Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-04-30
A TILT In THE HOUSE.
SPEAKER REED AND THE sOUTHERNERs
FALL OUT.
Harrison Sends In a Veto of a Public Build.
Ing Bill for Dallas, Texas-The Reasons
for the Step are Given Mt n Great


Ing Bill for Dallas, Texa.-The Reasons
for the Step are Given Mt n Great
Length.
IRON A STAFF CORRESPONDENCE
WASHINGTON. April 29-The monotony of
the House proceedings was enlivened to-
day by one of those breaches of decorum which
were So frequent during the memorable days
when Speaker Reed was counting quorums
and deciding points of order without any rules,
and when the mildest epithets hurled at him
were ''usurper," "tyrant' and "Czar." Mr..
Pierce of Tennessee, wanted to get Ill little
campaign speech for himself by means of the
old trick of rising to question of personal
privilege" 1t was the first time Mr.. Pierce
had been heard from, and there was some Curl
osity to hear who had attacked so obscure a
Congressman. There was a litter even on the
Democratic side when he desired to speak
to question of personal privilege on
the ground that Mr.. Evans, of Tennessee, had
the other day alleged that there was ballot box
stuff1ng in Mr.. Pierce's district. There was no
allegation that the stuffing was done by Pierce
OF in Pierce's interest, or that it was at the
Congressional election at all, and the absurdity
of Pierces making of Evans words a personal
attack on him was apparent at once to every
body OF course the Speaker ruled that the
matter did not constitute question of personal
privilege. Mr.. Pierce insultingly and bluntly
declared that 1t did. Speaker Reed gently
suggested that this was not proper language to
use to the Chair and then Mills of Texas, took
hand. Mills has not been heard from for
some time and he was getting tired of not being
noticed. After several fiat contradictions of
the Speaker, the latter said sternly: The
gentleman from Texas will please be in order"
II am IN order.n shouted Mills. coarsely, "and
the Speaker is out of order more than the gen.
tleman from Texas. The Speaker is disorderly
and the ruling is an outrage"
Reed looked down on Mills with an expression
of profound compassion, and turned to other
business This is the first insulting outbreak
against the Speaker since the early days of
Congress. The interval has been marked by
the greatest courtesy, as it was founu that
Speaker Reed at no time attempted to employ
the rules to defeat any OF the real rlgntS OF tne
minority. 1t is curious that every insult offered
to Speaker Reed at any time has come from
Southern Democrat. Even during the days of
highest excitement no orthern Democrat was
at any time guilty of breach of decency and
courtesy The insult of Mills to-day. however,
is condemned even by his Southern colleagues
as inexcusable, as the Speaker was clearly
right in his ruling.
Another Veto From Harrison.
president HARRISON to-day vetoed pub
lie building bill for Dallas. Tex. The fol-
lowing is the text of the message:
81 return without my approval the bill of the
House, No. S4S to authorize the construction
of an addition to the public building at Dallas,
Tex. The bill authorizes the construction of a
wing or addition to the present public building
at a cost of 100000. 1 find that the bill. as
originally introduced by the member
representing the Congressional district
in which Dallas is situated fixes
100000 as the limit of the proposed
expense. and it was SO reported from the Com
mitree on Public Buildings, after conference
with the Supervising, Architect of the Treasury.
A bill of the same tenor was introduced in
Senate by one of the Senators from that State
fixing the same limit of expense. The public
building at Dallas, for which the first appro-
priation of SlO0,0U0 was made in 1882, and subse-
quently increased to Sl250O0, was only COM
pleted in 1889. 1t is probably inadequate now
to the convenient transaction of business,
chiefly in the part assigned to the postoftice.
Of Hs any Ateit addition ans is 1ed by the pres ye
ent building and its ground area by
the available unoccupied space as no provision
is made for buying additional ground. The
Witwer, the postmaster, and custodian of the
building. writing to the Supervising Architect,
advises that to meet the present and future
needs of the Government an addition at least
two-thirds as large as the present building
should be provided. 1t will be seen from the
following extract from the letter of the Super
yising Architect to the Chairman of the Senate
Committee on Public Buildings, dated Febru-
ary II, 1890, that building larger than that
s ggested can be constructed within the limit
of 100000. He says:
The Architects Idens.
UERoM computations made at this office
based upon data received, it is found
that an extension or wing of e5 feet, three sto-
ries high. with basement giving 3,4OO square
feet in addition TO the 4,76O square feet of the
first floor of the building, of fireproof con-
struction, can be erected on the present site
within the limit Of cost proposed by the said
BILL viz, s100 000.'
1T may be possible that expenditure of
1926, 900 for public building at Dallas, if the
question of site, materials and architecture
were all understood, could be defended, but
under existing conditions 1 do not see how
an appropriation of 100000 could be Justified
when one-half of that sum is plainly adequate
to such relief as the present site allows. The
legislation for the erection Of public buildings
has not proceeded, as far as / can trace it, upon
any general rule. Neither population nor the
extent of public business transacted has al
ways indicated the points where public build
ings were first to he built or the cost of struc-
ture. 1t cannot be expected, in absence of
some general law. a committee of Congress in
charge of such matters will proceed in their
recommendations upon strict and equal lines.
The bills are individual, and if comparisons
are attempted the necessary element Of prob
able growth is made to cover all apparent in
enualitips