Omaha daily bee., 1909-04-10
Duty on These Products Will Prob
ably Be Placed at So Ton.
COAL FIFTY CENTS A TON
Reciprocity Clause in Payne Bill Will
Go Out.
HIDE CANVASS Is COMPLETED
senate VIII Probably Insist Upon an
Ad VaIorem Duty of Fifteen Per
Cent--BaIf DinEIey Rates
on Lumber.

! WASHINGTON. April e.-When the SEN
session tonight it was with the under
standing that all avenues to the commit
| tee room had been closed and that the
| few sessions to be held prior to the re-
porting of amendments to the Payne bill
would not be hampered with suggestions
from the outside. The committee is now
prepared to insert rates on certain i'm
portant matters.
Among the schedules that are attracting
particular attention now are metals and
| manufactures of metals; lumber, hides,
bituminous coal and sugar.
No rates on steel and iron have been
inserted as yet although It is practically
settled that iron ore will be taxed 20 cents a
ton and proportonste rate will be as
| sessed against scrap iron and steel refuse
fit only to be manufactured. The iron
interests are concerned chiefly in getting
an increase over the proposed rates in the
Payne bills on rails and structural iron.
The Payne bill cuts the existing rate on
steel rails from 1874 to 1922, just one
half. Steel men contend that the Payne
1
have asked that a rate of $5.Ss be fixed
on rails. 1t is generally believed that
the committee will name a rate OF about
IS per ton. On structural steel it is likely
that the Dingiey rates Of one-half cent
| pound will be maintained. instead of
adopting a rate of $40 of cent pound
| as fixed by the Payne bill. A number of
reductions have been made on other ar
ticles under the metal schedule in order
to make the schedule symtricaI. These
changes, 1t is said have been approved by
steel manufacturers.
Coal and Culm Schedules.
! The reciprocity clause OF their bitun,snous
coal schedule. which, it is said, would re-
suit In the elimination OF au duties ON coal
In the trade between Canada and the United
States, is likely to go out Of the bill. SEN
ators Elkins and Dick were before the com.
! mittee today in this connection, taking op-
posite sides. Under both the Dingley law
and the Payne bill bituminous coal paws a
duty of 81 cents a ton. The senate COM
mittee is considering a reduction of the
| duty to about So cents In view of the
elimination of the reciprocity clause. The
Payne bill places culm or slack coal on a
par with bituminous coal, which would in
crease the rate. It must pay from 10 cents
f, to 81 cents. Those who favor striking out
the reciprocity clause want an ad valorem
! duty placed on slack coal, which would
equal a specific duty of 80 or 20 cents a
| ton.
Senator Ell1ins submitted some data in
dicating that the present rate of Is cents
on slack is too low. He read letters from
American agents in Canada and Australia
asserting that mines in those countries
artificially crush btuminous coal in order
to make 1t admissible to the Unite States
at the 10 instead of the 67-cent rate.
! Hides and Lumber.
! 1t is reported that the senate committee
will reduce the existing Dngley rates or
lumber one-half. A canvass OF the senate
indicates that an effort in the direction OF
getting free lumber, IL made after the bill
reaches the senate, would be unavailing
| The canvass Of the senate on the cues.
tlon Of hides was concluded today and II
is asserted that as a result hides will he
taken from the free list as in the Payne
bill and a duty fixed at IS per cent ad
vslorem. That wool of all grades and WOO
tops would be placed in the senate bill
under the existing rates was stated today
upon what appears to be excellent au.
thority. Many protests were filed with the
committee against the Payne reduction In
the wool schedules