Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-03-24
MAY Be CONSIDERED
Matters Likely to Come Up
at the Extra Session.
REGULATION OF RATES
RAILWAY LEGISLATION WILL BE
TO THE FRONT.
Strong inclination on the Part of Party
Leaders to Revise the
Tariff.
REGULATION OF RATES

Now that it seems absolutely assured that
the President will call an extra session to
meet about October 1, there is a growing
interest in the legislation that will prob
ably be considered at that time
1t has generally been understood that
the extra session would be chiefly, if not
wholly, for the consideration of the rail-
way rate law that the President is desir
Gus of having enacted The House in the
recent session passed the TownsendEsch
bill, but when it came to the Senate that
body Cid not propose to have radical rail-
road legislation until at least the subject
had been fully considered. The Inquiry into
the subject of rate legislation was not be-
gun early enough to permit the Senate
committee on interstate commerce to fully
consider it. Senator Elkins, chairman of
that committee, did not propose to recon-
mend any legislation to the Senate until
there had been very full hearing of wit
neSses and until the committee had fully
discussed the matter.
So the railroad bill went over, but he
committee received permission to sit during
the recess to take testimony on that subject.
The committee will meet April II to llear
witnesses and throughout the summer it
will hold meetings. Some of these meet
ings will doubtless be in this city, but
the precedent set in other years may be
during the heated term in some seashore
resort.
Conferences With Business MeE.
Senator Allison, chairman of the Senate
committee on appropriations, and ranking
member of the committee on finance in the
absence of Senator Aldrich, who is in Eu-
rope has been in New York during the
past several days in conference with lead
ing buSipeSS to RI ba hot
be taken in order to obtain reductions of
some of the high schedules in a way not 10
disturb business conditions. Secretary
Shaw of the treasury has been there with
Mr.. Allison, and together the two have been
looking into the situation.
If the tariff is in any way revised it is
fully expected by those leading republicans
who propose to reduce it that there will be
no interference with business conditions.
They declare that the fact that both houses
of Congress are in the hands of the republi-
can party, which is devoted to the tariff, is
sufficient guarantee that only conservative
action will be taken. Speaker Cannon of
the House of Representatives has been a
Standpatter He was "standpatter'
during the period of the campaign when the
democratic party in some of the states was
attacking the principle of the protective
tariff That was not regarded by the re-
cans to make any concessions to the free
trade element of the country. They practi-
cally all stood pat
Demand for Tariff Revision.
But in addition to rate legislation there
is strong inclination on the part of many
leaders of the party to bring about a re-
vision of the tariff, either in that extra ses-
sion or later. They have the sympathy in
this desire of a large wing of the party all
over the country. The distinctively tariff
associations of the country have insisted
on stand pat policy, but there are many
good republicans and high tariff men who
sincerely believe that the best interests of
both the country and their party demand
that some account be taken of the protests
of the people who are out for revision
The force behind this demand for revis-
ion is not made up of any tariff for revenue
free trade sentiment. 1t comes from
men who are welded to the protective pol
icy as a policy of the country, but who
believe that the country has outgrown the
present tariff schedules. They are strong
in New England, the home of the protec-
tive tariff, and they are men who stand
today as they have for many years for a
tariff that will protect the Industrial in
terests of this country sufficiently to mini
mize foreign competition so far as that
competition is given an advantage from
cheaplypaid labor.
A Hearty Fight Assured.
But now that the turmoil of the cam
paign is over the case is different With
out giving up an iota of their principles as
protective tariff advocates they simply say
they believe that the protective tariff should
be changed in some respects to conform to
present conditions
The high protectionists who are stu
stand patters'' will oppose any effort that
may be made to touch the tariff. They