Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1890-12-05
THE CONGRESS-.
SENATOR PUoH SPEAKS STRONGLY
AGAINST THE FORCE BILL.
Pensions--A Probable Dsflcicncy--The rs
Inmates Unreiiable-The Next Figures
to BE Nearly 100000.
rBy telegraph to the Dispatch.l

4
Bureau 10 examine aud report as 10 the
! phosphate industry of Florida was taken
| up and agreed 10. after being amended so
"a 20 make II apply TO the whole United
| States and 10 direct the Commissioner to
make examination aud report.
| There was a long discussion after which
| the Joint resolution 10 issue arms 90 the
States Of North and South Dakota. Wyo-
ming, and Nebraska for possible use
against the Indians was passed. and then,
| at 2 o'clock, the elections bill was taken
up and Mr.. Pugh addressed the Senate IN
opposition TO it.
PuoH ~ OPPOSITION TO THE FORCE BILL.
In the course Of his remarks Mr.. Pugh
| said that the country could not fail 20 I'M
| derstand the true character and nature Of
| the proposed legislation. II was never in
| tended 20 be put in operation in bepubli-
can districts. IL was founded on one dis
| tinct. substantive proposition, and that
was that State-electiOn officers might be
watched, guarded, and overTuled because
| they were Democrats. and because for that
| reason alone 10 was unsafe to trust them.
| Under It's operation there would not be
single district in the United States from
| which Democrats were elected TO Congress
that would not be subject to supervision
10y partisan Republicans The whole cleo
ton machinery Of the United States would
become partisan and necessarily corrupt.
AN AUDAcIous SCHEME.
| The whole conception Of the bill was
Transparent and audaciOus scheme, having
no other end or purpose than the capture
| OF Democratic districts and their transfer
TO the Republican party IN Congress TO be
used in perpetuating its supremacy in de
| fance to thewill Of the people. He declared
that the intelligent white people Of the
South would prefer the rule of army
officers and white soldiers to the lntolera-
| bic rule Of the infamous horde that would
| be turned loose upon them through the
| outrageous election machinery provided IN
the bill.
| TIE SOUTH DESIRES FAIR ELECTIONS.
! On his responsibility as n man and a
senator he expressed his conviction that
there was not "A State IN the South IN
which, az n rule, there was not an honest
| and earnest desire 10 have fair and free
| elections for members Of Congress and
presidential electors. and that there were
not so many exceptions 10 the rule IN
| southern States and districts as there were
| in northern States and districts. If the
system of local self-goyernment was not
| an established failure. then It was manifest
| that the intelligent and moral white peo-
pie of the South and the State Govern
ments of the South, which were immedi-
ately interested in and sorely afflicted by
| these miserable race complications, wOuld
| have TO be allowed 70 meet and mitigate
| the evil as far as possible.
| THE BLACKS BETTER TREATED SOUTH THAN
NORTH.
He undertook TO say that the black peo-
| pie Of the South were better treated than
| thew would be in the North under like con-
ditions. and he declared in conclusion
| that the wisest and safest course tor both
races was 10 trust 10 the policy Of non-ln-
| reference by the Federal Government.
| After the passage of one or two bills on
| the calendar and a brief executive session,
| the Senate adjourned.
House of Representatives
The unfinished business in tho morning
| hour was the bill for the punishment Of
| every guardian. cOnservatOr, curator, COM
mlttee. tutor, or other fduciary agent for
| embezzlement Of the pension OF a ward.
| The previous question was ordered-yea'
! 1l3. nays 92-and the bill passed.
PENSIONS.
| At the expiration of the morning hour
! the House went into Committee OF the
J Whole on the pension appropriation bill.
/ Mr.. Morrow explained that the bill appro-
! priated for the payment of pensions the
! surn Of S133173,000. lie believed that
| there would be no deficiency next year,
| but. on the contrary, that there would
| prove 90 be q slight excess of appropriations.
| Hesaid this because he ANTICIPATED that gem
| nemen on the other sidewould call attention
| to the fact that there had been apension de,
| dciencv during the last few years and
| claim that il was the purpose OF the Re
| publicans toallowa deficiency tog grown IN
! 1892. lie believed the appropriation TO be
| amply sufficient.
| A PROSPECTIVE DEFICIENCY.
Mr.. Sawyers, Of Texas. argued that the
| estimate Of the Commissioner OF Pensions
| was totallvunreliable. and that the amount
of money required 10 pay pensions would
| be largely in excess of the amount appro,
| priated bv the pending bill. He yentured
| 10 saw that the ffty-second Congress
| would be compelled TO meet adehcency OF
not less than Sl5,0O0,0OO.
TIE ESTIMATES UNRELIABLE.
No man. however honest, could fix with
| in SlOO 600 900 the amount actually 10 be eX-
| pended under this bill. The Commissioners
| had failed TO tell the House what would be
expended in 1890. He had made similar
! failure in 1891, and he would make greater
| failure in 1892 and Democratic Congress
would have to pay the penalty.
THE FIGURES NEARLY Sl75,0OO,OOO,
His conclusion, after careful inyestiga-
ton of the matter, was that instead OF the
| Governments expenditures tor pensions
| being confined TO 1913, 900 they would
be nearer s175,000,O00.
In conclusion, he gave il as his deliberate
Judgment from full investigation of facts
| and figures, together with the experience
| of the House az TO the workings OF the
| Pension Office that if the Commissions
! would work faithfully and energetically
issuing certificates ~ fast as they were pre-
pared for issue, there would inevitably be
a deficiency during 1892 of not less than
| SS5. OO0. 600. which the Democratic House
| would have to meet.
COOPER AGAIN ATTACKS RAUM
Mr.. Cooper. of Indiana, renewed his at
| tack of last session upon PenslOn-Commis-
| sjoner Raum. Referring TO the large force
! of employcs in the Pension Bureau and 10
the vast expenditure ofmoney for pensions,
he said ne proposed TO show why this force
of men should be presided over by man
| of high character and why TINS vast sum
| of money should be disbursed by O man
above criticism and above reproach: 1t
| was his purpose 10 call the attention of the
| country to the fact that the present Com
| missioner Of Pensions was not such per-
son.
| RAUM's ALLEGED BAsCALrrY REVIEWED.
Carving ont this purpose, he quoted
liheralle from the testimony given before
the spccial committee which near the
close of last session had under investiga-
ton his (Coopers) charges against Raum
of favoritism towards one prominent pen
| sion claim agent; of borrowing money
from an attorney who practiced be,
fore the Pension Bureau, and of
floating the stock OF a fraud9,
lent corporation among the employSs
| Of that bureau. He commented sharply
mon this testimony. and paid no atten-
ton TO the objections of Messrs. Cannon
and Sawyer that no report had been made
to the House by the investigating commit
| - - chat the testimony was not a
proper subject of discussionin the absence
Alter some discussion of the status OF
the investigation above referred to the
committee rose and the House aaJourheu'
Amendments to the Force Bill.
ny telegraph to the DispAtchl
| WASHINGTON. December a. - Senator
Faulkner today offered several, amend
ments to the Federal elections bill; o9tn 20
! M. o,obrare the following points: