The Washington herald., 1913-09-28
UNDERWOOD BILL
TO BE ATTACKED
Conference Report Will Not
Go Through Without
Opposition.
LONG DEBATE EXPECTED
Republicans and a Few Democrats
May Delay Wilson Signature
Until Saturday.

rough sea is ahead Of the Under
wood-Simmons tariff bill in its voyage
through the House and Senate this week.
ami it is by no means certain that it
will arrive i'm port at the White House
on schedule time. There is a storm cloud
Of considerable proportions rising on the
Republican side Of the Senate and a
threatened hurricane from the Demo-
cratic side Probably a dozen speeches
will be made and some plain talk will be
indulged in.
Republican criticism of the secret eau
Gus plan of making a tariff bill will be
repeated. and additional criticism. even
more severe will be hurled at the Demo-
cratic members Of the Finance Commit
tee and the Democratic conference lead
ers because the Republican members have
been practically ignored in the conference
which has just closed.
Although the bill has been completed,
and its important features made public
the Republican members of the Confer
Cnce Committee have had no informa ton
as to what has been going on in the
conference. except such as they have
been able to gam from the daily news
papers.
Penros- Returns Tomorrow.
Senator Peu.ose, leader of the RepuO-
Gcan membership of the Finance Com
mittee and senior member of the Repuo-
lican side Of the conference, will be in
Washington tomorrow, prepared TO at
tack the work 4 the Conference Com
mittee and to GenOuncc the methods pur-
sued by the Democratic :re1hers Of the
conference. Snator La Folieite. who is
= minority member Of the Conference. Is
said to be especially aggrieved. and he.
too il reports may n" credited. is pre-
pairing to make an attack IN the work
0f the Conference Committee.
\ number of speeches will be made by
Republicans. and some Of the Democrats
will take part in the criticism Senator
POmerene Of Ohio already has given no
tCe that he will move to instruct the
conference committee to restore the
amendment which was put into the hill
bv the Senator on his motion restoring
the tax on brandy and wine spirits used
in the fOrtification of pure sweet wine
in the California wine industry. Senator
PomsTene insists that the conference
committee broke faith with him on this
matter. He insists that he had been
promised a hearing before the matter
was finally disposed of in conference
and that he learned. while absent from
Washington on a weekend vacation,
that the amendment had been thrown
out by the conference committee. Senator
Pomerene will have the assistance of
Senator Burton, his Republican colleague
Senator POmerene is very much in
earnest from all appearances. He
sought Senator Clarke of Arkansas yes
terday and had a long conference with
him, with a view of combining forces
with that Senator to protect the wine
amendment and the cotton futures
amendment Senator POmerene believed
that If the two could join forces they
could hold up an agreement on the con-
ference report on the tariff bill until
the two matters were agreed to as a
part Of the tariff legislation.
On the House side several distinct
kinds OF trouble are being breWed for the
conference report Representative Mann,
leader of the minority. or one OF the
other Republican members. probably will
raise d point Of order against the con-
ference report. on the ground that it has
violated the rules Of the conference COM
mittee by 'legislating on a conference
report" 1t is rule Of the conferences
tl.at no new matter shall be injected
into a measure in conference and that an
agreement reached in conference must
i've a compromise entirely within the lin
T. which mark the difference between
the two houses. As to rate OF duty
he rule the Republicans claim. would |
-equire the COnferees to agree on rate
IOl llEltT llldll ilt one gwen Dl tI1F one |
House Of Congress and not lower than !
that Contended for by the other The
Republican leaders have collIted infor- !
nation Oh several amendments that were |
d." dispute. which. they claim, proves |
hat the CUnfcTees have departed from
.he rule Of the conference.
The proceeding that probably will be |
taken by the Republicans will be toi
make a point Of order against the con-
ference report and ask that il he re-
turned to the conference committee to
he revised in conformity with the rules
governing conferences. Il the Speaker
ovcrrulcs this point OF order an appeal
may be taken. and the House will have
to decide whether the Speaker shall be
sustained in his ruling. II the Speaker
rules adversely to the Republicans and
tho House sUStain> the Speaker. the Re !
puhliCans will have exhausted their re-
sources. hut the proceedings in connec- |
tion with the matter will take up time |
and involve some debate. The same |
point of order and the same proceedings |
will probably be gone through with in |
the Senate.
II is expected that when the confer
"nce report is submitted in the House