The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-05-06
WORK OF THE HoUS g.
The Debate on the River and Harbor
Bill Resumed.

went into committee of the whole, with Mr..
Hatch Of Missouri in the chair, on the river
aud harbor appropriation bill Further
general debate was limited to two hours,
and Mr.. Holman of Indiana took the floor
in opposition TO the measure.
he attacked the bill as being an extrava-
CANT one. 1t not only appropriated more
than S2l 100000 but it authorized contracts
to be made which would make the govern
ment liable for s26, ,O0O,0 600 more In con-
nection with the bill he sent to the clerks
desk and had read a letter from E. w. Leon
ard of Port Huron, Mich. to Representa-
tive Whiting thanking him for his opDosi-
tlon to the proposal to make 2l-foot chan
mel across Lake st. Claire, a distance of
thirty miles. This channel would have TO
be made with piers of wood or stone on
both sides. 1t would cost at least $72, ,OOO,-
900, and if the piers were of stone it would
cost $500, 100000. Again, at Beer Point in
Lake Erie, there would be ten miles of
piers and five feet of dredging;
and at the 500 river fifty miles of piers
At the foot Of Lake Huron there would
have to be about three miles OF piers. These
ninety-three miles of wooden piers. with the
necessary dredging, would cost 81, 10000
mile. which amounted to the enormous sum
of S2S2, 500, 900, and in five years the work
would not be worth a button on a soldiers
coat for the navigation of 2l-foot vessels.
ADVOCATED BY A BUFFALO MAN.
Mr.. Whiting of Michigan joined in Mr..
Holman's opposition to the 2l-foot lake
channel proposition, while Mr.. Lockwood Of
the Buffalo district, New York, strongly
advocated it and disputed the value of the
expense made by the previous speakers.
Mr.. Breckinridge of Kentucky had too
short a time accorded him to attack the
bill in detail, but he said that if the demo-
cratic House wished TO pass the bill it
should act frankly with the people and tell
them that the measure involved an appro-
priation of SAT ,000 900 and not of $2l ,000,-
| let the Democratic party 90 before the
country and say so, and not declare
that this was an economical congress and
had appropriated only $2l 100000. Let the
democrats frankly say that the bill was one
which obliged the treasury to pay out S47, =
| 100000. The gentlemen must remember
that under our form Of government the
! making of contract was precisely the same
as an appropriation of money to carry out
that contract. The Democratic party owed
it to the people to deal with them with
! frankness.
| CATCHINGs SCORES HOLMAN.
| Mr. Catchings of Mississippi in defending
| the bill paid his respects to Mr.. Holman.
The gentleman from Indiana, he said, OPP
posed the measure, as he did every other
measure which was step toward the ad-
vancement of the country. Under the con-
tract system, which had been assailed by
the gentleman from Indiana, there would
be a saving to the government of not less
than SIC, ,0O00 900 or $4,000, 900 in the com-
pletion of the work. Nobody supposed that
the House was appropriatIng $47, ,000,-
000 Ii the bill became law it would not
| carry more tnan $4,000 900 or
$24, 100000. OF the S26, ,000, 900 authorized
to be placed under contract no more than
So, 900, 900 or 81, 100000 would be submitted
to congress for appropriations at the next
session. As to the Mississippi river the bill
did not provide that the levees should be
try from overflow. The gentleman from
Indiana could not argue the question fairly.
He was so warped, 30 biased so prejudiced
| in his mind against this work that it was
utterly impossible for him, desirous as be
might be to be fair, TO state fairly the truth
with regard to the improvement of the Mis-
slssippl river.
WHAT MISSISSIPPI HAS PAID.
The people of his (Mr. CatchingsD dis
trict had expended 800 where the govern
ment of the United States had expended 81
on levees, and that was true with reference
| to the whole of the lower valley OF the Mis-
diana would seriously have the House
believe that the government was asked ab-
| solutely to build the ievees entirely, with
out any contribution from the people Of
Mississippi, to protect themselves
from overfows. Why, if the people
of Mississippi depended upon the
general government to protect
them from overflow they would be COM
PEELED to move out of the Mississippi valley.
The government had not expended enough
money to build levees along one-teuth OF
the distance on one side of the river alone,
whereas, the people living in the valley had
leveed the river on both sides from Cairo to
the gulf, except the front, known as ST.
| Francis basin. 1t was true that these levees
were not as large or as strong as they should
be. but the work was being pushed forward
steadily.
TRIUMPH OF ENGINEERING.
| He had lived on the river all his life and
he had personal observation Of the work
that had been done, and he did not believe
that there was any engineering work in
this country which had surmounted such
obstacles, which had achieved such promise
and which had shown such wonderfully
successful results as tbs engineering work
along the Mississippi river.
The general debate having concluded, the
debate was considered under the s.
| IuASs ILL 41Otuihh IlONOu
to strike out the clause autho-
lzing the Secretary Of War to enter
into contract for the construction of a
harbor of refuge at Point judith, R. l. The
motion was lost by vote of "a to III.
On motion of Mr.. Blanchard the appro-
priation for the improvement of the harbor
| at Manitowoc, Wis, was increased from
$500 to S28, 900.
On motion Of Mr.. Reed Of Maine the ap-
preparation for the improvement Of Harra-
sackett river, Maine, was increased from
$40 900 TO $4,000.
The committee then made rapid progress
with the bill, much of the credit being due
! to its chairman. Without disposing Of the
bill the committee rose and the House ad-
journed.
TO FLY OUR FLAG.