Birmingham state herald., 1897-03-31
MORE BILLS POURING IN
The Total Introduced in the Sen-
 ate to Date Reaching
OVER FIFTEEN HUNDRED
Allen Again Has the FIoor-Aid for Sufferer Granted-House Still Wrangling with
 the Dingley Tariff Bill.

sion of the senate today lasted until D. m, and then the senate resumed, be- hind closed doors, the consideration of the arbitration treaty, spending two and a half hours in the discussion. To the 1,404 bills that had been introduced up to the close of Mondays session, there were enough added today to bring the whole number above the figure of 1,50O, the vast majority of them being pension bills
 The populist senator from Nebraska, MT. Allen, occupied more than an hour in an elaborate argument to prove that congress is mot possessed of the consti- tutional power to impose tariff duties on articles of daily consumption for the expressed and avowed purpose of in creasng the private fortunes of one class of citizens at the expense of the masses He characterized as preposterous the claim that a high tariff raised the price of farm products and was of vast bene- fit to the farmers. The resolution enl- bodying the doctrine which he had of fered yesterday was, at the close of his speech, referred to the committee on finance. Another menace to the tariff measure now pending in the house was contained in resolution of the board of sheep commissioners of Montana Cpresented by
 
 effect that unless the wool growers of the United States received the most ann ple protection the policy of protection could be no longer maintained.
 MT. Morgan offered a resolution re- Questing the president to inform the sem ate whether letters have been received by the present and former chief execu- tive of the United States from Maximo Gomez, the commanding general of the insurrectionary forces in Cuba, as pub Hch iG mn inc n furnish informa tion in relation to Cuban affairs.
 The letters having been read in full, the resolution and letters were ordered to be printed and laid on the table.
 The house amendments to the joint resolution passed yesterday by the sen ate, appropriating S250,0o0 to aid in pre- tecting life and property in the Missis- sippi floods, were concurred in by the senate; and the joint resolution was sent to the president
 Senator Foraker introduced in the sen- ate a modified form of the Patterson pooling bill which permits railroads un- der certain restrictions to pool in the matter of transportation of freights.
 Washington, March 30-The- last day of the debate on the amendments that have been made to the general treaty of arbitration concluded with The discus sion of this afternoon. Tomorrow after noon at o'clock the vote will be taken on the amendments that are pending up to that time, and the next morning the amended copy of the treaty, if 1t shall have been amended, will be laid before the senate. The discussion on these amendments will proceed until Thursday a o'clock, when the final vote on the amendments will be permit ted. When the final vote will be taken is matter that cannot now be deter mined. MT. Davis has pressed for an agreement, but up to this tfme has been unable to secure one,
 The discussion this afternoon was. as it has been for several days, on the Chil- ton amendment, which provides that every question proposed to be submitted to arbitration under the treaty shall first be submitted to the senate for its ap- proval or disapproval, ust as the original treaty is submitted. It looks very much as if the amendment would prevail.
 MT. Chiffon addressed the senate this afternoon on his amendment, and during the course of the discussion MT. Platt, of Connecticut, asked MT. Chiffon why his proposed amendment was better than that proposed by the committee.
 MT Chiffon asserted that it was better because it made the intent of the senate clearer and left the subject without any doubt in the minds of the American peo- pie.
 Senator Morgan made another of his speeches on the treaty on a whole, and asserted that 1t made no difference to him how the convention would amend 1t, he would be opposed to 1t. The time had not yet come, he said, when the United States should bind itself by a gen eral treaty with Great Britain. No good could come of It. and he said he hoped that every man who favored the interests of the United States would vote against its ratification.
 Mr. Roar, of Massachusetts, made long speech on the general subject and concluded by offering an amendment to the treaty intended to take the place of those now pending. It was new draft of an amendment that included the sa- lient points of the amendment proposed by Mir. Chiffon and by the GOT A ittec which had been informally agreed to. It Is patterned after the Lodge amendment of the last session and eliminates from the scope of the treaty all questions re- lating to the national or domestic policy of either of the contracting parties, and provides that the senate shall pass as a part of the treaty making power, upon all questions proposed to be submitted to arbitration under the general terms of the treaty. MT. Hoar addressed the senate at some length upon his amend ment. MT. Davis will tomorrow move an executive session at an early hour.
 At 4:30 the senate adjourned until to- morrow.
 IN THE HOUSE.
 The weariness of the flesh was mani- fested today in the proceedings of the house in the committee of the whole upon consideration of Ehe tariff bill, when members sought to relieve themselves from the tediousness of prosy debate by vehemently applauding the speakers
 MT Wheeler's request for an evening session was objected to vigorously. Re- publican opposition to the bill was again shown by a discussion of the question of putting a duty on hides.
 MT. Cannon, republican, of Illinois, said he would like to see one imposed, but would vote for the bill as the committee on ways and means approved it. MT. Hepburn, republican, of Iowa, was more outspoken. He said the value of hides produced in the United Statss far exceed ed that of wool, which dwindled into in- signifcancs beside 1t. He appealed to fhA committee on ways and means to test the sense of the house on the propo- sltion, but MT. Dingiey refused to pur- sue that course, stating instead the req sons why the committee did not recom- mend duty. The day was nearly all occupied In disposing of amendments of- fered by the committee on ways and means. most of which went to perfecting