The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1898-03-09

Scene of Enthusiasm Greeting Announce
ment of Vote of Ayes 81, Nays None,
Seldom Paralleled In the uouse-Fifty-
Nine Speeches Made-General Bingham
Sounds Slight Dlscordant Note and is
Kissed.
Washington, March Sin spirit of
patriotism, with eloquent words ring
ing in their ears, every member of the
house of representatives to-day re-
sponded to the presidents first call to
meet the Spanish situation by casting
his vote for a bill placing in President
McKinley's hands fifty million dollars
to be expended at his discretion for the
national defense. Party lines were
swept away and with a unanimous
voice the house voted it's confidence in
the administration. Many members
who were paired with absent colleagues
took the responsibility of breaking
their pairs, an unprecedented thing in
legislative annals, in order that they
might go on record in support of this
vast appropriation to maintain the dig
nifty and honor of their country.
Speaker Reed, who, as the presiding
officer, seldom votes and usually only
in case of tie had his name called
and voted in his capacity as repre-
sentative.
Scene of Enthusiasm.
The scene of enthusiasm which greet
ed the announcement of the vote, ayes
81, nays none-has seldom been paral-
leled in the house. All day long the
galleries were jammed with enthusiast
tic spectators applauding to the echo
the startling patriotism of the words of
eloquence which were uttered by the
members on the floor. All the speeches
were brief. Although four hours were
allowed for debate, so great was the
pressure for time that no one member
was given more than five minutes and
most of them had to content them
selves with beggarly fraction of a
minute.
Tifty-Nine Speec ches Made.
Fifty-nine speeches were made. With
one acclaim members from the north
and the south, the east and the west,
the states and the territories, battle
SCARED veterans of the Union and the
confederate armies, all Joined in pro-
claiming their support Of the country's s
chief magistrate in the face of a pos
sible foreign war. General Grosvenor
of Ohio said that If war did not come,
the $50000,000 appropriated by this bill
would be wisely expended if it only
served to show the world that when
threatened from without the hearts of
the American people beat as one On
the whole there was only slight dis
cordant note caused by the speech Of
General Bingham of Pennsylvania, a
gallant soldier who served with distinc-
tion under Hancock. He spoke too
conservatively for the aroused temper
of the house and when he insisted that
our relations with Spain We're as
friendly as they had been for years,
many of the members hissed him.
While almost every member who
spoke deprecated the possibility of war,
a wide divergence of opinion as to how
close hostilities were manifested itself
in the debate.
The General Contention.
lie SeAcldl COutehtiOil ny Tie 1Lld-
jority, among them the leaders Of both
sides, was that this appropriation bill
preparing for war would prove the sure
guarantee Of peace. Others insisted
that wars alarm would soon be heard
and Mr.. Mann of Illinois declared that
war actually existed in all save name
The speeches which attracted most at
tention were those of Messrs. Cannon,
Henderson and Dolliver on the repub-
lican side and Messrs. Bailey and Say
ers on the democratic side.
General Bingham's Speech.
General Bingham stated that while
| supporting the bill on general princi-
pies he was avowedly out of sympathy
with the common Interpretation OF the
meaning of the bill. He then referred
to to-day's proceedings of the hause as
akin to the methods of "yellow dog
| journalism" He had no sympathy, he
said, with the apparent tendency of
the house and especially none with the
| evident disposition to seize the oppor-
tunity for a display of Jingoism that
was by no means edifying. Still, Mr..
Bingham announced his purpose to
|
said that such a bill had been report
ed even though it provides only for a
temporary appropriation. He thought
the powers here conferred upon the
! chief executive only for brief period
of time should be a permanent feature
of our institutions. The president at
all times should have the discretion
and the money to protect the country.
| But while this was true, he discour-
aged the tendency to Use the occasion
as it was being used and he thought
there was a smattering of nonsense in
the talk of war. He did not take stock
| in the talk of the soldiers of Kentucky
marching elbow to elbow with those
J of Massachusetts, for there was no
danger that any call would be made
for such an exhibition. II care moth
ing" he exclaimed, ''for the bravery
and courage of Mr.. Lee of which we
hear so much on this floor and he was
proceeding to say that what we want
in General Lee in the present time is
the exhibition of his best judgment and
| common sense, but the sentence was
! almost drowned in a shower of Kisses
with which the remarks were received
| This disapproval came principally
| from the democratic side. 1t did not
seem to discourage Mr.. Bingham, wig
! continued his remarks by general dis
| paragement of the war spirit. This
generation had, said he, seen one war