Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-12-20
CONGRESS- IN DEADLOCK.
THE HOUSES AT OUTS OVER THE
NAVAL APPROPRIATION

A Possibility that the Members Nav
Cheat Themselves Out of Their UsuaI
holiday vFrOlic-Inter-StateC Commerce
Talk Devoted to the Pooling Arrange
ments.
WASHINGTON. Dec. l9.-It has been taken
Tor granted that the Senate would quietly ac-
quiesee IN the determination of the House to
adjourn over from to morrow until Jan. ), but
as matter Of fact the Senate has not as vet
adopted the resolution of the House providing
Tor TINS holiday recess, and there is a strong
prooaOlllty thsst 1t may not be agreed to- The
trouble IS that the two houses are at logger
heads over the naval appropriation bill, and
that unless an agreement is reached before
Congress takes its holiday recess, the Navy De-
partment Will be without available funds on
Jan /. The House passed a bill continuing
the appropriations for the Navy Department
(Which were continued last session from Julv
Ies4, to January, 1855 from January. 1885, to
July. 1885. To this the Senate added amend
ments, making provision for the steel cruisers
monitors and other things recommended by
the Navy Department. To these amendments
the House disagreed. To-day the conference
committee appointed to arbitrate the differ
ences OF the two houses could only agree to
disagree. The Senate by almost a Unanimous
vote, the ayes and nays being had, in
strueted its conferees to INSIST uDon
It's amendments. The House will not recede
from Its position in this condition of affairs.
The Republicans of the Senate say that thev
DO not propose to agree to auy adiourn1nent
over the holidays unless the naval aDDroDria-
tlons shall first be made. The deadlock
promises to continue for several days at the
least. Many members of the House have
already gone home on the theory that the
reces IS proposed by the House would be agreed
70 by the Senate. Members who are here saw
that IN case the Senate proves stubborn the
House VIII simply meet once every three days,
NOT A PARTY ISSUE.
The ponfaraas of ba turo ho,,,o.
session for an hour more tO-day. The issue is
radical one, the division being not upOn mar
" lines, but squarey between the two houses
Ihe position taken by the Senate is that il is
unwlse and inconsistent to make provision for
the navy for the next six months upon the
OASIS OF an appropriation bill framed two
Years ago Dy the House, as the temporary
House bill proposes to do. The Senate con-
ferees pointed TO the fact that the estimates
for the present year are widely different from
those of the year before, and that no such
emergency exists at this stage of the session
requiring as hastY action as that which made
1t necessary on the last day of the last session,
The House cOnfeFees while willing to itemZe
the next six months appropriations on the
basis of the items for which appropriations
have been made for the six months which ex-
pire Dec. 81, objected to making apprOpria-
tions for the next six months upon new and
dIHerent Items OF appropriations from those
under which the navy is now being main
tanned. The Senate plan, they said, would
open up Tor consideration by the conferees
the following subjects not embraced in
the six months appropriation of the
last session: Steel cruisers and
the completion of monitors $4,000
breech- loading guns $l00, 900, and machine
guns $4,000, and other subjects, making a
total of IS, 1854. The House conferees say
that by their stand they eliminate these items
from present consideration between the two
houses, and remit them for the struggle on the
annual appropriation bill for the support of
the navy for the next fiscal year. 1t is pos
slble that the navy, therefore, will be without
funds on JAN l.