Democratic Sentinel, Volume 18, Number 2, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 26 January 1894 — AMENDMENTS AFOOT. [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

AMENDMENTS AFOOT.

HOUSE STRUGGLING WITH THE WILSON BILL. Sugar, Coal and Iron Are Bone* of Contention—lnecme Tax Will Cause a Sharp Battle—Pensions Estimate la Considerably Lowered. Outline o' Work. Washington correspondent e:

HE House still struggles with tho Wilson bill and a multitude of proposed amendments. Tho sugar men ato loud, in tbeir objecti: n, led by Messrs. Boitnsr and Price. Their real reliance, hoaever, i< upon the solid block of lEaslorn members, Vh j arc opposed to .an inc .me tax, and ‘who prefer a revenue duty on sugar as the safer alter-; native. If the seventy or eighty mem-

bers who are against the income tax will vote solidly for the sugar duty, it will require only thirty or forty Southern and Western members to make a majority on the Democratic side. It would be a happy solution of the problem of providing revenue, in the opinion of the Eastern members of the committee, and would practically knock the income tax in the head. The Republicans can turn the scale heavily in either direction, and the Eastern Democrats fear that they will turn it against the sugar duty. Some of the Soqthern members, moreover, who m’ght-be willing to vote for the sugar duty under certain conditions, are seeing ‘‘the nigger in the woodpile” as clearly as their Eastern friends and may vote against the sugar duty te save the income tax. Another class of members, including some from the East, believe that it is better to let the bill go through tho House with sugar free of duty and to leave to the Senate the task of putting on the duty and striking out the income tax. They reason that the Senate is certain to tako this action, and that if the withdrawal of free sugar proves unpopular with the masses the Senators can bear the burden much more easily than members of the who have to deal directly with the people and many of whom live in clot e districts. The fight for a duty on coal and iron ore is being hotly waged and a big rail- 1 road lobby is urging in the strongest terms that the duty he restored. The persistent labor of" the lobby with individual members in favor of the duty is having some effect upon doubtful members, but the committee in this case will have tho advantage of the radical free-trade vote, besides the conservative Eastern vote, which has been steadily with them.

Routine Proceedings. Friday was a day of amusing incidents and exciting debates in the Hou e. Mr. Dalzell continued his remarks specifying certain discrepancies between the theory and practice of Mr. Johnson. Mr. Johnson briefly replied, denying the allegations in detail and deprecating the policy of dragging personalities Into a tariff debate. He closed by making another plea to place steel rails on the free list. Mr. Wilson, of West Virginia, made the principal speech in opposition. He pleaded earnestly that the work of the Committee on Ways and Means should not be altered without due consideration. The amendment placing steel rails on the free list was defeated by a voto of 79 to 100. Mr. Henderson offered as an amendment to the- agricultural schedule of the Wilson bill tho corresponding clause in the McKinley law. This gave rise to some oxciting colloquies, but no action was taken. Unimportant speeches were made at the evening session. 'there was a larger number of members present than for some time past. An agreement was then entered into whereby three hours, lmmedlatelv after the House goes into committee of the whole Monday, will be given to debato on the sugar schedule, and the vote will then be taken on any amendments which may be offered.

A hill for two additional judges for the Chicago district and circuit courts was in-, trodncM in the Senate by request Mr. Teller talked for nearly three hours on his resolution declaring an issue of bonds by Carlis'e illegal. Sugar was discussed in the House. Amendments striking out the bounty and putting refined on the free list were adopted. A memorial of the Hawaiian Patriotic League was transmitted to Congress, with other correspondence, by the President j Wheelor H. Peckham. of New York, was nominated for the vacant supremo court justiceship by the President Text of the internal revenue bill as reported to the full ways and means committee was given to the public. Mr. Bell, of Olotado. introduced in the House a bill to provide for the withdrawal of the discretionary power of the Secretary of the Treasury to issue bonds, to provide for the coinage of all silver in the treasury, for the issue of non-interest bearing treasury notes for current expenses, to protect the gold reserve and to give immediate relief to the treasury. The House Tuesday determined upon the abolition of the duty upon refined sugar. A way out of the confusion which existed upon the effect of the amendment adopted Monday night was found after a two hours’ discussion of the parliamentary situation by submitting the question to the House whether the Warner amend-, ment, placing refined sugar dn the free list, should be considered as a substitute for the Robertson amendment This was decided affirmatively, and then by an overwhelming vote in which the Republicans joined with the radical Democrais against the sugar men and several of the Ways and Means Committee, the substitute was adopted. With regard to the sugar schedule, therefore, the committee of the whole has abolished the bounty, and placed all sugar, both raw and refined, upon the free list. All four of the amendments designed to place a duty of from 40 to 75 cents a ton upon coal were beaten. The debate upon the coal schedule developed a good deal of feeling among the Southern t -übers. especially those from Virginia. West Virginia. Tennessee, and Alabama, States interested either In coal or iron ore. The Senate's work was little.