The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1892-04-27

and hau1n Nearly Come to Blows.
WASHINGTON, April 2e.-The House
went into committee of the whole today
on the diplomatic and consular appropri-
alton bill. Mr.. Blount explained the pro.
visions OF the measure. 1t appropriated
s., ,5S4, 925, being $4,000 less than the
current law, and $553, ,541 less than the
estimates. The reductions on missions
sions were $25, 900, on consulates 1000,
and in the Bureau Of American Republics
$4,000. The number of missions was
reduced by placing Denmark, Sweden
and Norway under one mission, Colon
bia and Ecuador under one mission and
Peru and Bolivia under one mission. Mr..
Blount said he had received letter from
the State Department stating that it was
informed by the minister to Denmark
that if this separate mission was abol-
ished, Denmark probably would not
make an exhibit at Chicago. The
gentleman at Denmark seemed to have
distinguished himself by getting Den
mark to make an exhibit on grounds
personal to himself. He seemed to have
awakened to sense of his own con-
sequence. Mr.. Blount did not think
Denmark would be so silly as to with
hold her exhibit on account of this bill.
The committee of foreign affairs had left
undisturbed the salaries at all the i'm
portant points of foreign trade and
reduced them where the business was
small enough to justify it, taking some
of the consulates off the salaried lists
and placing them on fees.
Mr.. McCreary of Kentucky said there
should be neither parsimony nor ex-
uavagance. In the management of our
foreign affairs we should be just and
fair. 1t must be admitted that they had
been maintained economically and fairly.
Mr.. Hit of Illinois opposed the re-
trenchment policy of the majority. They
adopted very simple plan of reducing
appropriations by consolidating several
missions and taking off $500 each from
the salaries of number of consuls. The
first step in retrenchment had been in
the case of the mission to Venezuela,
which was reduced in class. At the very
moment this was being done, the Mon
roe doctrine was being disregarded and a
great European power was seizing upon
a part of this continent larger than
Pennsylvania to convert it from repub-
lie to part of a monarchy. The reduc-
ton of diplomatic posts was invariably
regarded as an act showing want of es-
TEEN, and the discontinuance of minis
ter was very nearly mark of disrespect
In pursuance of the consolidation plan,
Honduras was taken from its old ally,
Guatemala, and attached to republics it
most cordially disliked, those of Costa
Rica, Salvador and Nicaragua. 1t was
the duty of a minister to make himself
agreeable to the nations to which he
was accredited. Any favorable impress
sion made at Honduras would cause
trouble in Costa Rica. Mr.. Hit was OPP
posed to the reductions made
in the salaries of consuls. The
reductions were made on the basis
of the fees taken in. Those fees
might represent immense shipments of
goods. Consuls had been reduced to
$1,000. They could not live on that and
it was expected they would make it up
by trading. Such consul was a police
man watching himself as a trader.
On motion Of Mr.. Blount, unanimous
consent was given that general debate on
the bill should close after two hours de-
bate tomorrow.
The committee rose and the House
agreed to the request Of the Senate for a
conference on the amendment made by
the Senate to the Chinese exclusion bill
passed by the House. Messrs. Geary,
Chapman and White were appointed the
confereeS.