The Washington herald., 1913-09-25
PRESIDENT SMOOTHES
CONFERENCE DISPUTES
MIR. Wilson Confers with Messrs. Un-
derwOOd and Simmons and Recon-
Giles Important Differences.
SENATE YIELDS AMENDMENTS

| SLNhIL ItLLDS ANlENDmENI y
President Wilson yesterday came to
the relief of the conference committee
on the tariff bill and helped to solve
come to the point at noon where there
was sharp disagreement between the
Senate and House cOnferees over no
fewer than ten important matters in
the customs ADMINISTRATION features of
the bill, Chairman Simmons and Repre-
sentative Underwood sought the Presi-
dents advice, and, after conference
of about two hours, carried back to
the conference committee at the Capitol
suggestions that resulted in speedy
agreement on practically all of the ad-
ministrative matters that were in dis
lpute. .
In the solution of the difficulties
worked out under the Presidents di-
rection or with his advice. the Senate
lost many of its most important
amendments in the administrative part
of the tariff bill. Still others mate
rally were modified.
The amendment put into the bill by
the Senate excluding absolutely the
products of convict labor or of child Ia
I
of fourteen. when imported from coun-
| tries having no laws regulating child
labor, was modified so that the child
labor feature was left out entirely and
| only convict-made goods excluded. In
! this form il was agreed on.
/ The Senate amendment, known as
| the retaliatory provision, which was
put into the bill as a substitute for
| the maximum and minimum tariff pro-
I 1rfn llt
out of the bill entirely as the result
of the visit to the White House This
| provision authorized the President to
| impose certain duties upon certain
specified articles. whenever he ascer-
! tained as a fact that any foreign coun-
try was discriminating against export
trade to that country frormNthe United
States by, imposing restrictions, regu-
| Iations. or exactiOns upon such ex-
ports.
A material modification was made IN
the provision Of the House bill allowing
discount of per cent on all<goods i'm
ported in vessels admitted to regtstra-
ton under the laws of the United States.
The House put this provision in. but
when it was attacked by foreign coun-
| tries as a violation OF existing treaty
rights, the Senate struck it out. The
conferees restored 1t, with proviso that
| it should apply only to countries with
which the United States had no treaties,
the language of which is inconsistent
| with the proposed legislation.
TIE Senate also receded from Its
amendment admitting denatured alcohol
\ free of duty. but secured an agreement
with the House conferees for the reten-
ton of the Senate amendment, which re-
moves certain troublesome and burden
some restrictions in the way of internal
revenue regulations on the production of
denatured alcohol in the United States.
This amendment is intended to encourage
| farmers to produce domestic denatured
alcohol
i One of the most important sacrifices
made by the Senate as a result of the
agreement was for the striking out of its
amendment creating a joint committee
| of the House \and Senate to investigate.
revise and codify the customs admins
| trative laws. On the insistence of the
House members of the conference, this
amendment went out of the bill.
1t is understood that the Senate finally
has receded from its amendment increas-
ing the drawback duty from per cent to
3 per- cent, and it will continue as the
House left it and as it is in the existing
| law, at l per cent
The Senate amendment. making II un-
lawful to make agreements for contin-
gent fees based on the recovery or re-
| fund of customs dues under protest,
was accepted by the House. In the main,
the House conferees won a victory in
the settlement of the administrative fea-
lures of the law. In the matter of the
tax or duty authorized to be levied on
articles which are the growth or manu-
facture of the Philippine Islands, the
Senate had made an amendment strik-
ing out of the proviso sentence which
admitted free OF duty the manufactures
of tobacco which contained not more than
20 per cent Of foreign material. This was
restored.
An amendment to the zinc paragraphs
which provided for the smelling of ores
in bond that had been inserted in the
bill by the Senate was struck out in con-
ference.
The satisfactory progress made yes
terday by the conference committee en-
eouraged Senator Simmons to predict last
night that a final agreement by the
Democratic members of the conference
committee probably would be reached to-
day, and that the Republican conferees
would be called in not later than Friday
or Saturday. The bill may be reported
to the House this week, but it is thought
more probable that 1t will not be sub
mitted until Monday 1t may be that a
partial report will be made by the con-
ferees before the close of this week to
enable the Senate and House to instruct
the ~conferees on the cotton futures tax,
which still is in disagreement.
The night session of the conferees ad-
journed at midnight after the income
tax section had been completed. with the
exception of the family exemptions put
in by the Senate
Under a Compromise, the return prem
iun1s on mutual life insurance policies
and those issued by marine companies
will be exempt from taxation.
The conferees agreed to vote on all con-
tested questions today. No action was
taken on the dumping clause.