The herald., 1897-04-17
WANTS OF
WOOL MEN
Decide Action of Western
Senators
THE SCHEDULES DON'T SUIT
BECAUSE IMPORTERS DODGE
PAYMENT
Amendments Have Been Prepared,
and Their Acceptance Will Be
Insisted Upon
BECAUSE IMPORTERS DODGE
PAYMENT
Associated Press Special Wire.

Associated Press Special Wire.
WASHINGTON, April 16.-Western
senators, after several conferences, have
reached an agreement to stand together
for important changes in the wool sched-
ule of the Dingley bill. The senators
most prominently identified with the
movement are Mantle, Carter, Shoup,
Warren and Burrows. They have not
only agreed upon line of amendments,
but have decided to insist on their in
clusion in the bill The meetings have
also been attended by many prominent
wool growers The proposed amend
ments are directed mainly to closing the
many loopnoies Tor evasion and fraud
Dingley law, and were also found in the
Mckinley law. An amendment was
agreed upon providing that an addition
al duty of cents per pound should be
levied upon skirted woods, as imported
in 1890 and prior to that time. The prin-
cipal change to be proposed is upon wool
and cameps hair of the third class. The
Dingley bill proposes an ad valorem
duty of 32 and So per cent respectively
upon woods of this class, valued under
and over 13 cents per pound. 1t is pro-
posed now to strike out the Dingley bill
clauses relating to third-class woods and
to insert instead the following:
On wools of third class and camers
hair of the third class, the value of which
shall be cents or less per pound on the
wool markets of the United States, the
duty shall be cents per pound, and on
all the wool and hair OF this class, the
value of which shall exceed cents per
pound In the general markets of the
United States. there shall be an addition
al duty of one-half of cent per pound
for each increase of 1 cent per pound In
the value thereof.
1t is claimed for this latter amendment,
which Is the most important of all the
amendments proposed, that It will large
ly prevent the frauds which II is alleged
were perpetrated on the ad valorem du-
ties under the Mckinley law, by reason
of which, it is asserted, hundreds of
millions of pounds Of wool used in the
manufacture of clothing, which proper
ly belonged in the first-class goods, were
imported at third-class rates, on the
representation that they were to be used
in making carpets The clause in the
proposed amendment relating to third
class woods, designating the general mar
kets of the United States as fixing the
value of imported woods. is regarded as
very important. as if the senate amend
ment is adopted. 1t will destroy the op-
portunity for undervaluation which now
exists.
Senator Mantle. who introduced the
memorial of the National Wool Growers
association in the senate, says that the
amendment does not nearly cover the de-
mand made by the association, but, in
his opinion, will be vast improvement
on the bill as 1t passed the house. II
will remain with the western senator's,
he says, to say whether or not the pro-
posed amendments shall become a part
Of the new tariff law. or whether the de-
mands Of the wool manufacturers, as
applied to wool, shall outweigh those Of
the wool growers themselves.
CABINET MEETING
WASHINGTON, April 16.-The cabi-
net meeting lasted an hour and a half
today but was devoted entirely to the
consideration of routine business.
SENATE COMMITTEES
WASHINGTON, April 16.-The Re-
publican committee on committees of
the senate today agreed unanimously
to accept, SO far as 1t Is empowered to
do so, the proposition made by the Dem
ocrats for the organization of the SEN
ate committees. Accordingly a caucus
will be held Monday morning. The
proposition which the committee has
agreed to accept provides that the Re-
publicans shall fill all the committee
places which were filled by Republican
senators during the last congress, in
cluding the chairmanshir vacated by
Republicans. and that hey shall be
given one additional ace on the ap-
preparation commit ee vacated by a
Democrat, and that the membership
Of postoffice and postroads shall be in
creased from to 10 in order to give the
Democrats an additional place on that
committee. This arrangement will re-
suit In leaving the Republican senators
at the head of all the important commit
tees. but majority of the Membership
of many of them will be eanti-Republican
There are indications that the commit
tee recommendations will not be received
with favor by all the Republican SEN
ators.
THE SEALING QUESTION
WASHINGTON, April 16-The presi-
dent has decided to appoint another ex-
pert commission to act in conjunction
with one already selected by Great Brit
ain to visit Bering sea this summer and
to study the conditions surrounding seal
life. The British government has named
the same commissioners 1t employed in
this capacity last year, namely Prof.
Thompson and Gerald B. Hamilton. Our
commissioners were President Jordan of
Stanford university, Prof Stegneger and
Prof. Lucas. Whether the same experts
Will be appointed will be determined
an the course of few days. 1t is said
that the results of last years work of
the experts was an agreement upon some
peints. but not upon ak Among the