Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-02-27
CUT DUTY TO IS PER CENT
Republican Conference on the Porto Rican
Tariff
1t is Announced That the President
VIII Sign the Bill If
Passed.

The republicans of the House reached an
agreement in caucus last night on the Porto
Rican tariff bill, though the agreement
does not secure the support of every men,
Der of the party.
Chairman Cannon presided over the eau
Gus. AS soon as it had been called to or
der Mr.. Payne of New York, the floor lead
er, submitted two amendments which, he
said, the ways and means committee were
prepared to offer to the bill One of them
changed the title of the measure to make
it a bill for temporarily raising revenue for
Porto Rico. The other added new section
to the bill limiting its operation to March
1, 1902, unless sooner repealed.
Representative Shattuc of Ohio opened
proceedings with plain statement to the
effect that he willing to defer his own
opinion in this matter to the wishes of the
President, although he was convinced that
his constituents favored free trade with
Porto Rico He demanded to know, how
over and wanted no equvocation about
It, whether the President believed the bill
was constitutional and whether he favored
the measure. If he did not, Mr.. Shattuc
announced that he would not be bound by
the action of the caucus.
President Would Sign the Bill.
This brought Mr.. Payne to his feet He
said he had seen the President in the after
noon and he announced emphaticaly that
the President was convinced that the bill
was constitutional, and that he would sign
the bill.
Mr.. Corliss of Michigan backed UP Mr.
Payne with the statement that he had seen
the President since the House adjourned
and that the President desired the bill to
pass.
Mr.. Grow of Pennsylva mia, the venerable
eX-Speaker of the House. said that the
amendments proposed made the bill an
emergency measure against which the
question of constitutionality ought not to
be raised, and Mr. Marsh of Illinois earn
estly appealed to the recalcitrants to rally
around the republican standard and bury
their dissensDns
This drew statements from Mr. Mccall
and Mr.. Littletield, the two leaders of the
republican revolt. Both spoke in good tenn
per but abated not one jot their Individual
opposition to the measure. Mr. Mccall said
that the modification offered and the assur-
ance from the President might remove the
objections of those who had opposed the
Pill on the ground of expediency, but that
his objections going deeper to the consti-
tuuonal question, could not be assuaged
by any such amendments. He should, he
announced, vote against the bill. MIR. Lit
teflelds speech was along the same lines
lie, too, he said, must oppose it to the end.
To Reduce the Duty.
Mr.. II. C. Smith of Michigan then offered
an amendment to reduce the duty imposed
by the bill from % to Is per cent
MIR. Powers of Vermont who was one of
the objectors, and who was on the COM
mittee to meet the committee of the friends
of the bill. then announced his Willingness
to vote for the bill. The time limit placed
upon it. he said, did not remove his objec-
tons but he said he willing that the
bill should become law in order that its
constitutonality might be tested, so as to
clear the way for the future disposition of
the broader question relating to the Phil
ippines. He offered an amendment, which
he subsequently withdrew, expressing it as
the sense of the conference that the bill
was for the purpose of obtaining an early
adjudication by the courts of the constitu-
tional question involved.
Speaker Henderson and Chairman PAYNE
wound up the experimenting with eloquent
appeals for harmony ana unlteu ACTON IN
the race OF the enemy. The speeches
aroused great enthusiasm. Speaker Hender-
son concluded: This bill should pass. 1
say to you tonight put on your armor and
sing Glory Hallelujah." Mr.. Payne adjured
his colleagues to stand shoulder to Shout
der and to vote solidly."
The amendments offered were then
adopted and the conference adjourned.
Mr.. Mccall said after the conference that
he still believed the bill would be defeated.
1t Will be a tight squeeze, anyway said
he.
Mr.. Cannon said that the bill was mis-
understood: that 1t was in fact bill for
the immediate relief of the Porto Ricans by
4
raising 81 100000 annually in an emergency.
AS result OF the agreement the republi-
can leaders claim that the bill will have
the support of all the republicans except
four-Messrs. Mccall of Massa chusetts,
Littletield of Maine, Lorimer of Illinois
and Crumpacker of Indiana-and that this
loss will be offset by affirmative votes of
the opposition. They claim the passage of
the modified bill is certain.
After the conference adjourned at II
o'clock Chairman Cannon gave out the fol-
lowing statement of the amendments agreed
upon by the conference:
Chairman Cannon's Statement.
THE conference requested the ways and
means committee to offer an amendment
to the bill follows: Amend the title to
| make it an act temporarily to provide rev.
enue for the island of Porto Rico and for
other purposes and to add the following
section: This act shall be taken and held
to be provisional in its purpose, intended to
meet pressing present need for revenue
for the island of Porto Rico. and is not to
continue in force after March l. 1902 These
amendments were adopted with practical
unanimity. Another to reduce the duty inn
posed by the act from 25 to Is per cent was
adopted by vote Of 105 to IL. A further
amendment is to be offered by the ways
and means committee to make it clear that
no double duty is imposed; that the pay
ment Of one internal revenue tax is the
total tax on importations''