The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1897-07-22
Our Washington Letter.
Correspondence of The Journal.

-NoW ludl we dTc dUOuL W Ulu dulOu 10 Tile
Wilson law, it may not be uninteresting to
point out some of its failures, since it is
impossible to say anything good in taking
leave of a measure which has brought
such distress to the country and the
Treasury. The deficit of $125, 900, 900
which it had made up to the time of Nc
kinley's Inauguration has been somewhat
reduced by the enormous importations of
the past three months, which were made
in order to escape duties under the new
tariff law. Notwithstanding the increase
in receipts by reason of this flood of i'm
portations since the Inauguration of Pres
ident Mckinley, the customs, internal
revenue, and total receipts under this law
have been much less than in the CORE
spending months of the history of the
Mckinley law. This is specially inter-
esting and important because of the state
ments made from time to time by the
Democrats to the effect that the Wilson
law was more successful as revenue pro-
Queer than the Mckinley law. The abso-
lutte falsity of this statement is shown by
the official figures covering the receipts of
the Wilson law from the beginning of its
operations down to the present time and
comparing those with the receipts under
the Mckinley law in the corresponding
months of its existence. The Wilson law
has now been in operation "a months In
those "a months the customs receipts ag-
gregated S467, 465, PAS, while in the first "a
months of the Mckinley law the customs
receipts were S54S, ASP Al. The internal
revenue receipts under the Wilson law in
its first 81 months were 1892, 722 ,45:3. and
in the first 81 months of the Mckinley law
were s43333, -, 45S. The total receipts
under the Wilson law in its first 81
months, ending June 80, 1897, amount to
1904, 200, 652, while the Mckinley law in
its first 81 months produced 1,041, O4S,-
6l1, balance of more than S137, 200, 900
in favor of the Mckinley law.
Progress in the consideration of the
tariff bill by the conference committee has
been rapid and gratifying in its character.
A large proportion of the amendments
made by the Senate have been discussed
and easily agreed upon and only a few
knotty problems still remain and with
every prospect of these being disposed of
very soon. Wool, sugar, lumber, cotton
ties, and few of the less important sub
Jects proved the most difficult in the at
| tempt to bring about a final agreement
between the two branches of Congress.
and in all there was disposition to give
thoughtful consideration to the best in
terests of the people and to meet the pop
ular demand as it became apparent that
the final result would be such as to meet
the popular approval. One question,
however, the conferees have been COM
PEELED to keep constantly in mind, and
that relates to the effect of their action
upon the chances of final passage of the
bill in the Senate. The fact that the Re
publicans do not and cannot control that
! body still makes it absolutely necessary
that they move with the greatest caution
and exercise a vast amount of diplomacy
in their final shaping of the bill in order
to absolutely assure its final passage in
that body.
The work upon the tariff bill in con-
ference has been as unsatisfactory to
the trusts as was that of the house and
Senate. Every step in the framing of this
bill has shown a determination on the
part of those in charge of it to avoid the
mistakes which the Democrats made in
the framing OF their tariff bill and by
which that party gave to the trusts, and
especially the sugar trust, such enormous
advantages. OF course the Democrats
have tried to make it appear that the Re-
publicans were laying themselves liable
to as grave charges as were successfully
made against their own party and tariff
bill, but have failed in that attempt and
there is good reason to assert that the
new bill, when it gets upon the statute
books, will be less satisfactory to the
trusts than any measure enacted in many
years.
1t is still understood that message will
be sent to Congress- as soon as the tariff
bill is out of the way, asking that the
President be given authority to appoint
commission to consider the currency ques-
ton and frame measure for a general
currency law. The delay in sending in
this message has been due to the fear that
this action might precipitate currency
discussion and thus delay action upon the
tariff bill, but there is reason to believe
that the message will be forthcoming as
soon as the tariff bill is disposed of.
Whether it will be possible to pass
measure of this character through the
Senate without very great delay is of
course uncertain, but if Republican votes
can pass it, it will become law prompt
ly. 1t is felt that commission selected
from the best students of finance in the
country will be able to frame a much
more satisfactory currency measure than
would probably be prepared by any gen.
of al,