The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1909-04-08
There Will Be No Duty Levied
on Tea or Coffee.
Friends of Oil Duty Led by Mr..
Cannon Are Defeated.
MILLER AMENDMENT
Placing Duty on Barley Ii
Voted Down.
Also One by Humphreys In.
creasing Tax on Beer.

Washington, April S.-By a coalition
between some Republican insurgents
and the Democrats the ways and means
committee was bowled over and the
advocates of free crude oil and its
products Won a signal victory when
an amendment by Mr.. Norris of Ne
braska, placing the insignificant duty
| of one percentum ad va1orem on these
articles was adopted by a substantial
majority.
A decision of the chairman that
amendments could not be offered to the
oil schedule other than the one cover
ed by the special rule of last Monday
and which provided for the removal of
the countervailing duty on crude pc
troleum and applying an ad valorum
duty of 20 per cent was overturned,
and not even a fervid appeal by the
speaker in an endeavor to rally the Re-
| publican forces was sufficient to stem
| the tide avOWedly against the Stand
ard Oil company. By a practical unani-
NOUS vote the countervailing duty went
out as the committee had recommend
| ed. ..-
On all other propositions the commit
tee was sustained. The barley schedule
ran the gauntlet without change. Tea
and coffee were placed on the free list
and the duty on barytes increased
from 20 cents a ton to a $1.50 ton.
| While the petroleum paragraph was
under discussion vigorous appeal was
made by Mr.. Campbell of Kansas, for
protection for independent oil pro1uc-
ers who he said, needed protection while
the Standard company did not. A bitter
/ attack against the Standard Oil com
pany was made by Mr.. Cooper. Wis
consin, in favoring the Norris amend
ment reducing the duty on oil. Seeing
the wave of sentiment in favor of the
amendment Speaker Cannon took the
/ nd <xf kI,<,
dangers ahead. He made a plea for the
American producer of OIL The amend
ment he declared was designed to pun
ish the wicked Standard Oil. Gentle
men," he said. lis it not we'll enough
to see when you seek to punish some
body. that you claim is bad, that you
do not like Samson pull down the piI-
lars and have the temt.le fall uron
you?''
| The adoption of the Norris amend
ment he said would let in practically
free refined oil from Mexico land still
the gentleman from Wisconsin and otu-
ers flap their wings and crow and cruci-
fly the people while the demagogue is
idenouncing the wicked Standard OIL"
Mr.. Miller, Kansas, offered an amend
ment raising the Payne rate on barley
malt from 25 to 45 cents a bushel.
! Replying to question by Mr.. Mann,
Illinois, the Kansas member declared
his purpose was to protect an Ameri-
can industry and not to encourage pro-
| hibition.
Mr.. Mann ,sarcastically suggested
Kansas was exceedingly moral and
characterized Mr.. Miller as a "curiosi-
ty of the house, who encoura ged pro-
duction of malt out of which to make
beer. Scott, Kansas, replied that the
brewers should be taxed at every turn
of the road, thus enhancing the cost of
| the materials they used.
The Miller amendment was voted
down, whereupon Mr.. Humphreys Of
ifered an amendment raising the tax on
beer from 81 to $1.60 a barrel but it
went out on point of order by Mr..
Payne.