The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1897-05-29
Is What Senator Ben Tillman
Demands
If the Senate is ssROtten to the
Bottom"
TT SHOULD BE PROVED
Calls Sugar Men ''Gang Of
Thieves and Robbers"
Wants Poor Men and Million
aires Treated Alike.

Washington, May Ex-senator Till
man of South Carolina, startled the sem
ate yesterday by presenting a resolution
for the appointment of a special COM
mission of five senators to investigate
charges of speculation by senators while
the tariff bill was before the finance
committee. In advocating the resolu-
ton, Mr.. Tillman threw aside the usual
cOnVentiOnalitieS of the senate and with
a plainness of speech seldom heard
about the halls of congress, called on
his associates to investigate the pub
lished charges of senatorial speculation,
and, if found true, to purge the senate
of those who debauched il.
Mr.. Tillman'S resolution quotes the
senate resolution of May II, 1894, auth
orizing the original inquiry, and then,
after reciting the proceedings in the
Chapman and Havemeyer trials, pro-
Whereas, within the last 80 days sun
dry newspaper correspondents have
openly charged senators with Speculat-
ing in sugar stocks while the sugar
schedule was under discussion and also
charged that brokers in New York
knew in advance as to what the senate
finance committee would report as to
the sugar schedule, all of which in
wolves a question of the highest privi-
lege, tOWit: The right of the senate to
protect its members from SANDER and
to protect the body as a whole from
those. open charges of corruption, there
| fore be it
Resolved, That a committee of five
be appointed with power to send for
persons and papers, to employ a stem
ographer and to administer oaths-to
inquire into the truth or falsity of the
charges made in May 1894, and into the
charges recently made, and the scope of
| the investigation shall cover everything
embraced in the resolution of May 1894
! as well as the methods pursued by the
American Sugar Refining company bet
| ter known as the sugar trust in con
| trolling legislation in it's favor at the
Il mr. EraF
1t has in anywise contributed to or con-
| trolled the election of a senator in this
| body at any time"
| The presiding officer Mr.. FRYE PROMPT
! ~ ruled that the resolution should go
| to the committee on contingent exDen-
| ses, but Mr.. TilInan obtained consent
! to make statement:
! I'VE have arrived Al a time" he be-
| gan, when the senate can no longer a f
! ford to rest under the damning accusa-
| tons made against senator's If these
| reports are ISLANDERS then the press gal
! ler1es should be purged. If they are
true, the senate should be purged of
| such senator's"
| 1t has been charged that President
| cleveland met the sugar men on a
! yacht and discussed details of the sche-
Gule OF the then pending tariff bill
| Ihere was nothing to faSten that damn
| ing accusation on the president Mr.
| Tillman said but Senator Jones of Ar
| Kansas, had recently furnished evidence
| to the effect that the president told him
! the trust should have a nc a pound.
Mr.. Jones quickly arose and stated
! that on two occasions Mr. Cleveland
| had said to him that he thought the &c
on raw sugar was necessary to the
| American refineries.
Proceeding, Mr. Tillman said if it be
! true that Mr.. Cleveland desired to carI-0
! find it out. ~
Here Mr.. Gray of Delaware. chairman
| OF the former sugar Investigation com
| mittee, interrupted
The statement, he said, that a sugar
| schedule had been made upon Mr. Rem
| edictS yacht when the DraSi6aT7+ 80
| on board with officers of the s11erar tr1' e.
was not true, and its falsity had been
established after the COMMITTEES had
! probed the statement to the bottom.
| continuing, Mr.. Tillman exclaimed.
| Both parties are involved and one is
| as deep in the mud as the other. You
| know Of the reports against certain
mem ers OF the old finance committee,
and now we have more damaging ac-
| cusations against the present commit
| tee.
Mr.. Pettus of Alabama interrupted
to ask Mr.. Tillman not to deal in gen
eralities, but to put a mark on the
| senators by name.
THAT is why I want an inuuiry-to
! mark these men,, responded Mr.. Till
! man. I do not want the poor man to
suffer while the millionaires are turned
LOOSE
Mr.. Tillman said he would now pre-
! sent specifications and he read n n11r1-
Der of signed articles in the newspa-
pers acknowledging various charges
against senators, some by name. The
| first article began: Smith Ahead on
! Sugar" and spoke of the New Jersey
senator selling 5000 shares of sugar
| stock short at a profit of s., 0GO
Mr.. Smith was not in the chamber at
| the time.
Another article spoke of the large
| profits of senators and stated that 5000
| shares of sugar stock had been han
died the day before for three senators.
| Mr.. Tillnan said it was about time
! these specific charges, most of them
! signed with the names of their authors
| should be probed. There should be no
! mixture of the old investigation and the
| new one.
Let US not mix up the Democratic
| sheep with the Republican goats, but
| let US have a fumigation.'' 1t was not
| a time when senators should sit here,
| apparently silenced by cowardice or
| corruption. The Republicans had re-
| ceived the recent campaign contribu-
| lions from the octopus he said, and
| it should be brought to light before the
| American people. If this gang of
! thieves and robbers We're to have all
| they wanted, then let the American la
| boring men realize what glorious SEN
| ate represented them at Washington
In conclusion, Mr. Tillman reiterated
that if the senate is rotten to the bot
! TOM it should be proved. If these
| charges were false. then the lies should
| be laid bare If the charges were true,
then, he said, the guilty senators should
be turned out and the senate purged.
Mr.. Aldrich (Rep), member of the
finance committee and in charge of the
tariff bill. Immediately took the floor
as Mr. Tillman closed. It had been
charged or inferred he said, that the
| sugar trust dictated the sugar sched-
ule.
But I desire to say to the senate, to
! the senator (Tillman) and to every
man in the United States that no per-
Z son connected with the sugar trust at
, any time or place Influenced the fran
| ing of the sugar schedule or received
| information as to its character.
7 desire to make the statement as
| broad as the English language car