The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-05-25
FIGHT ON THE RICE TARIFF.
PLANTERS SATISFIED THEIR DE-
MANDS WILL BE GRANTED.

PLANTERS SATISFIED THEIR DE-
MANDS WILL BE GRANTED.
Col. Screven and MIR. LealSen Given
strong Assurance of the RestOra-
tion of the DingIey Bill Rates.
The Importers Followed Upon
Their Heels, However, and IL May
De Necessary For the Representa-
lives of the Southern Rice Inter
ests to visit Washington Again.
Importers Made "A Merry OGer OF
Compromise.
Col. John Screven and William R. Leak
en-. Esq, returned to Savannah yesterday,
after spenuIng nearly two weeks in Wash
ington in the effort to have the rates of
the Dingley bill on rice restored by the
finance committee of the Senate. the rates
having been reduced by that committee
to the same figures as the rice duties of the
Wilson bill.
Col Screven and Mr.. Leaken return to
Savannah with good reason to hope that
their mission has been successful, having
received assurances to this effect from au-
thoritative sources. The representatives
of the rice importers followed upon their
heels in Washington, however, and are
now installed in the capitai for the purpose
of prevailing upon the committees of the
Senate and House to allow the rates Of the
Wilson bill to stand. The mill represen-
tatives have made a proposition to the
representatives of the rice industry, but
as the proposition is of very one-sded
nature and would practically destroy all
advantage which the rice growers hope to
gain from the increased rates there is not
much Likelihood of its being accepted.
A comparison of rates of the House and
Senate bills is as follows:
House Bill. Senate Bill.
Rice per pound. per pound.
Cleaned ...................2c 11ac
Uncleaned ..............lAc S-lOc
Paddy .................... Ac Ac
Rice -four, rice meal and
broken rice which will
pass through a wire
sieve known CONNER
cially as No. b.. kc &c
The rates" said Mr.. Leaken, when
seen by a Morning News reporter, 'are
entirely out Of parity with each other.
The rate of q of a cent on paddy" or
rough rice, Is totally out of proportion
grade, or uncleaned rice which has had
the outer hull removed, but still has the
inner cuticle on, being known as unclean-
ed rice. The trouble between the import
ers and the producers is not owed the pad
dy or the cleaned rice, but on the un.
cleaned rice. The importers of Java, ia,
panese and Chinese rice can bring into
this country rice which Is really clean,
but with some chaf or flour mixed with
1t, passing ii as uncleaned. No real MILL
ing process is required, but a simple pro-
cess for removing the -four and chaff at a
cost of about 1-16 of a cent a pound is
all that is necessary to prepare it for the
market The rice Is then put on the mar
ket in competition with Georgia and Car
DINA rice, and is often sold as such"
LAS TO our work." said Mr.. Leaken, 'the
Georgia delegation arrived May 10. We
made our headquarters at the Hotel Raj
eigh, and went to work at once, interest
esting our senators first. We explained
our position to Senators Bacon and Clay
and received every encouragement from
them. While they expressed no opinion
on the tariff bill as a whole, they were
both anxious to aid the rice industry. Col.
William Elliott of Beaufort united with
the South Carolina delegation, whose
chairman was Maj. Theodore Barker of
Charleston, in bringing the matter to the
attention of their representatives In the
same manner. The Louisiana delegation
consisted of rice growers, millers and bro
kers, and was a very strong one. 1t was
headed by S. A. Knapp, Esq, of Lake
Charles, La. The three delegations met
every day in our rooms and parceled out
the work, enlisting the services of repub-
lican senator's, while at the same time
not neglecting the democratic members.
A printed statement, giving our position
in concise and interesting manner, was
placed before each member of the House
l..4r-
work the result was found to be that the
proposed increase in rates was not opposed
by any one approached, and from Connec-
ticut to Louisiana the delegation had Sc
cured one or both of the senator's from
each state, exclusive of Delaware and Vir-
ginia, while good work had been done in
the west. So thorough was our work that
the secretary of the American Protective
League of New York, Mr.. Wakeman, who
had come 10 our assistance, at the request
of the Georgia delegation, through Mai.
J. +. Hanson, stated that he had never
seen such complete organization. and that
he was sure the delegation would get what
Its members wanted. Finally, pressure
was brought 10 bear upon the sub-commit-
tee of the Senate finance committee having
the bin in charge, Messrs. Allison, AID
rich and Plat of Connecticut and the del
egation was assured by the majority of
this subcommittee that the change desir-
ed would be made"
Just as Mr.. Leaken was about to return
home Col. Screven having already pre-
coded him, he was called upon by Mr..
Gustave jain of New York a rice miller.
who had arrived IN Washington with
DINER supporters for the purpose Of I'M
doing the work of the rice delegation
from the south. Mr. Knapp was also call
ed upon. Mr.. jain proposed a compro-
mise TO them between the importers and
producers, the importers agreeing not to
object to the proposed rates Of the Ding
ley bill, provided the southern interests
would accept a new definition of unclean-
cd rice. to the effect that uncleaned rice
should be interpreted to mean rice having
both the outer hull and the inner cuticle
removed, but still in the meal. This prop
osition Is now being considered by the rice
growers, but there Is hardly any doubt
but that II will be rejected, as IL would
enable the importers 40 bring In pracu-
cally clean rice at the duty on uncleaned.
The work of the importers may make II