The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-03-13

|
work of the Republican members of the
ways and means committee on the wool
| schedule has brought the wool growers
| and manufacturers to Washington in
/ full force They filed the lobby Of the
| Cochran hotel today, while the tariff
| makers were in conference in their up
| stairs room, and when the members
| emerged, each one of them was sur
| rounded by group of wool men, each
| endeavoring to impress upon his vic
! tim the urgent needs or his particular
| branch of the business. Chairman
| D1ngley was half an hour running the
gauntlet to the hotel door He listened
| with patience to every statement, but
! the results do not show that repre-
| sentatiVes Of special interests gain any
thing by coming to Washington in per-
| son.
After twenty-fOur hours Of work on
the second half of the wool schedule
that covering manufactures of wool
| the duties have been n4~de practically
a repetition of the rates OF the McKin-
ley bill. The Mckinley rates on raw
woods having been readopted, it was
considered the only logical arrangement
to adopt also the compensatory duties
on manufactures Of wool of the Nc
Kinley law, so this policy was followed.
There was an attempt made to
change the ad valorem rates on wooden
manufactures Of the Mckinley act to
| specific, but such great difficulties have
been encountered that the undertaking
| has been abandoned, for the time being
at any rate, and tonight the committee
had practically decided to accept the
wool schedule Of the Mckinley act A
committee Of experts devoted some
| time to the work of. resolving the ad
ValOrem factors of the wool schedule
to corresponding specific rates, but the
result Of their labOrs proved so unsatis-
factory to Chairman Dingley that the
scheme was rejected. It is possible
that the attempt will be renewed when
the bill is before the full ways and
means committee to change the ad va
loren features of this schedule to
equivalent specific rates. but the bill,
as it will be introduced into the house,
will contain the Mckinley wool sched-
ule without material changes except
the changes in the classification Of
woods which were made yesterday
The changes in classification were
| decided upon by the committee on salts
factory proof that several varieties Of
woods were being imported sinte the
United States in large quantities as
carpet woods, under the rates of class
3 and used for the manufacture Of
clothing. These woods, which include
China lambs, Bagdad, Egyptian MOroc-
co, Casa BranchO, and fine skin wools
or butchers woods, were therefore
changed from class 3 to class l, and
the necessary changes in the rates on
manufactures of these woods were
made.
Members Of the committee most ia
mlllar with the wool industry say that
these changes in classification will
prove very beneficial to the wool grow
erS OF the United States. Representa-
t1Ves Of the manufacturing interests
profess to be dissatisfied with the re
adoption of the Mckinley rates on
woods, basing their complaint on the
ground that prices Of woods are much
lower than they were when the Nc
Kinley law was enacted, but members
Of the committee think the point is
not we'll taken.
Chairman Dingley says that the bill
will be ready to be introduced in the
house Monday. The administrative
features have not yet been drafted
nor has the reciprocity scheme al
though the features of it are decided
upon. These may be presented as com
mlttee amendments after the bill gets
b6lOI6 the mousse. Inc 6dfCn6DWare
schedule is not yet perfected. The same
difficulty has been met with adjusting
rates on earthenware that were i'm
VolVed in wooden goods, the attempt
to carry into effect the Republican
policy of replacing ad valorem duties
with specific. 1t has been found al
most impossible to determine upon
standards by which specific rates can
be levied on China and pottery goods,
the factors Of decorations, weight and
processes of manufacture entering so
largely into the value of these goods
andsit is quite probable that they will
be placed under the Mckinley schedule
with some immaterial changes.
The reciprocity principle which will
be embodied in the bill will be that of
lower duties on certain lines of Ameri-
can goods The principal lines of goods
on which duties may be lowered by
reciprocity treaties will be sugar,
champagnes, silks, gloves, mineral wat
ers, chickle much of which is imported
for chewing gum and argyll or crude
tartar. which is one of the chief con-
stituents Of baking powders
The president will be empowered by
the bill to enter into treaties by which
the duties will be materially lowered
on importations of these goods from
other products There will be no re-
ciprocity which involves placing any
important classes of imports on the
free list nor any authority given the
executive to raise duties against i'm
ports from countries which refuse to
enter into reciprocity treaties.
The reduction of the duty on sugar
by reciprocity will be Il of a cent a
pound, so that sugar coming from
countries which have reciprocity treat
: les with the United States will be en-
tered at IL cents a pound. While the
! reduction seems small, difference of
1914 cents per 100 pounds is a mate
rial one to sugar importers.
Most of the goods in the list given
above where imported into the United
States come from Germany and France
[ and 1t is the expectation of the COM
: mittee that reciprocity on champagne,
silks and gloves will prove an induce
ment to these countries to abandon
their policy Of discrimination against
American beef and pork.
The hopes Of the new Canadian ad-
minfstration for closer reciprocal rela-
tons with the United States will be
dFfEHted by the Dingley bill. The lib
erafS party under Laurier's Leadership,
~ 10 nln I'll