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Show w TARIFF ON" SUGAR $1,706 Washington, Sept 11 -The duty on Cuban snugar, under the Fordney-MeCumber Fordney-MeCumber tariff bill, will be $ 1 . 7 6 il a hundred pounds, that figure having been definitely agreed upon by the conference committee at its closing session today. This Is a fifty-fifty compromise between the house rate of $1.60 audi the senate rate of $1.84 and the fact that the conference finally fi-nally consented, to raise the house rale was due almost entirely to the efforts of Senator Reed Smoot, of Utah. Sugar was one of the last items disposed dis-posed of by the conference and sentiment sen-timent in the conference committee was inclined toward the house rate, especially because of the general clamor that has come back to Washington Wash-ington since the sugar fight was staged stag-ed in the senate. Senator Smoot was further handicapped in his fight for a rate higher than that fixed by the house because the senate only adopted adopt-ed the $184 rate by a majority or two votes, and the change of a single vote would' have defeated the Smoot contended all along by the Memo-in Memo-in the senate. The fact that the conference has come to an agreement, probobly insures in-sures the ultimate adoption of the rate of $1,766 a hundred, as this compromise is a consession to both sides and the difference between this and the house rate, which was the minimum that the conference could fix. is so small as to amount to very little on the pound and very little to the. customer, assuming the consumer con-sumer pays the tariff, as has been contended all along b ythe Democrats Demo-crats of the senate. The fact that the conference left the rate on wool at 31 cents a pound, 6 cents above the house rate and only 2 cents under the senate rate, is a reflection of the influence of the farm bloc. At no time did the house conferees con-ferees seek to cut, the wool rate to the original house figures, but they did try to reduce it to 28 cents a pound; and later agreed to go as high as 30 cents, but the farm bloc refused to accept either of these' figures, fi-gures, and the rate now retained Is reasonably satisfactory to the higher protectionists of the senate and it is quite satisfactory to most Western Republicans. The compromise wool rate is going to be assailed- by Democrats Dem-ocrats when the conference report reaches the senate, but ultimate adoption ad-option of that rate seems assuerd. On the whole the farm bloc won out in its fight for higher rates on agricultural agri-cultural products and not many of the important, farm duties voted by the senate were reduced by the conference con-ference committee; none of them was cut excessively. |