The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-07-07
DEBATE ENDS TODAY
->-
SENATOR'S FINALLY REACH AN
AGREEMENT ON THE TARIFF BILL.
%-
Final Vote on the Measure VIII BE
Taken Before Adjournment This
Afternoon or Tonight.
TWO WEEKS FOR CONFERENCE
NO PROSPECT OF THE BILL. BECOM-
ING LAW BEFORE JULY 20.
Allison Withdrayvs Beet-Sugar Boun-
ty Proposition and Antitrust
Amendments Suffer Defeat.
Special to the indianapolis Journal.


WASHINGTON, July 6.-The whole story
| of the tariff bill in the Senate to-day can
| be compressed into the simple statement
| that a decision was reached late this after
noon to vote on the bill before adjourn
ment tomorrow There were fears that
| the discussion might be prolonged days
even weeks, the Senate having worked itself
up into very cross and disagreeable tenn
| per but the sharp corners were all turned
| and now it is a positive certainty that
| some time within the afternoon or evening
the Senate will have signifed its approval
| of the bill and passed it over to the House
| for Endorsement. The bill will leave the
| Senate tomorrow night and will reach the
| House Thursday, where it will be referred
| at once to a conference committee How
| long it will remain in conference is a mat
| ter of speculation, but it is hardly probable
that final vote can be had on the bill in
both branches of Congress before the 18th
or 18th, and then Congress will have to re-
main in session day two until the
President can examine the bill and affix
his signature
| The session of the Senate tomorrow will
| be taken up. after the hour OF 1 o'clock,
| in f1ve-minute speeches on such stray
amendments as may be offered and on the
| bill in general. No hour has been fixed for
a vote and one may be taken in the middle
| of the afternoon or perhaps not until mid
| night, just as the spirit seizes the senator's
| When the Senate has the attention of the
| galleries 1t sometimes insists on holding it
| for a long time. An ur and half will be
| taken in reading the entire bill, as required
by law ***
The general belief is that the measure
as it finally comes from Congress will very
closely resemble the Dingley bill as it was
reported by the ways and means committee
and passed by the House. The Senate has
already worked back very nearly to the
House bill, and retreat for TIE rest of the
way will not be a serious ordeal or difficult
Journey The spirit of the Senate is sur
| render and compromise and the spirit of
the House is an obstinate determination to
compel the Senate to eat DIRT 1t will not
be insisted that the latter performance be
enacted with unnecessary scenes of humil-
iation, but the result is fairly certain
AS a rule Republicans are very well salts
fled with the new tariff bill. Its main
features are now very perceivable, and it is
safe for them to form an estimate as to the
results. The new law will be a very great
Improvement in many respects on the Nc
kinley bill of $780, and will have fewer
inequalities than characterized that much
criticised measure. The management of the
bill has been distinguished by very good
generalship, with one or two conspicuous
exceptions. Now that the end is coming
into view, nine Republicans out of ten are
gratifed that it is the House bill instead
of the Senate bill, which will be adopted
and enacted into law. Mr. DingIey thinks
the bill will be in conference about two
weeks, and in this opinion Mr. Payne, vice
chairman of the ways and means commit
tee, agrees. Senator German says that in
his opinion the measure will be in confer
ence not less than two weeks and possibly
three. He says that neither the House bill
nor the Senate bill will produce sufficient
revenue to meet requirements and that it
will be the duty of the conference commit
tees to reconstruct both and frame a meas
ure to meet the demands. This will take
time and careful investigation as to the
effect of the modified provisions which Will
be framed by the conferees.
AS shown by the action of the finance
committee in the Senate to-day, the Repub-
lcan caucus this morning decided to not
again present a beet sugar bounty amend
ment to the tariff, and Senator Allison was
authorized to move to have the amendment
offered by Senator Allen tabled There was
also general agreement to take up the
Thurston beet sugar bounty bill as an inde-
pendent measure the first thing after Con-
gress meets next December The discussion
in the caucus bore entirely on the question
of the policy of postponing the bounty mat
ter and there We're several brief speeches
made bearing on both sides of the sugges-
tion that it should go over. Senator AIdrich
was the first to make a general outline of
the course which was ultimately agreed on.
including the postponement of the entire
question until next December. The motion
to this effect was, however made by SEN
ator Morrill, after motion made by SEN
ator Davis to stand by the finance commit
tee in Withdrawing the amendment had car
ried.
Senator Foraker suggested that the en-
tire question should be left open, leaving
each Republican senator to cast his vote in
the Senate as he should choose, independent
of party affiliations. He said, in making
this suggestion, that an effort to lay the
amendment on the table might lead to fill
clustering tactics and cause more delay than
would the opposite course of permitting the
amendment to go to vote on it's merits
This view was antagonized however. by
other senator's, who said the Democrats
would hold the bill as long as there was
any possibility of the amendment passing.
and that the only way of insuring a speedy
vote for the party as whole to sup
port a motion to table. This opinion was so
general that Mr.. Foraker did not press his
motion, and no vote was taken upon it.
Senator'S Thurston. Perkins Gear and
other Western senators held out quite stiffiy
for the incorporation of the bounty pro-
vision in the tariff BILL but when the de-
cision was made against them they acqui-
esced in it gracefully.
It is learned that Secretary Gage has
written a letter to Senator Allison suggest
ing the advsability of putting a tax of /
cent a pound on all refined sugar made
from stock imported prior TO the passage
of the pending tariff BILL 1t is the opinion
of the customs officials Of the treasury that
this duty would increase the government
revenues by several millions, and that the
hardship would fall Oh those best able to