The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1897-03-02
TILLMAN AND HAWLBY
Engage in Acrimonious Discus
sion in the Senate.
A VERY SERIOUS ACCUSATION.
The South Carolina Senator Intimates
That the Armor Plate Manufacturers
Have Their Paid Agents In the Senate,
and Hawley Becomes Excited.

| anu HhWloy BECOMES ExCiteus
Washington, March 2.-The national
senate pressed steadily forward on ap-
| preparation bills yesterday, making
such progress that no further appre-
henson is felt as to the passage of
these great fiscal measures. The Dis
trlct of Columbia bill was passed early
III the day. The naval bill brought out
hot contest on the price of armor
plate and the establishment of gov
ernment armor factory. The senate
committee had recommended maxi
mum price of $4OO per ton for armor
plate. Mr.. Chandler endeavored to
have the price fixed at 5000. The bill
was laid aside at 4:3O p. m. for an ex-
ecutive session.
| The discussion on armor plate was
resumed last night, and Mr. Tillman,
of South Carolina, provoked a turbu-
| lent scene when he charged that the
armor plate manufacturers had their
| paid agents in that body, who were
| robbing the government. Senator's
| Hawey and Squire had spoken against
Senator Chandlers amendment to the
naval appropriation bill to reduce the
| price of armor plate to 5000 a ton and
| Senator Elkins had complained of the
Hack of information on the cost of ar
| NOR plate, when Senator Tillman took
| the floor
r"Although member Of this naval
| comnlittee,g began Mr.. Tillman, land
although l have given as much time to
this question as l could spare from my
other duties, l am not able to give the
senator as much information as he
wants. But 1 am able to say" he
added with emphasis that no recent
expenditure of the government has
been 50 reeking with fraud and so dis
graceful to those connected with it,
Coming to the armor plate question
he said:
Instead Of us controlling the mono
poles, the monopolies have the senate
in their vicious pocket. | would hate to
say or to even insinuate that these
armor plate manufacturers have their
paid agents in this senate"
Then Mr.. Hawley rose, beginning:
Does the senator dare"
Mr.. Tillman took the words from his
mouth. Il dare to say" he shouted,
that so far as 1 can see. there are
things here that can be explained on
no other theory"
IF the senator dares to say. or even
insinuate such a d,sgraceful thing he
says what is untrue and what is un-
worthy a gentleman" Mr.. Hawley re-
piled very deliberately and emphati-
cally.
Senator Tillman was unruffled. He
thrust hand in his trousers pocket
nonchalantly and looking over to Sena-
tor Hawley, coolly retorted:
ITO that | can only say it is the gall
led jade that winCes."
Senator Hawley turned pale and
tremblcd visibly."
'lf the senator applies that to me, l
have a sufficient answer" he said
angrily.
Two or three other senators gathered
around Senator Hawey, endeavoring
apparently TO calm him. Finally he
walked with them into the cloak room
while Senator Tillman continued his
speech. -4l=4sss 4s.s,-r,l-- --s-sA.f p s'a-
Going on with the subject of armor
plate he said he could see no explana-
tion for the state of affairs except that
the manufacturers had their friends
In the senate chamber. There was proof
that the government was to be looted
to the extent of two or three millions,
yet senators said: We cant help it. The
trusts had the government down and
their hands In it's pockets, yet If any
one opposed them, If any one proposed
that the government do its own work,
make Its own armor plate, senators
We're quick to bring out the awful
spectre of socialism. Said Mr.. Tillman:
The cOuntry's eyes are on us. We
are already disgraced because we do
not hasten to do the bidding of Wall
street fast enough. The touch of the but
ton between Wall street and the senate
seems to have been broken somewhat
lately, and SO the metropolitan press is
set upon us to whip us into line "
Continuing, Mr.. Tillman said there
was a still darker page in the history
of the dealings of the CarneSies with
the government. He referred to the
charges of making defective armor in
1894 THE thieves were caught" he
said, but they were released. The
secretary imposed fine, but this glor-
ious president of ours, who, thank God,
goes out Of office in two days more, re-
mitted the fine"
He continued to lecture the senate,
saying he had no doubt the PROPOSE
ton would go through. You squAbble
over your little ten thousand dollar
items" he said, land let these million
dollar steals go through"
Mr. Quay moved to lay the Chandler
amendment on the table, which was
defeated by vote of u to S6. After
further discussion the Chandler
amendment was adopted without di-
vision. At exactly midnight the naval
bill was passed and the senate ad-
journed.
The house galleries were thronged
all day yesterday, but the crowd wit
messed nothing beyond the dullest of
routine business until the last half
hour Of the session, when the bill to
! prohibit The transmission Of detailed
/ accounts of prize fights by mail or tele-
graph was brought up. This led to
very lively skirmish in which prize
| fighting was denounced on all sides,
! and the advocates of the bill insisted
that the "sickening details" should be
suppressed in the interests of good
morals. But the bill met with most
strenuous Opposition on the ground
that it would tend to establish CEN
sorship of the press. At the end of the
debate, which was participated in by
Messrs. Adrich, Grosvener and Morse
in favor of the bill, and Messrs. Dock
cry and Cummings in opposition, the
adversaries of the measure outvoted
the friends of the bill on several fill
clustering motions, but an agreement
for recess until 10 o'clock today put
an end to the hostlities. The bill now
becomes the unfinished business when
tIn ,ft tI,n 10,