Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1898-07-08
THE WAR REVENUE BILL
Purely Partisan Republican
Measure.
C0NC0OTED IN SECRET SESSION.

Democratic Members Of the Ways and
Means Committee Not Invited to Coop
crate Offensive Taxes Levied ut tho Be-
hest Of the Protected Interests.
A Republican organ presumes to lee
ture Democrats in congress because they
do not acquiesce without a word in ev-
cry provision Of the war ways and
means bill framed by the Republicans Of
the ways and means committee. Speak
ing especially Of Democratic senator's
the organ says: "There should be no
room in the hearts of those senators at
this time for any but patriotic senti-
ments Patriotism should expel parti-
sanship till the war is over at least"
Republicans are in no position to lee
ture the Democrats on this subject. The
Republican members of the house COM
mittee got together and concocted their
ways and means bill in secret, says the
Chicago Chronicle. They did not invite
the Democratic members to Join them
in laying aside all party considerations
and framing nonpartisan bill. Their
patriotism did not expel their party
ism.
The fact that they proceeded in secret
without inviting Democratic co-opera-
tion proved that they put party before
country or that they sought to place the
Republican politicians before the coun-
try as the only true patriots, and their
whole course with reference to the meas
ure Enthusiastically indicated the same
purpose. They limited debate and dis
tributed time upon the assumption that
Democrats at home were enemies to be
fought as much as Spaniards abroad
There was no disposition shown at any
stage to treat any proposal made by a
Democrat on its merits. Every sugges-
tion offered by Democrat, no matter
how good, was doomed in advance. It
was to be voted down merely because it
was Democratic and because the meas
ure must be wholly Republican. No
more offensive programme Of partyism
could have been framed, and the meas
ure itself was partyism in character.
At first two purely revenue duties
were proposed. That looked as though
for once favoritism to protectees was to
give place to considerations of revenue
Of Il grave emergency. But shortly these
duties were abandoned, and most objec-
This was done ut the behest of the pro-
tected interests, who demanded that
there should be no recognition in the
bill Of revenue duties. 1t was purely
partisan move by politicians who depend
for success upon the contributions of the
tariff fattened classes
One Of the taxes substituted for the
abandoned revenue duties was q tonnage
tax, or an increase in this tax from to
80 cents per ton. This again was often
sively partisan. 1t was in accordance
with the Republican assumption that
foreign commerce is something to be as
sailed mercilessly at every point. This
was not only partisan move, but an
extremely foolish one just at this time,
because it would affect the shipping Of
Great Britain more injuriously than
that OF any other country, and Great
Britain is about the only real friend we
have in Europe just now. So foolish is
it that the proposal to abandon tho fool.
ish and offensive tax is understood to
have been made by the Republicans Of
the senate finance committee, who are
not SO blindly partisan as to deliberately
invite the i'll will Of British shipping
and commercial interests ut SO critical
time. In view OF the partisan course
pursued by the Republicans in this mat
ter from the start, the impudence Of o
party organ i'll lecturing the Democrats
on their partisanship approaches the
sublime Democratic criticism may not
have been the wisest possible, but it
was deliberately provoked by the Re-
publicans, who now call it unpatriotic
not to accept their own party measure
without q word Of objection.