The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1902-04-09
CUBA GETS
CONCESSION
WAYS AND MEANS COMMITTEE
REPORTS 20 PER CENT
REDUCTION.
BILL WILL BE FOUGHT IN THE
HOUSE.
Measure Means About SLOOO,OOO to S.
Cuban Sugar-Other Provisions

WASHINGTON. March 81 The
| Ways and Means Committee, by vote
of u to today ordered a favorable
report on the Payne bill for 20 per cent
| tariff concessions to Cuba. Eight Re
| publcans voted for the bill Two Re
/ publiCans-TaWney of Minnesota and
| Metcalf of California-voted against it,.
| No amendments on the reciprocity fea-
ture were made. but by general com
sent the United States contract labor
| laws were included with the naturaliza-
tion and exclusion laws, as applicable to
! Cuba A series of Democratic amend
ments for general revision were de
feated on strict party votes
Groscenor's amendment including
| the contract labor laws with those Of
immigration, etc. to be adopted by
| Cuba, was agreed to without division,
and was the only amendment adopted.
! This cleared the way for the real test
of strength which was first made on Mr..
| Tawney's amendment making O1S25 the
general rate on sugar, /. e. taking off the
| differential.
Representative Newlands i'm offering
his amendment inviting Cuba to come
! into the United States as a territory
! said he would vote for the Payne bill in
his amendment were adopted But the
amendment was ruled out on point OF
! order.
WASHINGTON March 31-Chairman
! Payne today presented to the House
the report of the Ways and Means Com
mittee on the Cuban reciprocity bill
which the committee had ordered re-
| ported earlier in the day.
After reciting President Roosevelt's S
| recommendation in behalf of Cuba
Payne says: "Our relations to Cuba are
peculiar In our declaration of war
with Spain, and ever since, we have
solemnly proclaimed to the world that
our object was to give Cuba a stable
and Independent government. We have
/ labored for more than three years to
! accomplish that result, and in this en-
! deavOr we have spared no expense.
During the years of preparation we
have given her an example of the bene-
fit of law and good order, of cleanliness
| and of the preservation of the public
| health and of good government gener-
ally. She has organized her govern
ment under a constitution and is now
ready to launch forth among the ma
tiOns of the earth in the month of May.
Payne explains the depressed cOndt-
ton of the Cuban sugar industry as due
to the worlds OVerprOductiOn of sugar
and says: This condition threatened
grave disaster to this, the principal
product of cuba. 1t is true that labor
! in Cuba is and for the past three
months has been fully employed at fair
wages that there has been no distress;
but a trustworthy writer an American
not interested in sugar and a Careful
observer, says under date of March 10th,
| While the masses of Cuba are not aC-
tually suffering from lack of food, the
planters and business men are on the
verge of collapse and bankruptcy and
are anXiOusly hoping for concessions n
the United States tariff in order that
they may receive new life. The mer-
chants have large sums of money
trusted out and are not paying each
other They are simply holding each
other up in the hope of obtaining relief
and if failures once begin they viii run
like wild fire
'All the evidence received before the
committee points to a conclusion that
the crisis threatened involves the most
serious consequences.
This threatened financial distress
comes at the very time we are about e
set the Cuban Government up in bust
ness on it's own account. We have per-
formed the part of a guardian up to the
present time and are about to send the
ward forth into the world. We cannot
q afford to take the risk of her failure if
a little timely aid will insure success. '
The report adds that we are bound
to care for our own people, but, after
lGN lew MS tic american sugar Sllud-
ton, says: 1T can work no injury tC
our industry if we make this small
reduction in Cuban sugars. The eneCt-
ment of this bill will not affect the pro-
lection of the sugar producers of the
United States. There is no reasonable
pretense that the same protection on
other Cuban products win injure any
other American industry"
The report asserts that the planters
and not the Tetiners, will receive the
benefits of the reduction, and adds,
Cuba does not come simply as a mem
diCant, nor should she be treated as
such She offers a good trade in return
This she is willing to concede Under
the provisions of the bill we should be
able to double the amount of our ex-
port trade with Cuba, which amounts
to $2S 5000 600 more than that we obtained
i'm the last fiscal year"
In conclusion the report adds 1T is
| a happy circumstance that without
any injury to our industries, and with
out the loss Of anything except $1,000 O0C
or SS OOO,0 600 Of revenue. which we do
not need, we are able to extend this
relief to Cuba, and at the same time gel
reciprocal trade relations with her.
aside from the exceptional case that
cuba presents the action of the COM
mittee is i'm entire accord with the reci-
prOCity doctrine of the Republican plat
form and the declaration of the late
President Mckinley and Presiden
Roosevelt 1t involves no proposed rec
vision Of the tariff or anything not en-
tirely in harmony with the maintenance
of the protective system"
| WASHINGTON, March 3L-AlthOugf
the Ways and Means Committee Of the
House today made a favorable report
on the bill for the relief of Cuba, the
heet-sugar men have not rntrely giver
up hope. They viii cary the fight tC
the floor OF the House and although
they do not expect to win there they be-
lieve 1t will require Democratic votes tC
Continued on page nveJ