The Weekly Tallahasseean., 1900-12-13
Washington Budget.
Continued from First Page

may increase to 100000. The Dem
ocrats made no attempt to prevent
its passage, knowing it to be useless.
By parliamentary trick, the bill was
sent to the Senate as a substitute for
the artillery bill passed by the upper
House last May, and thus would not
ordinarily come up for general de-
bate in that body. By this means, it
was hoped to prevent full discus
sion of its clauses, and to force the
Senate to vote outright on its accep-
tance or rejection. 1t goes without
saying that this was very doubtful
tsubterfuge, as the bill as passed bore
absolutely no resemblance to the
original one that passed the Senate,
and it was very properly sat down
upon in the upper body, where it is
announced, it will be fully debated.
The Senate it il hoped, will insist on
restoring the staff provisions recon-
mended by Secretary Root and
stricken out in the House Commit
tee on Military Affairs by the infu-
ence of the bureau chiefs. In the
Senate are two Ex-Secretaries Of
War, Senators Proctor and ElGinS,
both of whom declare positively that
the bill shall either pass with the
staff propositions or not at all. AL
though they may not exactly mean
this, their influence makes it proba-
hle that the provisions will be incor-
pOrated in the bill as signed by the
President. .,-. -.--.
The discussion of the Hav-Paun-
cefOte treaty in Executive session in
the Senate has shed new light on the
subject and has shown more plainly
! than before how absolute is the sur
render of Secretary Hay to. the
Wishes of Great Britain. 1t is now
admitted that ii thertreaty be ratified
as submitted and without amend
ment, it will permit free passage of
the canal to an enemy of the United
States which can get. within the three
miles limit and will preserve that
enemy from all attack until it, gets
three miles beyond the other termi-
nus. To this the honor Of the Uni
ted States will be pledged. Even
the Davis amendment will not per-
NIT Notifications, as most people be-
lieve, but it will allow the United
States to send its fleets to hover off
the mouths of the canals and engage
any enemy that tries to enter. As
the treaty stands, this is prohibited.
What is probably the most outrag-
eOus bill of its kind ever proposed
was reported favorably by the House
Civil Service Committee, by snap &C
ton, sometime ago and will soon come
up for consideration in the House.
The bill is simple enough on It's face
and until its provisions are explained,
would seem reasonable enough. 1t
provides that all veterans, for what
ever cause they left the service, shall
have priority of appointment AMI
promotion in all grades of the civil
service, no matter how much more
useful and able others may be. The
viciOuSneSs of the bill lies in its dis
regard of the State appointments
IN making appointments and proper
tons. At present, government
clerkshipS are apportiOned among
the States according to their popuIa-
ton. That is to say each State has
what is called its quota of appoint
mentS. When vacancies occur in a
States quota they are filed by exam
nations held in that State. This
new bill disregards this plan of appor-
tiOnment. For instance, if there is a
vacancy fOr apportionment or pro
motion in Loaisiana's quota, and q
Union veteran from Maine who
served for three months in the war
wants it, he will get it WITHOUT re-
gard to fitness. The bill should be
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