Middletown transcript., 1906-01-20
WASHINGTON LETTER

OeDAte Oh tte Ttflllpplne tdFiH UIll OF
Monday. There are thirty-seven speeches
scheduled to be delivered in that time
twenty five ut them for the bill and twelve
, against it. OF course the most of them
will simply go into the Record under
''leave to print aud there will not be
much illumination for the House in those
having already made up their minds
which way they are going to vote. The
House leaders say that there is no ques-
tion about the bill passing, though the
Democrats insist that they are in posi-
ton to make hard if not winning
fight. As to the rights and wrongs of the
case, the claims Of the opponents are fun
damentalIy opposed. The sugar men,
who hope to defeat the measure, claim
that the reduction of the tariff will throw
a million tons of Philippine sugar on the
American market annually and that there
il plenty Of land and plenty of labor to
insure this production. The advocates of
the bill on the other hand say that the
islands cannot send more than 200, 900
tons Of sugar year to this country and
that they cannot produce more than this
amount for export for many years to come.
If the higher figures should be right, it
would be serious blow to the beet and
cane sugar interests of this country, but
there is very little likelihood that they
are, OF course no one will pretend that
the importation OF hemp is going to hurt
this country aud there is no question that
the Payne bill will make for the general
prosperity of the islands.
80
| One of the arguments that H. being used
against the. Philippine bill by the sugar
men is that it will kill the beet sugar
industry in this country and that this in
turn will kill tlre great irrigation devel-
opement of the west. This to anyone
who knows the real situation is the clear
est moonshine There have been several
big sugar refneries put up where the
government engineers have located irri-
CATION works in the west, but the anxiety
of the sugar men has not been as to the
market for their sugar. 1t has merely
question whether the farmers would
guarantee them enough land annually in
sugar beets to make their undertaking
worth while. The latest instance of this
has been under the great Beilerourche
project in South Dakota. There might
be lot written about this project, for it
involves the reclamation of 85, 900 acres of
land and will call for the biggest earth
dam in the world, a dixie a mile long and
1l5 feet high, more than half the cubic
contents of the pyramid of Cheops. All
the capital has been subscribed and the
| pans drawn for an immense refinery near
| tl,e dam even since the talk of reduction
in the Philippine tariff has been going
on. The only thing that the promoters
are waiting for now is not to see whether
the Philippine bill is going to pass but to
see whether the farmers will guarantee
them certain acreage in sugar beets.
This is very fair indication that tile OPP
ponents Of the Payne bill are not afraid
of its wrecking their Industry but merely
of its reducing by very little their prof
IFS.
*.*
The insurrection in the House which
was not aimed primarily at the Payne bill
but at the Hamilton bill for joint state
hood, has not yet been crushed, but the
Speaker say that it will be and he is 20
ing to make an example of the new men,
bers who had the temerity to break the
party lines. There is a suggestion of
compromise in the air noW It is to the
effect that the vote on the bill shall be
taken in tive sections, one on the question
of joint statehood for Oklahoma and In
dian Territory and the other for Arizona
and New Mexico. If this were done it |
might hear the. breach between the op-
posing factions. There are single staters
botll In Arizona and Indian Territory,
bnt the sentiment in Arizona is the thing
that is causing the real trouble, and if
there is a loop-hole left to let out the
single staterin that territory, all may be
wen,
Some reflections have been cast on the
Secretary of Agriculture both by members
in the House and by number OF the
eastern papers for his recommendation of
an immediate appropriation of $135, 900
for additional microscopists for the Agri-
cultural Department. The way the Sec
retary explains it :makes the matter very
simple. The Importers Of meat stuffs in
Germany are trying to get ahead of the
new tariff law which goes into effect on
March 9th. They have ordered and want
to order in this country about $50, ,000, 900
worth Of meat products, principally pork.
Now pork under the German law cannot
be imported from America without a
government examination for trichina.
The packing houses here are eager to make
the sales, but there ia not a sufficient
force Of meat inspectors to get off the or
ders before the new tariff goes into effect.
Some Of the packers have begged to be
allowed to pay for the examiners them
selves without expense to the govern
ment, but.tlis cannot be done under tile
law. That is the reason for the sudden
demand for more money from Secretary
Wilson. 1t is not hold up of Congress
but real and very pressing emergency.
II does not look now as though he would
get the money in time to have the orders
executed, and if he does not there will be
tie best part of $50, 900, 600 worth of ex
port orders going begging simply through
the stupidity OF few members of Con-
gress who apparently have not even taken
the trouble to find out why Congress is
being "heId up as they express it for
more money just at:this time.