Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-05-19
Many Inquiries Made as
To Date Of Adjournment.
Members Of Both Branches
Anxious to Get Away by July !.
Senator Hale Has Convincing New
Protection Argument.

/
When do we adjourn" That has be-
come the most acute and the most re-
peated question in all Washington.
Someone will be hit hard over the head
of a hot sunny afternoon at the Capitol
| for asking it. A few weeks ago it had
become the greatest nuisance of d
generation. Senators and newspaper
correspondents were piled with it till
the question warranted hitting a man
on the spot
An outsider can hardly realize how
persistently. day in and day out, this
| inquiry appears. II it was insistent
| and acute three weeks ago, it has be-
come raging epidemic now. 1t go -
with the salutations of the morning and
| the evening Good morning." says the
keeper of the Senate door, when do we
adjourn" "Afternoon.' says the Sena-
| tors clerk. will we get away by July
-" y
The question appears in hundred
| different guises. Some fixed the date
| originally at June Is. Then they
| moved it up to July 1. Now some have
moved it up to July or July Is and
some of the extremists who are weary
of the whole business say Oct. I.
Every senator and every representa-
tive wants to get away as early as he
can. Living here is expensive and in
summer uncomfortable on account OF
| the heat. Then there are a thousand
clerks and employees They, too, want
| to get away from town to go a fishing
| or to enjoy pleasure jaunts or to attend
| to business that is calling them at
| home
And so there is a chorus of "When
| do we adjOurn?" from 1900 or 1000
| people at the Capitol daily 1t is the
big news item of any "A hours, if any
thing develops about the termination of
| the extra session. Congress. or rattle:
| the Senate. has not been giving hope of
an early getaway day of late and the
| complaints are becoming something
| fearful But the Senate must thresn
out the tariff bill and settle differences
| and that takes time-a lots of time
when the Senate has such a job
Senate Hale has been driving
ahead in recent days with a new pro-
lection argument. He has been con-
vincing the Senate with an array of
statistics that the increased cost of
| living is not due to high protective
tariffs. The matter came to the front
incidentally. Senator Hale. who alb
stains from debate unless he sees
some particular point to be emphasized.
caught the significance of statement
that Senator Scott. of West Virginia
had made for an entirely different pur-
pose. Mr. Scott has exhibited to the
Senate a half gallon water pitcher.
made OF pressed glass. of which he is
a manufacturer. He told the Senate
| that it was sold to the wholesaler for
80 cents dozen. less than cents
piece. and cost the ultimate purchaser
some 40 or so cents piece Mr. Scott
stated this to prove that his industry
was not depressing the consumer.
Senator Hale saw the opening and
began to ask questions Was it not
the wholesalers. who buy of the manu-
facturer and the retailer who had been
| making the big profits and who had
been putting up the prices of necessi-
ties of life? The Maine senator en-
listed the support of Senator Flint. Of
California, and others He had in
quiries set on foot as to the cost Of
protected articles to the wholesaler
The result was that the Maine Senator
brought out some surprising informa-
ton about a number of articles. in
Guiding wearing apparel and household
| equipment. 1t showed that these
articles We're almost dirt cheap as
sold by the manufacturer for whom the
protection is voted but that the in
| creases in cost are put on by the mid
dlemen who handle the goods after the
| manufacturing stage.
Democrats have been busy trying to
break the argument down. Every few
days Senator Hale gives them fresh
inStallment of facts. Then the Demo-
cratic arguments rage anew and there
is every promise that the Maine Sena-
tors statements of the Importance of
protection in Cheapening the cost If
manufactured articles will have large
place in the next campaign 1t puts the
wholesa lers and middlemen on the de-
| fensve. They must now show why
| they take so large a share of the cost
| of an article and the result may be the
| shying OF fewer rocks at the protective
tariff.
The fishing interests of Maine arc
| figuring somewhat in the tariff bill be-
| fore the Senate. The fish schedule as
a whole is of minor revenue import
ance. compared with many others, but
! the industry along the Maine coast is
| of importance and several items have
been put into the bill. since it left the
House. nearly all at the instance OF
Senator Hale. that will be of help to
| the fishermen and to those dealing in
| fish products along the coast of the
| Pine Tree State.
One incident of these amendments
pertained to sod oil. 1t is a red looking
substance. which comes from the dress
| ing of channels skins When Senator
| Lodge one day rose from his seat in
| the Senate and asked that sod oil be
| required to pay a duty of cents, along
with herring oil and other like pro-
| ducts. hardly anyone within the sound
of his voice knew what sod oil was.
| There is only one chamois skin tannery
| in the United States and the product
of sod oil from that tannery is not very
large The sod oil is used further for
dressing leather.
| Only Senator Lodge and one or two
others knew that he was asking for a
duty upon sod oil at the request of