Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1892-05-18
NO DEFICIT AHEAD.
So Allison Tells His Senatorial
Colleagues.
HE PREDICTsAHANDs SURPLUS

And Says there VIII Be S25, OOO, 900 Left
After all Demands Are Paid for the
Year-Debate on the Naval Bill in the
Upper House-The Representatives
stu Hammering Away at the Sundry
Civil Bill-Director General Davis
Talks Worlds Fair.
WASHINGTON, May 1S-The senate yes
terday was occupied discussing the appro-
priations in general to greater extent
than these in the naval bill, which was
under consideration. Villas criticized the
policy of building a navy and laid it down
as a rule to suit him that We should
gradually confine appropriations to the
current needs of the navy, the exigencies
of the times and the condition of the
treasury. Hale remarked that even with
all our new vessels completed we won Id
hold lower relative position than we did
in 1850. Hale also said that the naval
committees idea was to 60 on until we have
ten battleships, when we would be in q
position to hold our own against Eng
land.
Vest Condemns Apr opriations-
Villas said that the idea of England
going to war with US was preposterous;
that the advantages of the class of ships
proposed in the bill had never been demon
strated in battle; that the condition of the
treasury forbid the expense Then Vest
said the whole scheme was to give us a
spectacular navy. The only difficulty we
had been threatened with of late years was
that with Chilli, and if the president had
waited only few hours that would have
settled itself, and his rhetorical and war
like message would not have been wasted
He commended that it would be an easy
thing in the event of war to convert all
the numerous steam vessels into com.
merce destroyers.
Hale asked what would become of our
sea coast in the meantime.
Torpedoes Declared No Good.
Vest in the course of further argument
having expressed preference for system
of defense by torpedoes, Hale replied thai
he might as well rely upon pop-guns. NJ
ministry in the world could maintain it!
sway one hour if it told Its people to de
pend upon torpedoes. And our cities wer
as great as any of theirs and more &C
cessible. If every one of the vessels of tn
new navy were sunk tomorrow the ad
vantages which their construction ha,
conferred upon the country, by the devel
opment of our ship building interest
would repay the expenditure three to one
Vest closed his remarks by saying tina
the surest way to bring about a naval wa
was to build up big navy, for the ship
must be used; they would not be Above
to rot in the harbot. And then it woul
logically follow that we must increase on
army so as not to be one of the smalles
military powers in the world.
Depends on How You Take 1t.
Allison said this bill, as he understood
it, carried only an increase of 500, 1000 owe
the amount appropriated by the house
This statement being received with mark
of incredulity from Cockrell, Allison e1
planned that the pending amendments c
the senate committee were simply an al
thorization to the secretary of the navy I
enter into contracts. They carried no az
preparations, and would require none dul
ing this congress, and probably not unit
1895. If an authorization to make col
tract was an appropriation then this bill
as it passed the house, carried So, 500, 90
more than has been stated, and the rive
and harbor bill carried an appropriate
of $50, 10000 Vest corrected Allison an
said 81 600 COO and Frye corrected Yes
putting it at $50 000, 900.