Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1898-12-14
55th CONGRESS.
Nicaragua Canal Bill Again
the Center of Interest.
RawIins Wants Treaty Signed to Allow
Us to Garrison Canal.
Supreme Court Site Bill Passed House Passes
Bill Amending Seamen's avs.


ed in the discussion of the Nicaragua
canal bill. Mr.. Turpie made the prln.
cipal speech in opposition to the bill, Ut.
lacking it on the ground that it was
in the interest of the Maritime Com
pany, which he characterized as q
fraud and bankrupt He moved &
postponemnt of the matter until afte,
the holiday recess. Mr.. Morgan de-
Tended the bill and the Maritime Com
pany and opposed the motion to post
pone. Messrs Berry ana Rawlins botl
offerd amendments materially affect
ing the bill.
Previous to the proceedings upon
the canal bill Mr.. Morrill, made an al
dress in support of the bill authoriz.
ing the purchase of a site for su-
preme court building and this and sew
eral other bills were passed.
The Senate, today, upon request OF
GaMinger. chairman of the ,committee
IN pensions, passed a bill Increasing
the pension of Eleazer Smith of New
Hampshire. to $50 per month. CALM
ger said Mr.. Smith was over 100 years
Ord, ana one of the three survivors of
the War of 1872.
Berry gave notice of an amendment
he will offer to the Nicaragua bill. pro-
viding for the direct appropriation OF
the money for the construction of the
canal and limiting the cost to Sis, 900,
900. The amendment provides for the
construction of the canal by the Mari
time Canal Company. and gives the
government lien upon the property
to- be foreclosed under circumstances
fully enumerated. Berry stated
the object of the amendment to be
to eliminate the bond feature of the
bill. Another was TO deprive Maritime
Canal Company of any shares of the
stock, as in the present bill, leaving the
United Staes. Nicaragua and Costa
Rica the only stockholders. He said he
understood Morgan to be willing to
have the bill amended so as to abolish
the bond provision of the bill
Rawlins also gave a notice of an
amendment To the Nicaragua bill. pro-
viding that the act should not go into
effect until the United States should
secure by treaty the right to
fortify ana garrison the canal. -
send armed vessels and munitions of
war through it in time of war and TO
close it against any either nation With
whom the United States may be at
war.
Morrill,. in accordance with previous
notice, addressed the Senate on his bill
Authorizing the purchase of a site east
Of the Capitol grounds in Washington.
for building for the United States SUI
prema court. Morrill, urged the pro-
priety OF erecting building in keeping
with the dignity Of the court AT the
conclusion of MorTill's speech. the Sem
ate passed lhe supreme court site build
ing bill
\ number of minor bills were passed,
among them a bill for the relief of
homestead settlers in Florida who
were driven from ttheir homes by the
storm of 1896, and a bill amending sec
ton 4166 of the Revised Statutes relat-
ing to pensions relating for providing
that in cases which pensioners desert
their wives or children half the pen
sions shall be paid them.
Turpie addressed the Senate upon the
Nicaragua bill which was taken up at
2 o'clock. He was not opposed to the
canal as much as he was opposed to the
scheme of the Maritime Canal Conn
pany, and he denounced that company
as the most venomous and OF real
canal enterprise.
He developed this line of attack at
some length, denouncing it as a scheme
of confiscation. The object of the Mar
thine Company, he declared, was not
to cut canal, but to 'cut a channel
of communication at the least possible
cost between the treasury of the Unit
ed States and the empty Golfers of that
beggarly corporation"
Turpie asserted that the government
could not lawfully guarantee the Mari
time Company's bonds as proposed.
The case was not a parallel to that of
the Pacific Railroad Company's as In
those cases the bonds We're made di-
rectly payable to the companies.
AS to the possibility of foreign jeaI-
ousy operating to prevent the con-
struction of the canal by this govern
ment, Turpie declared there was no
civilized nation that would not be
pleased to see the canal constructed.
The Maritime Company had been gull
Iy of innumerable frauds, but even If
it had not, he would not support the
pending bill because of the failure to
provide for the ownership of the canal
by the United States. All obstacles
would disappear before movement on
The part of the United States to con-
struct the canal. The opposition of
and other countries We're
made to the Maritime Company and to-
t only. With these ''vapid, empty and
thoroughly groundless pretensions the
of Nicaragua had evident
Y become tired
Turpie renewed his plea for post
oonement of the question until the
canal commission should re-
bort. He said he favored the appoint
nent of this commission because he
Knew, that no commission could report
n favor of the Maritime Company as
lie did no believe the present commits
ion had. Information was wanted on
Continued en- page 80