People's Pilot, Volume 4, Number 6, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 27 July 1894 — FROM WASHINGTON. [ARTICLE]

FROM WASHINGTON.

An Interesting Batch of News From the Capitol. From our Regular Correspondent. Washington, July 20, 1894. The tariff bill is either dangerously near death or some very heavy bluffing is being indulged in. The disagreement which the conference committee has reported leaves one in doubt as to which is the real situation. While the disagreement is in toto it is known that if an agreement could have been reached on sugar, coal and iron ore there would have been little difficulty in fixing up the other amendments. If the House insists upon the stand taken by its conferees as to sugar, coal and iron ore there will be no tariff bill passed, as in addition to the six or eight democratic Senators who forced the acceptance of amendments placing duty upon those articles upon their party colleagues in the Senate, the solid republican vote can be depended upon to support them in their demand that those amendments remain in the bill.

• • • Arizona and New Mexico are not to be left out. The Senate committees on Territories has directed that bills for their admission, similar to that passed 'or the admission of Utah, be prepared and submitted at its next meeting. 9 m o Secretary Carlisle's recent intimation that he would, if the tariff bill imposed a duty on foreign sugar, as it now does, collect that duty on all foreign sugar regardless of any reciprocity treaties, has aroused considerable interest among those who are fond of discussing intricate phases of international law. It is contended by those who uphold the Secretary's position that unless specifically excepted in the tariff bill itself no previously existing treaty can save the payment of any duties imposed by that bill. A lawyer discussing the matter said: “It will be nothing new or strange for Congress to repudiate a treaty obligation. It repudiated the obligations of the first treaty the country ever entered into, not only by default in its obligations, but by the making of a conflicting treaty and then by the passage of a non-intercourse act. In a somewhat similar manner it repudiated the Jay treaty of 1794. So far as its own citizens were concerned it similarly re*

pudiated the obligations of the treaty of 1803 with France and likewise that of 1819 with Spain, and there are today many American citizens holding valid legal claims against the U. S. growing out of the treaty of 1819, which Congress has persistently repudiated, and which are today an obstacle in our diplomatic intercourse with Spain. A more outrageous breach of national treaty obligations cannot be found than the act of March 3, 1891, establishing a court of private land claims in New Mexico and Arizona. Of course Congress will not hesitate to pass a bill ignoring the reciprocity treaty obligations, and the sufferers will be helplessly left to their diplomatic remedies.” This indictment is not complimentary to Congress, but it appears to be a true one. • • • The Senate before passing the Agricultural appropriation bill adopted Senator Hansbrougn's amendment appropriating sl,000,000, for the destruction of Russian thistle and cactus, the money to be spent under the direction of the governors of slates in which the cactus has obtained a foothold.

• • • Representatives Erdman, Talbert, Kiefer and Gardner, sitting as a subcommittee of the House committee on labor, have devoted the greater part of this week to hearing arguments upon the several bills providing for compulsory arbitration and otherwise regulating the relations be tween employer and employe. It is not regarded as probable that any definite action will be taken on any of these bills at the present session of Congress. • • • The reception of a letter from Representative Denson, of Alabama, who is now at his home, declaring his abandonment of the democratic party and intention to act with the populists, is the first confirmation of the reports current for some time as to the intention of southern democratic Congressmen to become populists, and as such it has excited much interest and everybody seems anxious to know T how many will follow Mr. Denson’s lead. In Mr. Denson’s case it is considered largely a case of self preservation, as at the election of ’92 he received only about 1,800 more votes than his populist competitor. He is satisfied that the Congressmen elected by his district this year will be a populist, and he is perfectly willing to be the man.

• • • Senator George has introduced a joint resolution providing for an amendment to the constitution, making eight hours constitute a legal day’s, work for all persons doing manual labor. • • • Many people were surprised when the tw’o democratic members of the Senate investigating committee tried to prevent the reopening of the sugar trust investigation, to investigate the new r charge that oiders for the purchase of sugar trust stock written by Senator Camden, of W. Va., who swore that he never bought sugar stock, are in the possession of New York brokers; also that Senator Camden did not promptly demand that the new charge be thoroughly looked into.