, 1888-08-03
Congresslonal.

WASHINGTON, Aug. 1.-The house to-
day proceeded to the consideration of the
senate amendments to the army appropri-
alton bill and they were non. concurred IN
and a conference ordered. The house
then went into committee of the whole on
the deficiency appropriation bill.
In speaking to a formal amendment,
Hoveyof Indiana replied to a speech pub
lished in the Congressional Record of
Sunday last purporting to have been de.
livered in the house on the preceding
Saturday by Representative Matson of
Indiana on the subject of pensions. 1t
was not necessary, said Hovey, to remind
the gentlemen that no such speech had
ever been delivered. Hovey then pro-
ceeded to make an extremely lively attack
on the Democratic pension policy and
President Cleveland.
Hovey said the gentleman had labored
to show that the Democratic party was
and had been the friend of the ex-soldier
of the United States. In that herculean
task it was no wonder that the gentleman
had preferred to print his speeches in the
Record rather than to meet with prompt
replies to his bold assertions. There
could not be found an intelligent man who
did not fully know and understand the
dItlluuu VI tic respective parties Ou tnls
subject and that the Democratic party
from the president down was strongly OPP.
posed to all pension legislation. That
there had been a studied and systematic
course taken by the Democrats of the
house against all general pension legisla-
ton could not be honestly denied. He
criticized the committee on rules for not
reporting the resolution assigning the day
for the consideration of pension legisla-
ton, and he declared that the petitions
and prayers of thousands of soldiers re.
NAMED unread and disregarded. The his
tory of legislation presented no parallel
to this outrage on the rights of the peo-
pie. The Democrats did not dare to vote
On these general pension bills because
they knew that every northern Democrat
who voted against them would sound his
own death knell. They knew they would
be in danger of vetoes either from their
president or their constituents.
Hovey then proceeded to argue that the
Mills bill, should it become a law, would
destroy all the hopes that the soldiers
might have of pension legislation. There
would be no surplus on hand wherewith
to pay pensions. He then analysed sey-
eral of the presidents vetoes to substau-
tate the declaration that in each of them
the president virtually accused the claim
ants and witnesses of perjury. If Cleve.
land was not shielded by his presidential
mantle action for libel could be main
tanned against him in any court of Justice.
In conclusion, he declared the Republican
party to be the party of the soldiers and
that the speech of his colleague could not
convince them to the contrary.
Mckinney of New Hampshire defend
ed the president from being the enemy OF
the soldier. He had during his term of
Office signed 1854 private bills as against
1924 signed by all the Republican presi-
dents from Lincoln to Arthur. He signed
bills carrying general pension legislation
which applied to l44, 800 persons.
McCutcheOn declared that every man,
woman and child whose names were on
the pension rolls owe their
position to the Republican party, and not
a name had been added by the Demo
cratic party, except of those persons
whose names lad been restored to rolls
after participation in the rebellion against
the government.
The debate then turned upon the tariff
question and the rebel battle flags. and
without further action the committee rose
and the house adjourned.
In the senate to-day Stewards resOlu-
ton, offered yesterday, calling on the sec
rotary of the interior for information as to
cancelled desert land applications, was
taken up and adopted.
Several bills we're passed, including the
senate bill providing for an additional
associate justice of the Supreme Court of
Wyoming.