Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1886-05-19
FORTY-NINTH CONGRESS-.
sen ATE,

NJ r., WASHINGTON. May 49,
"r. male introduced today memorial from
several steamship companies. Mr. Hale de.
nieu squarely what had been stated thar
a.teunp.s a mad been made to improperly ia.
huence Congress in favor of what was called
SUBSIDIES. Mr.. Hale wished to saw in con-
nectioh with the recent action of the Senate
lnregard tooreign mails that if this great fort
10 revise American commerce prevailed in
congress it would notbe done blythe influence
OF any lobby. 1t could only come obout be
cause the American people were growing
more and more interested in the subject, and
sooher or later Congress would have to re-
spond to popular demand.
Mr. Hosr presented the petition of the Neu
England Methodist Episcopal conference,
urging the United States to enforce the terms
vi the Chinese treaty so as to protect the
iiVes and property of Chinese subjects in
the United States; referred.
The Ssnate then proceeded to the calendar.
ne Dill In order was the Staten Island bridge
bill.
MIR. Mcpherson objected to its being taken
was necessarily absent,
Mr.. Frye moved the yeos and nays and the
result was, yeas, %; nays, "a.
The bill, on motion of Mr. Harrison. was
permitted to retain its place on the calendar
AT two O'Clock the pension bill was placed
before the Senate, but was temporarily laid
aside to permit Mr. Coke to andress the Sen
ate In favor of the House labor arbitration
bill.
After some remarks by Mr.. Logan outlin-
ing substitute for the bill which be would
submit at proper time, the pension bill was
laid before the Senate
The pending amendment is that of Mr..
Blair to the amendment of Mr. Van Wyck.
Mr.. Van Wycks amendment is to add to the
bill proviso that no soldier under the act
should hereafter receive less than $S pei
month. The amendment proposed by Mr.
Blair IS to provide instead that no pension
paid hereafter under any law to any soldier
should be rated at less than 81 month.
Mr.. Mcpherson said that the Senate was
not definitely informed as to the amount the
bill would take from the treas.
ury. In order to get some information as to
the approximate amount he moved that the
bill be recommitted to the committee on pen.
sions.
A discussion arose as to the precise mean.
ing of certain provisions Of the bill, but
without action, on Mr.. Mcpherson motion,
the Senate at $50 went into executive session.
After an hour SO spent the doors were re-
opened and the Senate adjourned.
HOUSE.
The House went into committee of the
whole ON the post Office appropriation bill, to
consider the Senate amendments thereto.
MIR. Blount spoke against the clause know n
as the subsidy amendment.
Mr.. Burrows of Michigan in supervising
the amendment drew a comparison between
the pay for mail service to the coastwise com.
panies and that allowed to foreign mail com.
panies. All this talk about subsidy was sim.
ply an appeal to prejudice instead of an ap-
peal to reason Of a reasonable man. The
United States paid more for mail service be-
tween Tampa and Key West than was paid to
all the American lines in Atlantic
commerce, or in commerce between the United
States and South and Central America. II
paid more for services between San Francisco
and Sacramento than was paid to American
lines from San Francisco to Hong Kong and
to Panama and to Mexico and it paid $4,000
more for services from Tacoma to Por,
Townsend than was paid to the whole Amer
lean Pacific service. He then passed on tc
the consideration of the necessity of extend
ing our commercial relations with the states
of Mexico and Central and South America
and maintained that the increase IN facilities
for mail transportation would have tendency
to extend our trade with those states. In q
years Great Britain mad paid S32 ,500,0 ,060 fol
mail service to South and Central America
while in the same time the United States haC
paid tor the same service only S350.000. The
trade was almost completely monopolized b,
Great Britain, while the percentage of the
trade of the United States was insignificant
Of the 1857 900. 900 of manufactures imported
into Chill the United States only furnished
four per cent. This was attributed to tht
fact that the United States had no communi
cation with Chill, and the moment an appro
priation came which would permit the ex
tension of steamship lines to that country VI
went the cry of subsidy. He would not per
nit England to hold this market on tn,
threshold of this country If, by paving Ia lib
ersl compensation for the carrying of tn
United States mails, they could rescue thi
trade from her.
Messrs Wakefield of Minnesota, Riggs e
Illinois and Guenther of Wisconsin spok,
against the amendment and pending further
dis scussion the committee rose and the Hous
or 4 Az adlourned