The San Francisco call., 1896-04-10
Fitzgerald Of Massachusetts, Says
Catholic Institutions Are
Not Treated Fairly.
REFERRED TO A CONFERENCE.
Agreement Net Reached on Senate
Amendments to Postoffce Ap-
preparations

WASHINGTON, D. c., April 9.-The
bill to repeal the compulsory pilotage sys-
tenn, so far as it affects sailing vessels en-
gagged in the coastwise trade, was defeated
in the House to-day, after days debate,
by a vote of III to 152. Grosvenor (R.) of
Ohio in the course of the discussion said
that while this Congress would not enact
any legislation intended to improve the
condition of Iaboring men in this country,
he was certain the House would not pass a
bill which laboring men believed would
tend to still further increase the distress
and discomfort of a portion of their fellows.
The amended District of Colum bia ap-
preparation bill for the year ending June
30 1897, was passed after brief debate
The most notable incident of the debate
was bitter attack by Fitzgerald (D) of
Massachusetts, apon the A. P. A. for its
attack il the dark, as he expressed it, upon
the Roman Catholic church, of which he
was a member, which resulted in depriy-
ing Institutions in the District of Colum-
bia, conducted under the auspices of the
church. OF what was justly and legally
theirs.
No response was made to Fitzgerald be-
yond a bare denial by Grout (R.l of Yer
mont, in charge of the bill, that it consti
tuted in any sense an attack upon the
Catholic church. The vote upon the bill
was 134 to u. and only twenty members,
an insufficient number. joined with Sulzer
CD of New York in a demand for vote
by ayes and noes.
Conference was ordered on the Senate
amendments to the postoffice appropria-
ton bill.
Consideration was begun of the "filled
cheese" bill Imposing a tax upon its
manufacture and sale) and Will be contin-
ued tomorrow. Cooke (R. J of Wisconsin,
author of one of the bills for which the
pending bill was a substitute, addressed
the House.
The House upon meeting resumed con-
sideration OF the bill to abolish the COM
pulsory pilotage system so far as it relates
to sailing vessels engaged in the coastwise
trade.
Cooper (D.) of Florida, who prepared the
views of the minority of the Committee ON
Merchant Marine and Fisheries in oppo-
sition to the bill, made the first speech.
The bill was advocated by Perkins (R.)
of Iowa and Fitzgerald D.) of Massachu-
setts, Ellert D.) Of Pennsylvania. Dingley
(R.) of Maine and Payne (R.) of New
York, and antagonized by Grosvenor (R.)
of Ohio. Elliott 3D. of South Carolina and
Tyler o. of Virginia. The bill was de-
feated-117 to 152.
An effort to get vote by ayes and noes
was successful.
The bill making appropriations for the
District OF Columbia for the year ending
June 80, 1897, was taken up. The discus
sion of the bill was interrupted to pass the
resolution asking the Secretary of State to
give the House any information the de-
partment might have regarding the case
of Mrs. Florence E. MaybriclS, in prison in
England for poisoning her husband,
merchant of Liverpool.
Bartlett and Wheeler (D.) of Ala
bama opposed the district bill, the former
on the ground that the appropriations for
charity should be made as in the past,
directly to the institutions, and the latter
for the reason that the cost of caring for
the poor of the district would be largely
increased under the new system.
Fitzgerald CD of Massachusetts,, the
youthful sole representative OF his party
from the New England States, briefly ad-