Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-12-09
He Warns His Colleagues Against
E1travagant Appropriations.
ESTIMATES FOR NEXT FISCAL YEAR
The House Takes Up the Pension
Bill.
A Fl w AIIAN PETITION

| The House of Representatives today got
| Gown to serious work. Representative Jer-
ry SimI son (kanD was in his seat for the
| first time this session and was warmly
greeted by his colleagues
After some preliminary business the
| House went into committee of the whole.
| Mr. Payne On. GD in the chair, for the
| consideration of the pension appropriation
Dill, which was reported yesterday.
| The bill carries s14l, ,l2l, $50, OF which
| si,l2l,s 80 are for fees of examining
| geons. salaries of agents, clerk hire and
| the other items for the execution of the
pension laws.
Mr.. w. -. Stone Pa), in charge of the
dill, explained the different items
| Surplus Instead of Deficit.
Mr. Stone then yielded to Mr.. Cannon,
chairman of the committee on appropria-
uons, who took occasion to make a general
statement of the estimates submitted by
| the Secretary of the Treasury for the pub
| lie service of 1899 for the purpose he said,
| of dsabusing The minds of members and
the country of "A false impression made by
| a comparison of these estimates with those
| OF preceding years. The estimated reve-
rues for l>!'9 We're S4S2. 1904, the expendi-
turcS SJoi,bWob showing an estimated
oeticit OF 81 ,0JO.Nw. Under the last sundry
civil act tie Secretary Of the Treasury
ne pointed out. was compelled to esti-
| mate this year for 5000 900 of river and
| harbor work. &.;.uspusu OF which had NOT
been authorized by law. If this sum- not
heretofore ircluded in The estimates were
| deducted there would be an estimated sur
| plus of Ss,vtt,0o0 instead of a deficit.
| Last year the estimated deficit under the
| last tariff act was S46,"uo.wU. If the
| Sli,oouND for river and harbor work for
| which the government then stood bound
had been included the estimated deficit
| would have been $i3,1D.o1. Mr.. Cannon
| said 1t might he that the expenditures for
| pensions for lS3 would exceed the esti-
mates. The commissioner of pensions es-
| timated tie expenditures at si4S.1ca,oUo.
| II he should prove to be right, Mr.. Cannon
| pointed out that the sl+apt1O Olo approprf-
| ated by this bill would pay all pensions
| for the first eleven months of the fiscal
| year and deficiency approximation could
| be easily made. In conclusion, Mr.. Cannon
solemnly warned the House that large
anticipatory importation would keen the
| revenues under the present law down to
| the minimum, and he appealed to his coll
| leagues TO See to it that. while the pub
| lie service was sufficiently supplied with
money, not one dollar is appropria ted
which is not absolutely necessary to the
| best interests of the public service
| This statement of AIR. Cannon was warm
| ly applauded on the republican side.
Mr. Allen (Miss.) attacked Mr.. Cannon's
statement in a speech that Set the House
into a roar of laughter. He commended
Mr. Cannon's appeal for economy, but
| appropriations did not do the situation JUS
| tice. He produced figures that showed an
estimated deficit for the next year of S12-
GOoWO. He referred to the increase in the
pension roll under the present administra-
ton and ridiculed the idea of a decrease
| unless the late increase was to be attrib-
uted to the "exiSencies of the recent cam
paign in Ohio"
He read from Commissioner Evans testi-
mony before the appropriations committed
predicting 4 deficit of from ss,eo0oO0 to
Sl9,GD,0@ in pension expenditures during
the next fiscal year. The maximum had
not yet been reached.
This question Of the maximum of the
pension ROLL observed Mr.. Allen, lis one
of the things chat has protracted my stay
in Congress. When | first came here they
were talking of the maximum. l stayed ten
or fifteen years to see it. but ii has hot yet
come, and l guess I'll have to come back
again" QaughterD
Mr.. Allen attacked the Dingley law a
revenue producer, picturing the intense
anxiety of the chairman OF the ways and
means committee at the extra session to
get a bill on the statute books that would
strike a balance between the receipts and
expenditures, and predicting another season
of anxiety on Mr.. Dingley's part next
spring at another extra session called for
the same purpose.
Mr.. Allen then seriously criticised some
of the classes of pensions granted.
In conclusion he spoke of the hardships
this great tax burden placed on the peo-
PIE OF the SOUTH. VINO were. he Sdlu, beiHS
relentlessly burdened by the gold standard
and 4Ia-cent cotton.
Mr.. DeArmond tMo.) followed with some
additional criticism of some of the classes
Oh the pension rolls.
When Mr.. Lacey concluded Mr.. Allen
again got the floor and disciaimed any in
tention of attacking the federal soldiers on
the pension rolls But he said he could not
hut marvel at the fact that 9I6,Wo names
were now on the rolls, and that there were
Go0,000 applications in the pension office.
There had been but 22p00o0 men in the
federal army, and he was reminded of a
meeting between an ex-confederate and an
ex-federal at blue and gray reunion.
They were felicitatins themselves on the
disappearance of all hostility.
IF there should be another war" said the
eX-federal, we will be standing shoulder to
shoulder under one flag"
I'VE will, but you won't" retorsed the ex-
confederate.
What do you mean?" asked the ex-
federal
Legally, You are disabled" Naughter).
Mr.. Allen gave notice that he would offer
amendments to prohibit the granting of a
pension to a widow whose application was
not filed during her widowhood, 10 prohibit
the pension of widows who had not married
prior to the passage of this act and to
strike from the rolls the names of all per-
manently insane or Eapless children who
had reached. their majority.