Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1897-02-23
IN THE HOUSE.
Mr.. soutsIIe g lains Arms, Plate Contracts
and Other Points d Naval Bill.

COMMITTEES. gave way to Chairman Can
| non of the appropriations committee. VI,
! der an arrangement by which the distr sC
cheney and naval appropriation bills were
disposed Of The House went into com
mittee OF the whole and took up the de-
| ticiency bill. The bitter fight that was
the Pacific funding bill, was renewed 10
| some extent.
Savers Dem. of Texas. offered amend
%ens TO the Of In Of the the So
ern Pacific Railway Co.. one or them
striking out the item of s1.SlO.42l to pay
the balance Of the Judgment of the court
of claims In favor OF the Southren facihe
Co.
Sayers said with vigorous emphasis
that this was the old fight that had been
going on since the 50th Congress NOW
of the whole would reverse the action OF
the House and give the Southern Pacific,
this sl.3O"ooo. That company had control
of the Central Pacific and all It's branch
held as an offset to secure It's payment
of Indebtedness to the government?
The validity of Judgment was admitted
and II could not be denied that the gov
ernment owed the amount named. As
the stockholders of the Southern and
Central Pacific Cos. were one ana the
same and one was In n state Of bank
rmptcy, the House would be derstict In its
duty to pay over 81. 100000 of government
money to the Southern Pacific Railroad.
Northway. Rep. of Ohio. maintained
that the amount in the bill was legal
judgment and should be paid.
Dockery contended that &. =. Hunting
ton had diverted from the Central Pacific
traffic WHICH belonged to that line and In
amounts to which 1t was justly entitled.
under the Thurman law. and looked for
ward TO the time when it. could be bought
for Il nominal sum. Dockery said the
ys,,,t ham, Do .s,l hut mn Sk
which the Central Pacific masqueraded
at the expense of the government. He
referred to this .defaulting corporation
alias C. p. Huntington and his brother
that on Jan |. 1899, Mr.. Huntington
would owe the United States over $1,000
900. He appealed to the House not to pay
this claim at time of widespread de-
preston.
a vigorous defense of the Judgment was
made by Grosvenor. Rep. of Ohio. This
matter presented the simple question Of
law. he said. He did not know c. +:
Huntington personally. but he knew of
him as a man who employed 1000 labor
ers and paid them high wages. who had
News. Va. in time of wide depression,
and against whom there never had been
strike of laborers. Mr. Grovcsnor OBJ
iected to any attempt to make the
Southern Pacific suffer because another
road had defaultcd to the United States
This road. he said had entered into a
lawful contract with the government and
the contract price should be paid
Cannon, Rep. of Illinois. said that for
ten years the appropriation bills I'm Re-
publican and Democratic Congresses had
been devoted to the payment for services
over these bond-aided roads without pro-
test. Cannon then sketched his reasons
for paying the judgments.
A vote on Sawycrs' amendment was
taken and resulted: Ayes. 70: noes. 81; Sc
the Judgment in favor of the Southern
Pacific was not stricken out. The othe,
two Pacific amendments were rejected
An Item of $1,000 to pay Alexis Benoit fOi
expenses incurred in his contest agains'
Representative Boatner of Louisiana
was offered as an amendment and wa:
agreed to.
Objections came from many parts Of
re-insert by unanimous consent the para
graphs stricken out. Saturday. for the
payment Of special employees of thu
House. A lively. time ensued while thi.
greatest confusion prevailed. but Cannon
finally ended matters by moving that thu
committee rise. This was agreed to ant
the bill was reported to the House.
The first amendment on which a vot,
was asked was that striking from thu
item of about $4,000 to pay members tn
amounts deducted from their salaries fo.
absence. 1t resulted: Yeas, 122: nays. sc
the House refusing to refund the amount
deducted. A motion to re-commit the bill
with instructions to strike out the South
TO 1as The bill was then passed.
A conference report on the bill to pre-
vent federal officials from specializing il
or prosecuting claims against the govern.
ment, was presented and agreed to.
The House then went into committee OF
the whole on the naval appropriation bill.
Dazzle. Rep of Pennsylvania. wanted ar
opportunity to reply to MeMilln's crit
cism of Justice Shiras of the supreme
court. for his action in the income tax
case. but Boutelle. Rep. of Maine. III
charge of the naval bill was afraid that
this would lead to a political debate and
would not grant the request.
In explanition of the bill Boutelle re-
fcrretl to the armor plate question and
told how the committee had arrived al
its conclusions regarding the plate.
Congress provided at it's last session that
no contracts should be made for ;rnlor
for the three battleships then authorized
until the secretary of the navy could in
vesiiGitc and make Il report on the cos.
of manufacturing armor That report
had hecn made at this session and the
committee on naval affairs. by providing
that the total cost of armor for the three
Slips should not exceed $500 "a ton. had
followed the report. 1t was fair to say
that the manufacturers of armor plate
did not agree with the secretarys con-
clusions. The secretary said he had
given his best Judgment and the commit
tee without attempting to fix the price
themselves. most wisely accepted the re-
port of the secretary OF the navy as com
Ing in the nature of a departmental esti-
mate.
Concerning the action of the committee
in leaving out the appropriation for new
ships. Boutelle explained that the COM
mission represented in no possible sense
any laXity on the part of the committee
in pushing forward the building of the
new navy. The committee had done so
out of consideration of the national finan-
ccs. primarily out of consideration of
what it believed to be the present temper
Of the House. and on account of inability
to obtain armor for the three battleships
now on the stocks.
During the reading of the bill Barrett.
Rep., of Massachusetts, made a point of
order against the item for clerical hire
at the Puget Sound. Washington and
Port Royal. 8. c.. naval stations, and
they We're passed over temporarily. The
committee then rose. ~
A joint resolution was passed directing
the secretary of war to deliver to the
citizens committee of national encamp-
ment of the G. A. r. at Buffalo, N Y.
one condemned cannon to be used in fur
nishinS memorial badges.
The House. at $50. adjourned.