Arizona republican., 1906-01-07
THE PHILIPPINE TARIFF.
The Effect of it on the Beet Sugar In-
 r dustry Pointed Out.

Washington, Jan. G. In a session of five hours today the house placed on record a speech in favor of the Philip pine tariff bill, one against it, and a twenty minutes talk for tariff revis- ion according to the republican de- mand of massachusetts,. MT. Hill, of Connecticut occupied three hours. and was listened to with the greatest in terest in detailing the knowledge he gained from two visits to the Philip pines, the last one as a member of the party of Secretary Taft last sum mer. He paid particular attention to the tobacco feature of the measure, and explained away much of the ap prehension as to the enormous prod ucts that might be expected from the islands. Their territory, he said, was small, and their fertile lands still fur | ther limited.
 Mir. MondeH, of Wyoming, who has led the fight against the bill in the interest of beet sugar industry in this 1 country, spoke vigorously against the measure and against the policy of helping the Filipino people by granting them open markets in the United ! States. -- He said the passage of this bill would be the death-knell of the beet sugar industry in the United i States.
 The abolition of the tariff on hides was pleaded for by MT. Lawrence, of Massachusetts, wno presented the po- sition taken by the republicans of that | state.
 A map showing the quality of the i; land in the Philippines was brought into the house, and MT. Hill also had several samples of the tobacco rais- ed there. The country, he said, fol- lowed in a remarkable degree the physical features of Japan, where the tillable area was only something more than F per cent. The census reports gives 9 1-2 per cent of the total area as the agricultural land of the Philip pines. In describing the population he said that sleavery existed among the Moros. It was a mild form of slavery but slavery nevertheless. There were he said, no Filipino people. There are eignty-seven tribes, speaking over fif- ty languages; there is no means oi communication; no roads. About IA per cent can read 3 per cent reac Spanish Under these circumstances MT. Hill said, a higher order of intel ligence could not be expected. MT
 Hill predicted that in fifty years the population would be 5O,O00, 900 instead of 7,500,000.
 Substantially all of the export to- bacco of the islands comes, he said from a single valley of the island O. Luzon. The valley is two miles wide and about fifty miles long. No humaT
 being can comprehend, he said, th' primitive methods which prevail in tht
 making of all crops in the island un
 less through personal observation.
 was the widest imagination to sup pose that at any time would Philippine , industry ever be disastrous to Ameri
 can industry
 As a republican, Mr. Hill said h'
 thought there was a cause for crit
 cism of the excessive cost of tn
 American government in the Philip
 pines, but the fault was in Americ;
 and grew out of the division of opinion as to the policy to be pursued. He re
 viewed the tobacco industry i'll tn
 Philippines, explaining the primitiv methods of tobacco culture and tn 2 limited manufacture of smoking an
 chewing tobacco and cigars. He sai
 single factories in the United State
 make more than the entire output c
 manufactured tobacco in the Philip
 pines.
 MT. Hill said a careful study of tO ' bacco production in the islands an
 the export trade has persuaded hiI ., that the United States has nothing . fear from competition with Philippin =, tobacco. because of it's inferiority M Hill summarized the purely commer e cial effects of the proposed reductio
 in tariff saying the stimulus to indus ', try in the islands will result In tn preservation of Philippine interest which must sink into ruin if relief U ~ not afforded. He said the greates if benefit. however, would be the iI f creased alternative markets in th " United States and the islands for hig 2 grade products at good prices. IT Mr. Mondell, of Wyoming, was tf
 next speaker. We are giving u
 Philippines every advantage in oI
 market, advantages that no otht
 country ever enjoyed" said MT. Mor ,r dell, "and in return we are payin