The herald., 1897-12-10
Take Up an Hour of Sen.
ate Time
IT is TIME TO CALL A HALT
IN GIVING PENSIONS TO ALL
WHO ASK
House Members Less Conservative
and the Democrats Champion the
Cause Of the Veteran
Associated Press Special Wire.

Associated Press Special Wire.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 9.-The senate
did considerable amount Of business
today, although no very important
measures were considered or passed ana
there was very little debate. Senator
Gallinger, chairman of the committee on
pensions, called attention to the in
creased demand for private pension leg
islation and requested senators to be
careful in the future to see that their
bills for private pensions were meritor-
ious before they were introduced. An
attempt was made by Mr.. Mcbride to
secure an appropriation for the relief
Of the Klondike miners, but the net re.
suit was a resolution calling on the Sec
retary of war for all information he had
on that subject. An hour was devoted
to consideration of private pension bills
and forty-five were passed. The reso-
luton Of the Pacific railroad committees
asking information regarding the sale
Of the Kansas Pacific. was passed, which
gave Senator Gear OF Iowa and Senator
Thurston Of Nebraska an opportunity
to make short speeches congratulattuG
the country upon the settlement OF the
Pacific railroad question. Some work
was laid out for next week, Senator Car
ter securing the right of way Monday
and Tuesday for his census bill, and
Senator Lodge had the immigration bilt
made the unfinished business during tho.
week.
Gallinger OF New Hampshire, chair-
man of the committee on pensions, re-
quested at the conclusion Of the morn-s
ing business today that an. hour be set
aside for the consideration Of private
pension bills, Of which. he said, there
were over 200 on the calendar indOreed
by the committee.
II am. and have always been friendly
to the soldiers, but am constrained to
feel that we are going too far and we
ought in the future to exercise the
greatest conservatism in the considera-
tion of all pension matters"
Gallinger thought that the practice Of
pensioning remarked widows and sew
eral other similar classes of claimants
ought to be stopped. He thought. too,
that the recommendation of the COM
missioner Of pensions that a law should
be enacted speedily providing that no
pension should be granted to Widow
If her marriage to the soldier had been
subsequent to the passage OF the law
under which he was drawing pension
ought to be enacted into law.
In response to a question by Allen OF
Nebraska, Gallinger said that he was
opposed to the granting Of large PEN
sions to widows of distinguished officers.
1--WE have reached the limit in that re-
gard" said he, "and 1t Is time that we
should STOP
The order required by Mr.. Gallinger
was then made. Mcbride Of Oregon se-
cured the passage of the resolution ask
| ing the secretary of war for such infor-
nation concerning the needs of the Alas
kan miners in the Yukon valley as he
might have in his possession.
| Mr.. Thurston congratulated the
country upon the result Of the adminis-
trations efforts regarding the Pacific
roads. He said If the plan proposed by
Mr.. Harris had been adopted. the United
States would not have received anything
approximating the magnificent sum
which had been paid for the main line
Of the Union Pacific. He said that the
result demonstrated the correctness Of
the position which he had held ever since
| the Pacific railroad matter had been q
subject of controversy. He expressed
the opinion that the prosperous business
condition brought to the country by the
advent of the present administration had
so improved the main line Of the Union
Pacific that it would now probably earn
dividends on the full amount Of the large
purchase price paid for it.
He said that he noticed in the presi-
dents message that the administration
is committed to the policy of purchasing
the Kansas Pacific branch unless q bet
ter price was offered. He did not be-
lieve in government ownership of rail-
roads, and he was of the opinion that
the experiment of such ownership, II
it was to be tried. might better be tried
with some other than the Kansas Pa
cific. He suggested to the Pacific rail-
road committee that the authority asked
for by the president to buy in the road
be coupled with full power to resell It.
| At 2:40 the senate adjourned until
Monday