The San Francisco call., 1897-06-29
Vigorous Protests of Demo-
cratic Senators Are of
No Avail.
Smith Declares That On'y the Big
American Beef Trust Will
Be Protected.

the last twenty-five years, but the Senate
FINANCE Committee had reported an
am endment putting them or the dutiable
list at rate of IL cents pound, with
provision for a drawback on exported
leather made from imported hides.
modification of that amendment was
offered to-day by Allison, making the duty
20 per cent ad valorem and emitting the
drawback provision, which was discussed
for three hours and finally agreed to-37
10 20 Various paragraphs relating to
leather cloves were agreed to, and sub
stitute Tor the paragraph on live cattle
was adopted.
The bill was then taken up at para
graph 100 (stained or painted glass win
dows and mirrors). The committee
amendments were adopted, being mere
verbal changes in the House bill.
A new paragraph Q7S1z) was inserted,
making the duty on hooks and eyes 81
cents pound and 10 per cent ad valorem.
Paragraphs 179 and $50 dead ore and
lead pipe in pigs) went over temporarily.
The leather paragraphs were then taken
up and Allison modified the committee
amendment by making it read: Hides OF
cattle, raw or uncured, whether dry, sated
or picked, 20 per cent ad valorem." The
provision as to draw backs was struck out.
Smith stated that at the present rate on
hides, IL cents pound, the proposed ad
valorem rate would be higher than the
pound rate. He asked Allison whether a
duty was to put on goat skins, and when
the question was answered in the negative
he said it was hardly fair to allow in free
of duty goat skins that did come in COM
petition with an American product and put
q tax of 81 on saIted hides that did not.
The proposed duty on hides, he said,
was unnecessary and unfair, as it did not
protect any body except the great Amer
lean beef trust.
Smith made a diversion to the Cuban
Notwithstanding to the belligerency
resolution passed by a twO-thirds vote of
the Senate-saying it had been ''sent over
to the catafalque to be laid away in a tomb
by the Republ lcan House at the dictation
of the Republican Speaker and with the
intimation that it was done at the dicta-
tlon OF Republican President"
Vest spoke in favor of Tree hides al
though he represented a large Cattle
producing Slate of the Union. In that
connection Vest made use of the protest
of Blaine 10 Mckinley, when the Mex n
ley bill was under consideration, against
taking hides off the free list. He read
quotations from the report OF a Senate
committee on the meat question five
years to show that the removal of the
tariff on hides in 1873 did not cause de-
line in the price OF American hides be-
cause 1t was fifteen years afteFward W hen
the decline began. He said the exports
If leather and leather manu- .actures had
incre ased since 1872 when hides were put
on the free list, from So, 600, 600 TO $96 00O,-
OC0 EnFeiOn hides n III q
into compe tilion with American hides.
why not2" Allen asked.
because they prod uce a different sort
of leather" Vest replied, land are used
for different purposes. A duty on hides
would not increase by a single cent the
price paid for cattle in the West"
"Does the Senator claim" Gear asked.
that the Big Four absolutely control the
price of cattle ?"
81 do" Vest replied, "and you will find
that the price OF hides is one thing when
Armour, Swift and Hammond d Co. un-
dertake to sell their hides and very differ
ent when they come to buy cattle
Hoar made a long statemen Mt pointing
out the difficulty OF controlling operations
of great trusts or aEgregations of capital
He said the judiciary Com miItee was Civ
ing serious consideration TO the question
and he hoped to find. constitutional
method 10 uproot the great evil. 'If this
on. 'does nothing illegal that lowers or
raises prices, but simply crushes out COM
petltors by economies in doing its busi-
ness or by its great wealth, l don't see
exactly how to hit 1T. a State may do so
by limiting the amount of capital which
corporation may have"
Lindsay suggested Sherman's remedy
of throwing the American market omen
TO foreigners whenever a trade is con-
trolled by trusts.
The difficulty about that is" Hoar re-
piled, "that it is desirable to have reyenue
from refined sugar, and it is also desira ale
that the business OF refining sugar shall
be prosecuted in this country; otherwise
we should be at the mercy OF the foreign
which often is much worse trust than
the domestic sugar trust. Because a fox
or a jackal preYs upon our gardens or
crops We ought not TO turn the gardens
and crops over to a, foreign wolf or lion.
In replying Allen declaimed against
trusts. The country. he said, was rotten
with them. H@ndreds OF trusts to-day
controlled all the staple products of The
country, and Congress, the executive and
the judiciary were powerless to protect the
people.
Alter three hours discussion the COM
mittee amendment making the duty on
hides 70 per cent ad yaloSem was agreed
to-37 to 20.
Butter and Allen (Pop.). Heitfed and
Rawlins CD and Teller (Sil.) voted with
the Repu Dlicans.
Allison offered substitute for the COM
mlttee amendment 10 paragraph 427 re-
lating to band or betting leather.
White spoke of it as "mysteriously con-
cocted" and inquired whether it increased
rates as provided In the Senate amend
ment.
Allison admitted that it did iucrea Sc
rates somewhat. The substitute vas
agreed to.
An amendment to paragraph 424 was
agreed TO. 1t imposes an additional duty
OF 81 per dozen on gloves when lined. %
cents per dozen on pique or prix seam
gloves and on gloves stitched or en-
broidered, with reduction OF % cents a
dozen when there are no wrist-fasteners
Paragraph 435, relating TO "gIove
trunks" was agreed to as in the House
bill. THIS closed the leather paragraphs.
Paragraph DO relating to cattle, was
then taken up and a substitute agreed to
making the duty on cattle less than one
year old 81 a head all other cattle, if
valued at not more that $14 So so head :;
valued at more than $i4, 25 per cent ad
The facsimile III