The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-04-26
CONGRESS- UNITED FOR WAR
THE DECLARATION PASSES
BOTH HOUSES UNANIMOUSLY

bate, One Amendment Voted
Down and Another Withdrawn
Was the Record of the Senate
The Law of the Land Mt @ O'Clock.
WASHINGTON, April 25.-The house
OF representatives today passed the bill
declaring the existence CT a state Of
war between the United States and the
kingdom of Spain. The speaker signed
1t at 449 p. M, just prior to adjourn
ment.
The presidents message was read i'm
mediately after the opening prayer. The
speaker simply ordered it referred I'M
der the rules, to the committee on for
formation of the house. The house then
proceeded with the consideration CT
District Of Columbia business.
No interest was manifested in the
proceedings until after l o'clock. Act
ing Chairman Adams entered the
house, and the news that the commit
tee had unanimously agreed upon a
bill declaring the existence of state CT
war was known all over the house.
Mr.. Adams held hurried consultations
with the speaker and Messrs. Dinsmore
and Berry, of the minority Of the COM
mittee.
At l:2O p. m. he asked unanimous
consent for the consideration Of the bill
declaring the existence of a state Of
war between this country and the king
dom Of Spain. There was not a MUIR
muir of dissent.
The bill was read. Mr.. Mcguire Dem.
CALI arose to ask a question, but re-
Trained. The question was put on the
third reading and passage Of the bill,
and in magnificent chorus the whole
house responded aye" The announce
ment OF its passage was greeted with
round of applause, and a cheer or
two from the floor and galleries. There
was no excitement 1t required exact
ly one minute and forty-one seconds
for the house to, pass the bill. The
house Of representatives had simply
paused in the consideration of its rou-
tine business toa pass declaration CT
war.
MI. mcguire explained subsequently,
that his purpose in rising was to ask
whether the declaration in the bill that
war had existed since April q was in
tended to legaHze the seizure of the
Buena Ventura
L consider that act and the other
seizures up to this time" he said en-
phatically, nothing more than piracy"
In the Senate.
The senate passed the war bill after
oepate Of an hour and a halfs dura
lion, conducted in secret session.
The debate was based on an amend
ment offered by Senator Turpie. pro-
Wong Tor the recognition of the .belli-
gerent rights Of the insurgent Cubans.
the amendment being substantially In
the following language! nd 3G
I'VE hereby recognize the r.sbts of ~
cuban army under Gen. Maxine Gnmae 10 Ne
treated as beiifgerents, the freedom and in
dependence of the Cuban people having here
toiore been recognized by act of congress-"
Inc same amendment had been urg
ed IN the committee on foreign relations
previous to the reporting of the hill to
the senate and the Indiana senator
only agreed to the bringing in of the
Dill on condition that his amendment
snould De presented to the senate. Roth
II, committee and in the senate MI
Turple made elaborate argument in
support of his proposition. He con-
tended that so long as the insurgent
rights of the Cubans were unrecognfz-
ed, they could only be regarded as sub
Jects of Spain, and hence urged that
our position in declaring for the recoe-
milton Of the freedom and independenca
CT the Cuban people was entirely in
consistent with our refusal to recognize
their belligerent rights. He also re-
peated llis argument made when the
resolution providing for the interview
ton of this country in the Cuban war
In regard to the interest Of the holders
OF the Spanish bonds in preventing the
due recognition of the rights of the
Cuban Insurgents -
The roll Of the senate was called upon
this amendment and it was defeated
by a majority of fourteen. the vote
standing "a to 38. 'f -
There was some criticism Of the fact
that the bill fixed date In the past
when the war had begun Senator
Pettigrew declared that the 21st instant
was evidently used in order to make
legal the capture Of the lumber vessel
the Buena Ventura, on that date. He
characterized this as a small piece of
business for either the administration
or congress to indulge in, and said that
under the circumstances, If he had been
president he would have returned the
ship to it's owners. He predicted that
the courts would, in the end, settle the
claim against us regardless Of this de-
claratiOn.
Senator Davis. replied briefly to this
point. saying that the date was not
fixed by the capture of the Buena Ven
tura, but by the recognition of the
Spanish government of a state of war
as made on the 21st and as outlined in
the presidents message.
Senator White took up the Pettigrew
contention, holding that the president
had not indicated any date for the be-
ginning Of hostilities, but that he had
rather shown In his message that he
considered that the negotiations had
by no means reached the point of hos
Titles
1.-THE president speaks" said the SEN
ator, "of our reasonable demands upon
Spain. Did he expect Spain to take
the view that his demands were rea-
sonable when he asked Spain to part
with a large portion of her kingdom
and to come UP smiling in view of this
polite request?" II
Continuing, MIR. White said that 1t
was his purpose to Support the admin
istration in all reasonable measures for
the prosecution Of the war, but he did
not regard the fixing of this date as in
any sense response to a presidential