Evening star., 1909-06-28
Senators Show Languid Inter.
est in Tariff Discussion.
QUORUM ONLY IN VOTING
No One Calls Attention to Light At
tendance.
EXPECTED SENSATION FAILS
Cummins' Amendments Rejected
Without Stir-Free Cotton Bag
ging and Binding Twine.

All Of the spirit was taken out of the
Senate today by the oppressive heat.
Senators moved restlessly from the
chamber to the lemonade buckets in the
cloakrooms and back again, or sat list
lessly in their chairs and listened Ian
guidly to the half-hearted reading of
the secretary or the brief explanations
Of their colleagues who had business to
present.
For the first time In several weeks 4
whole morning passed without a call for
a quorum. There was not q quorum
present except for the votes. but nobody
seemed to mind 1t. not even the most in
sistens oe the republican insurgents.
A third Of the senator's had on white
and most of the others wore the thin
nest kind of clothes of other colors.
Nearly every one carried a big sena-
torial palm leaf fan. and kept 1t con-
stantly. though slowly, in motion.
Vice President Sherman was attired
In white from head TO foot. He used a
big palm leaf fan, and frequently wiped
his forehead. Vests were generally dis
carded by the Senate membership.
The brief speeches that were made
lacked fire and there was a manifest
versy.
Cummins Amendments Rejected.
The excitement that the Cummins steel
amendments and the paragraphs en-
bracing binding twine and cotton bag
ging and ties was expected to arouse did
not materialize at all. Senator Cum
Minis offered his string of amendments
shortly after the Senate was called to
order. at 10 am, but he spent q very
few minutes In explaining them, and
readily agreed when Senator Aldrich sus-
gested that they be voted on in bulk.
Mr.. Cummins' proposals embraced near
ly the whole steel and iron schedule
and embodied his ideas of the proper
every case they we're reductions below
the present law and the recommends
tions of the finance committee. One. Of
the most important was to reduce the
rate on pig iron to $50 q ton and on
scrap iron and steel to 80 cents a ton,
and to define clearly scrap iron and
steel. SO as to avoid customs frauds. The
rates he proposed in this paragraph were
those adopted by the House. Others
reduced the rates on round iron, steel
rods. small wire nails. barbed wire and
steel slabs and sheets below those pro-
posed by the. finance committee.
The block Of amendments was lost by
vote of 81 to 40. Ten republicans voted
lOI lAcHi, HdIHeiy, SummInS. bOran, Bits
tow, Brown, Crawford. Curtis, Dolliver.
Gamble. La Toilette and Nelson. All of
the democrats voted yes except Nc
Emery OF louisiana.
Free Binding Twine.
There wasn't even a furry over the
binding twine and cotton bagging and
ties paragraphs. The finance committee
agreed to allow cotton bagging to go on
the free list along with free binding twine
for the western farmer, and this partly
satisfied the demands OF the southern
ers, who had threatened to make trouble
on this point. Without a roll call the
House rate on cotton ties which are
made of steel was adopted. 1t is SO a
ton. The House rate on cotton bagging
is six-tenths Of cent square yard.
Various Amendments Lost.
An amendment offered by Senator Gore
of Oklahoma, putting textbooks on the
free list when intended for use In schools
and all institutions supported by taxa
tion, was lost, II to IS. on a strict party
vote.
On a viva voce vote an amendment
presented by Mr.. Bacon, striking long
staple cotton off the free list. was lost.
Mr.. Bacon advocated the amendment on
the ground that 1t would produce $4,000
900 of revenue annually. He said the
south NEEDED no protection in the ordinary
upland cotton raised there, and his
proposition had no such purpose in view.
Another amendment by Mr.. Bacon to
put salt on the free list was lost, Is to
42, on strict party vote.