Mr. SPRAGUE. Mr. President, I take the gentleman at his own word and will endeavor to make it out. if I recollect his argument as to crash, it was that we were upon terms of amity with Russia and we should continue those relations, and therefore should so arrange the duties as to continue to import crash from Russia. Was this otherwise than for the purpose of protecting commerce? Is not that an element which does protect commerce? The Senator has risen in his seat several times and declared that the commercial interests of the country demand attention as well as the manufacturing. It seemedto be a topic with him throughout nearly all of yesterday afternoon to defend commerce. think the Senfrom Ohio and the Senfrom Maine are both mistaken in the suggestions they made on that point. I complain of this tariff because the Senfrom Maine and the ComFinance have been pressed by organizations which have forced the articles of iron and steel up to a rate of duties so great as to prohibit almost entirely the introduction of those commodities into this country; and while doing that they seem to forget that the articles of iron and steel and wool enter largely into the production of cottons and of linens; and yet we find that by the wisdom of this committee and of the commissioner the duties on the latter articles are reduced. The Senator tells us this was in accordance with the recommendation of the cotton interest. Did the cotton interest know that a large proportion of the material that they were to employ in the production of their cot tons was to be advanced and they not get a corresponding advance in the protection of industry? their So of the linen interest. Another thing which the Senator has forgot ten and which the country does not seem to understand is, that prior to the war the importation of coarser cottons was driven from the market by the production of those cottons in this country, and the consequence was that the English machinery was put upon a different kind of commodity, a finer article. Now, however, the English manufacturer and his agents have been to this country, and we find him producing upon plans that have become stereo typed and acceptable in the markets of this country, and introducing here today every article known to American industry, and from 20 to 30%. lower than we can produce it. The reason of this is because certain styles become popular. In the construction of a locomotive, for example, the people of this country demand a certain style and model and will go abroad for it; and the English manufacturer will come here, take styles that are acceptable to our people and go abroad and manufacture them and send them here. In this way.workshop in this country may be destroyed under the present system. When I say so I speak what I know. By this bill you enhance the value of a mate rial part of the products that enter into the manufacture of cottons and linens. Did the cotton and linen manufacturers understand that when they said they were satisfied? certainly not. I think this is a commercial tariff, for the reason that it will give to foreign nations and to what commerce we now have the carrying trade of materials that have heretofore been manufactured and produced in this country. They will be produced abroad, and foreign commerce will be used to introduce them into this country; and why? Because of the sickly sentimental idea that prevails here that you are to pay off the of debt in a hurry, and that you must tax the people more heavily for that purpose, and continue to tax, tax, tax with that view. Have you not taxed them sufficiently during the war? Have you not drawn from them 1/2 of their property l Must you continue that policy? Must you drive from employment every laboring man in this country. send all our work abroad to be done? Why, sir, what is the condition of the immi nts who arrive in our ports from Europe? f. they remain here? Is it not a starth ng fact that many of them return to take the pit tance their labor receives on the other side of the water? Why is it? It is because of the increased demand for their labor there to produce supplies for this country. That is the reason they go back, and they will continue to go back; and instead of coming here they will remain there, and many now here will find great difficulty in getting labor to enable them to purchase the supplies necessary for their subsistence.