The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-01-07
HILL SPEAKS IN
 NEW TARIFF BILL RetOrt at MT. CIaytOn's Ex
 pense is Cheered LAUDS TOBACCO INDUSTRY Defends Tariff Revision In Philippines and In Accordance With Demands
 of the Republicans of
 Massachusetts.
 
LAUDS TOBACCO INDUSTRY

Washington, January 6.-In a session or five hours today the House placed on re- cord speech in favor of the Philippine tariff bill, one against it, and a twenty minute talk for tariff revision according to the republican demand of Massachus- etts. Mir. Hill of Connecticut occupied three hours and was listened to with the greatest interest in detailing the knowl- edge he gained from two visits to the Philippines, the last one as member Of the party Of Secretary Taft last summer. He paid particular attention to the to- bacco feature of the measure and ex- plained away much of the misapprehen- sion as to the enormous products that might be expected from the islands. The territory, he said, was small and their fertile lands still further limited.
 MT. Mondel Of Wyoming. who has led the fight against the bill in the interest of the beet sugar industry of this 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 States
 The abolition of the tariff on hides was pleaded for by MT. Lawrence of Massa- chusetts, who presented the position taken by the republicans of that state.
 Has Map and Samples.
 A map showing the quality of the land in the Philippines was brought into the House and MT. Hill also held several samples of the tobacco raised there. The country, he said. followed in a remark able degree the physical features of Jap an. where the tillable area was only something more than 12 per cent.
 The census reports give sDs per cent of the area as the agricultural land of the Philippines, he said. In describing the population he said that slavery existed among the Moros. It was a mild form of slavery, but slavery nevertheless. There were he said, no Filipino people. There are eighty-seven tribes speaking over fifty languages; there is no means of communi- cation; no roads. About IA per cent can read; per cent read English. Under these circumstances MT. Hill sead a high order of intelligence could not be expect ed. MT. Hill visited the islands with Sec retary Taft and his party last summer
  sonal observation. He predicted that in fifty years the population would be fifty million instead of 100000 as at pres ent. The whole ambition of the people was to simply subsist. If native were paid 25 cents a day he would work long enough and no longer than to make enough to last during the week. If the wage was doubled, the time of work would be halved.
 Primitive Methods Prevail.
 Substantially all of the export tobacco of the islands comes, he said. from a single valley in the Island of Luzon. The valley Is two miles wide and about fifty miles long. No human being can com prehend, he said, the primitive methods which prevail in the making of all crops in the islands, unless through personal ob- servation. It was the widest imagination to show that at any time would Philip pine industry ever be disastrous to Amer 1 ican industries.
 Reverting to MT HilPs statement about slavery, MT. Clayton of Alabama asked:
 '1s 1t true. did I understand the gentle- man to say, that slavery still exists among the Moros? The traffic in human beings where men and women are sold for $50 to s1o02'
 T did not see any of this traffic." re- piled Mir Hill, "but I believe slavery exists. Those people are savages, and there is no civilization"
 And how long have we had those islands?"
 Five years"
 Five years the great republican party has been in power, and these conditions still exist?' c
 l "It is true"
 q would like the gentleman to tell us why this great republican organization