The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-05-12
NO DECISION ON ARNOR
The Senate Discusses the Question
for Nearly Five Hours.
An Agreement to Take Vote To-
day Finally Rcnchcd-Mr. Lodge
Points Out the Necessity oil a
Powerful Nnvy-ArEumcnts for and
Against n Government Factory.

The Senate yesterday resumed discus
sion of the Naval Affairs Committee
amendment to the Naval Appropriation
bill. prov ing that the price of armoi
.,,ate be fixed at Si45 per ton, and that in
the event of this being refused by the
armor plate companies, the Governme nj
shall construct a plant of its own Inc
argument on the amendment lasted for
nearly five hours, and, owing to the un-
compromising attitude of both the ma
jority and minority, no vote was reached
The discussion waxed bitter at times, ant
Messrs Tillman, Lodge, Penrose. Daniel
Teller. Bacon, Hale. Eikins, and Aiiisor
delivered speeches either for or against tht
pending proposition. An agreement was
reached before adjournment TO take
vote at 3 O'Clock p. N. today.
The amendment favored by the COM
mittee provides that the Secretary Oh ,ht
Navy shall be instructed to procure arhio'
for the naval vessels already ordered .ne
cost of the armor not to exceed $3.50 p..
ton of 2.2IO pounds, including royaities. -
is further provided that: II, AFTER ao'.l
Using for the armor. the Secretary Oh .ne
NAVY should be unable to contract ior
thar event. the Secretary of the Nav! %
authorized TO procure armor OF the pest
quality for the battleships Maine. ONO, anu
Missouri now awaiting armor, anu " ~.
therefor not to exceed s545 per ton oil
$40 mounds; provided further, that IL 'he
Secretary of the Navy has found, after sucp
advertisement. that arrnor plate OF the pest
ouaIity cannot be purchased from private
manufacturers of armor plate for s4i5 per
ton of 2.24O pounds, then, in that event,
he is hereby directed to procure or pur-
chase a suitable site and erect thereon an
arnor plate factory at cost not 10 eSceeo
81 coo Geo; and to carry out the purposes
of this provision the sum OF S2,ooo, 900 IS
hereby appropriated and made Immediately
available, out of any money in the Treas
urv.
The minority amendment provides
tina, the Government shall offer the
armor plate makers $500 per ton, without
royalties. and If this is refused, the Gov
eminent shall at once erect its own armof
plate plant, the amendment carrying an
appropriation OF $1,000, 600 for this pur-
pose.
Mr.. Lodges Argument.
Mr.. Lodge addressed the Senate at length
on the need of great Navy. He said that
the United States had an enormous coast
line and very small Navy to defend ii
with.
But TO stop the building Of ships" he
said until We enter on this experiment
of an armor factory would be a very fata
mistake l do not think we can AFFORD
to delay further the building Of ships.
think that the safety of the United State:
rests upon its naval strength. Ii is not OF
account OF the new possessions that l an
led to urge this. Far from it. i do no
Gil
adds to or diminishes the need Of pow
erful Navy. No trouble is likely to conn
to US from any Of these sources, and !
that were all. j should keep silent on thi
subject.
1.-THE danger to the United States lie
where it has always lain, in our own coas
and in the interests which We must AWAY
protect in this hemisphere. We have Tn
largest coast line of any nation In Tn
world and one OF the smallest fleets. ou
Atlantic coast is studded from New Or
leans to the extreme boundary OF Main
with cities. large and small. The whole o
that great Atlantic coast must be defended
and we have no adequate fleet.
I'VE are about to undertake the con
struction of an isthmian canal. Whethe
81 is better to fortify that canal or to ieav
It unfortified IL is not necessary for me Il
discuss To control that canal, to defen'
It. to hold it open for our commerce am
for the commerce of the world, even agains
an enemy's feet We must be the naya
masters OF the Caribbean Sea. We mus
have a far more powerful feet than VI
have today. The safety of the canal rest
upon the American feet. Everybody ad
mits that this canal ought to be built, an'
the time is very near, in my judgment
when the work will be undertaken. If w
ere to be responsible for this canal, in ad
dition to our own coast. We must have {
feet proportionately strong. / hope and be
Neve that We shall have no war with any
one, but the surest guarantee that we shall
have no war will lie in the possession of a
feet which no one would wish to attack
It is the greatest insurance for the peace
of the country, for the protection of our
coast, and for The maintenance of the
canal that can be devised.
A Note of Warning.
Il say that hope and believe there will
be NO war with anyone. But we should be
foolish indeed il We closed our eyes to the
possibilities of the situation. We can
never allow those Danish Islands to pass
into any hands other than those of their
present possessor except our own. The
nation of Europe that would undertake To
them right there on the road TO the canal
TO make OF them great naval stations and
places OF arms, would be, by that very
act, the enemy of the United States. /,
would be impossible for US to submit &c
any such thing as that.
THE Monroe Doctrine is the greatest
protection of the United States. To that
We all. without distinction of party, adhere
am by no means confident that some
European power tperhaps one whose navy
is Just now receiving such a rapid in
creased may not test that doctrine, that
we may not find ourselves called upon &c
protect Brazil or some other South Amer
lean State from invasion, and that we
may not be called upon to see to il that
no new European State is established or
the continent of South America / am
not coniuring up imaginary dangers.
trust that no act will be committed that
would result In war, but am sure that
the way to prevent any such test of the
Monroe Doctrine, the way TO proven,
peaceably the seizure of any part OF the
South American continent. or OF the Yves,
India Islands by any European power is
to have a navy which no power in the
world can afford to disregard
II think that too much has been los-
in the construction OF the Navy The
Congress of the United States has made
large and liberal authorization Of ships
The people Of the United States have
said Amen to every authorization thai
has been made. There are no people in
this country, North or South, East OIL
West, Democratic or Republican. who DE-
not believe in constructing a navy power
full enough for the defence of our coast
and for the maintenance Of the Monroe
Doctrine. That is one question on which
Il 10,
they all feel that in the Navy rest more