Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1909-08-02
DEFEAT is THREATENED IN SEN.
ATE AND CONFERENCE CON-
MlTTEE Is RECALLED.
TO EXPLAIN
REASONS FOR COMPROMISE
Will Formulate Report Showing Prob
able Effects Of Present Provisions
Senate Takes Up Consideration Of
Conference Committee of Two
Houses-Narrow Majority in House.

Washington, Aug. with the tar
if conference report facing threatened
defeat in the senate, on account of the
alleged tjoker'' in the hide and leath-
er compromise, it was decided this aft
ernoon to rea,ssemb1e the conference
committee for the purpose Of prepar-
ing an official explanaIon. The con-
ferees will meet late today.
The leather Joker, 1t was reported,
restricts the low rates to shoes made
Of sole leather and leaves out entirely
the ordinary kind Of shoes. This also,
it was said, would leave the local in
dustry unaffected.
No "Joker," Says Taft.
The alleged "joker" which a number
Of progressive republicans in the sem
ate are said to have discovered in the
leather schedule of the tariff bill as
reported by the conferees, and which
some Of them have been quoted as say
ing constituted a betrayal of the pres
ident's confidence, brought out the dec
laration by Taft to callers today tina,
the language Of the amendment as to
boots and shoes is exactly as agreed
upon by him, Aldrich and Payne. II
his been claimed by the progressives
that the language in the amendment
reducing the duties on boots and shoes
was made to apply only to shoes man
ufactured from hides dutiable under
the Dingley bill and did not apply to
shoes which are made in part Of kid
thus violating the agreement for gen.
era1 reduction on all shoes.
Westerners in Revolt.
It Is understood the reassembling OF
the conferees was the result Of a con-
ference between the president and SEN
ator Aldrich, altl,o It was stated at the
White House that the president hac
had no part IN their reconvening. The
action OF the western republican SEN
ators, aided by democratic members
dn compelling the reading Of the con.
ference report in full enabled the sup.
porters of the conference report to talke
a new poll Of the senate. Much tc
their surprise they found their previous
canvasses were valueless. There seem
ed to be a revolt among the westerners
on account of the pharseology that had
been adopted by the conferees in ad-
justing the differences in the hide anG
leather paragraph. The language OF
the conference report imposing a duty
of 10 per cent on boots and shoes fol-
lows:
'"That boots and shoes, upper leather
which is made wholly or in chief value
from such hides (hides admitted free
of 1,,&v c1, oil l,,E1y 80
advalorem."
Alleged Joker.
The senators from the cattle states
assert that there are no shoes of that
description used in the United States
and that the reduction therefore is
valueless, as all other shoe feathers are
made duttable at 15 per cent. ReaMz-
ing that some heroic measure would
have to be taken in order to restore
public confidence, some Of the conferees
before the meeting expressed willing.
ness to adopt q resolution permitting
the conferees to revise their action ii
regard to the hide and leather ques.
tion. The older and more conservative
members said this would not be ne.
cessary. They believe that il an ex.
PLANTATION were made the public woult
accept it In good faith, especially il
Taft gave the explanation his endorse.
ment.
Taft Endorses Language.
Taft has written a letter to Senator
Brown Of Nebraska, endorsing the
language of the conference report in
reference to the compromise on the
hide and leather n,1ostinn