment to destroy the
trust. 1t would only build fence
across one of it's roads. The vote was
then taken on the Pettus amendment
and it was lost, &c to SO.
Messrs. Teller and Heitfeld voted
with the democrats in favor of the
amendment and Messrs McEnery and
Stewart against it.
Mr.. Butler said trusts were the
natural outgrowth of existing condi.
lions and he would welcome a great
combination of the farmers of the
country if present conditions were to
continue.
The gold standard and the transpor-
tation monopolies he argued were re-
sponsible for trusts and trusts would
continue until the real evils were eradi.
Gated.
Mr.. Stewart said he believed now as
be did in 1894 that these antitrust
amendments would never be effective
except where they ought not to be Of
fectiye-that is against labor combina-
tions. The Chiffon amendment was
also last, % to 81.
STOPPED THE PRocEEDINes-Inspe
Hollinberger, of Washington, received dis
patch from Charlottesville yesterday signed
81. b. Wersham," requesting that all incom
ing southern trains be watched and that "R.
q. Wersham. smooth faced bow of eighteen