Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-04-05

changes tney desire are PROVIDED loT
by the ways and means committee, the
Republicans who met Saturday decid-
cd to send the following petition to
Chairman Payne:
'"rhc undersigned request your COM
mittee to present the following com
mittee amendments to the Payne tar
if bill:
AN amendment providing for duty
of a. cents ton of 1000 pounds on coal
and striking out the provision for rec
iprocity.
For duty of o5 cents ton on iron
ore.
For a duty of SO ton on pig iron
and scrap iron.
For duty of 10 per cent. on hides.
The amendment to the lumber
scho dule to b. confined to the provlso.
"A rule which will provide for the
above will receive our support
1t was claimed that fully 50 signatures
: of Republican members would be obtained
to the petition by Monday. Hughes of
West Virginia presided over the meeting,
which was attended by three members
of the ways and means committee. Ford
ney of Michigan. Cushman of Washing
tor and Gaines of West Virginia.
A number of those members contended
that their desire was merely to permit
the offering of amendments to the lum-
her. hides, iron ore and coal schedules in
order that there might be vote on them.
That such a vote might result in plac-
ing lumber on the free list and that the
other changes sought might be defeated,
became evident during the past few days.
1t was, therefore, decided that the best
way in which To bring about the changes
desired was to have the rule that is to
be brought in on Monday restricting
amendments to those which the ways and
means committee will report, and have
that committee include the five amend
ments asked for in the petition.
Resides the three members of the COM
mttee the following Republicans were
present at the meeting: fIughs, Wood
yard and SturSis of West Virginia; kei-
fer, Kennedy, johnson and Thomas of
Ohio Ellis and Hawlcy Of Oregon; Loud
and Young of Michigan; Morehead,
rowlcs and Grant of North Carolina;
Focht Barclay and Wheeler of Pennsyl-
vania; Howell of Utah; Maudell of Wy
on ing; Lanal of Kentucky, and
Humphreys OF Washington.
The ways and means committee Satur-
day, upon motion of Mr. Fordney of
Michigan. decided to report an amend
mcnt striking out the countervailinS duty
proviso on lumber and, in their petition.
the opposition expresses the desire that
the rule for considering the tariff bill will
limit amendments in the lumber schedule
to the provision. This would make it inn
possible to have vote on the question
of free lumber or to raise the duty TO
what they are under the Dingley law.
1t had been the impression that the
ways and means committee would report
an amendment placing the same duty on
scrap iron as the bill provides for pig
ron. it having been contended that no
pig iron would be imported under the
provisions of the Payne BILL which places
a duty of 30 cents a ton on scrap iron
and d duty of SO per ton on pig iron.
Under the Dingley law both articles pay
a duty of 81 a ton. The petition seeks
to have the duty fixed at So a ton on both.
All the Republican members except
four who were present at the meeting
which decided on the petition expressed
their intention of voting against the rule
to be reported on Monday, unless the
committee offers their amendments.
The West Virginia members are par
ticularly determined to have rcci-
proCity provision, permitting the free
entry of coal from countries which mn
pose no duty on coal from the United
States stricken out and the duty on
bitumnous COAL including culm and
slack. fixed at 45 cents ton of 1000
pounds.
The Payne bill. as reported, makes
the duty the same as in the Dingley
law with the exception that slack and
culm arc included under the same rate.
The Dinghy law provides a duty of
Il cents per ton of % bushels on coal
slack or culm.
Resides taking off the duty on tea
and the countervailing clause for cof-
fee, the ways and means committee
decided to report numerous other
anne ndncnts reducing the duties in the
original bill
The duty on peas was reduced to .
cents per bushel. Is cents less than at
present. Evergreen seedlings and Glove
| stems were placed on the free list. Inc
| ohraseolCgy of the paragraph defining
| the term cotton cloth and the method
Of determining the count of threads tc
the square inch. which would have in
| creased tie duty on cotton cloth 200 OF
| }00 pcr cent. was amended to read tho
| same as in the DnGley law.
Finding that Section II of the Payne
| bill. which provides that a patent is
| s,,od by the United States to either
| or subject nf a foreign country shall bt
| subject to tn" same conditions imposed
hv that country on citizen OF the
United States. was in violation Of ar
| international convention. which pre-
cludes any discrimination against for
aien citizens in the patent laws, tn
| rommittee decided to strike out tina
section
The section which prescribes that n
i Two