Washington sentinel., 1901-02-02


merchant marine and that it was as
perfect as human brains could make it
and ready for passage without any
amateur legislative tinkoring
This was when it carried an unlimit-
ed appropriation. What it would have
done for the country in its thus per-
fected state the Lord only knows. Very
soon a howl Of protest went up from
Dan to Beersheba against the "unlimit-
ed provisions" Of the measure, and an
amendment was accepted limiting the
appropriation to 100000 a year.
Ever since this time the elasticity OF
the bills perfection has been drawn
upon. It's advocates have yielded inch
by inch until the bill has quite a diff
ferent complexion from the mphoto-
4 graphable cOuntonance that it at first
presented. But with all this carving
and splicing and remoIdlng it retains
its essential feature Of taking out Of
the pockets Of the whole people some
| S2OOOOO,0OO for the benefit Of favored
| few composed mainly Of the lifetime
experts who drew the bill.
The critics to whom it's original pro-
moters have been yielding are all with
in the Republican party and among
those whose support has been counted
on from the beginning. If the supposed
! friends of the measure have brought
upon it the Disagreement that now ap.
| pears, what would 1t look like II it's op-
| ponents drove their criticisms through
it2 Verify it would only be useful for
waste paper!
i This constant retreating Of the advo-
Gates Of the bill does not indicate that
| Il is a measure founded on principle,
but that it is a desire TO pilfer from the
treasury many millions for the benefit
Of private parties. None Of the changes
that have been made apply TO the prin-
ciples or purposes Of the bill Those
originally provided for wanted to trans
fer from the taxpayers money to their
pockets S0O0O,O00 a year. Finding that
they had Overreached themselves, they
have gradually let others into the "dl-
/ vide" Now all Of those originally In
and those let in and their various pot
Bwabbers and bottle washers are de-
claring that the bill has been perfectly
| adjusted to the needs of the times and
that it's passage is only a matter Of a
few days. In sending out this bugle
note Of victory they have forgotten all
| the Democrats and all the Populists
1 fUChc ~r-is-s Ai.ie ra-lAae .rsrala on iarinot
| ne They have also forgotten a num-
| Der Of Republicans who feel the same
| sort of opposition. They have forgot
ten likewise the miscellaneous but ever
active pie hunters who have not yet
/ been let into the divide" The result
/ of this fOrgetfulness will be the failure
| Of the bill.
| There has been no lobby in Washing
| ton opposing the ship subsidy bill, but
| there have been some very strong men
| who have worked hard against this
| measure as a matter Of principle Some
Of these men have been Republicans
and some Of them have had no connec-
ton. directly or Indirectly, with the
shipping business. They have been in
tensely in earnest 1t is largely due to
the fact that they have not worked
along the usual lobby lines that this
| bill has not yet been passed and in all
| probability will not be passed. They
have absolutely stripped it Of fits pre-
| lenses and shown to the world that the
Standard oil company, which controls
| the PENNSYLVANIA Railroad company
the International Navigation company
| and the National Transit company
would receive not less than SJOOOO-
600 out Of the S0O,OOO,OOO provided for
within the next ten years and that it
would be a very easy matter for COM
bine to be formed by which they would
receive practically the whole subsidy.
Those who were inclined to favor the
bill as a party measure are becoming
| alarmed and are not willing that the
| Republican party should shoulder the
responsibility for such a scheme.
There are many Republicans who do
not oppose Boss Hanna I'm the caucuses
/ or the steering committee meetings
! who viii still lend the weight Of their
influence to the postponement Of the
bill. These Republicans are still not
satisfied with the methods Of division.
During the last days Of this rapidly
waning session they are getting all the
concessions that they can get. They
know that they can now get many
more concessions than they could get
in a long session, where there would be
the greater probability Of their being
driven into line by the party whip
| Having made these concessions In this
congress, the favored few who at first
started out to bag all the game can
| hardly revert to their first purpose
| when the next congress cOuyenes- The
hope Of the reasonably good Republic
ans Is that I'm the next congress they
can pass q ship subsidy bill having IN
it the elements Of fairness to those en-
gagged I'm the shipbuildiug and the shiI
sailing business. The hope Of those op
posed to the subsidy principle is tina
the stencil this bill will leave i'm th,
nostrils Of the fair minded public vii
E make it impossible TO pass I'm the mex
v congress any sort Of bin transferring
! by any kind OF division S20OoOOoO
h from the pockets Of the people TO th
r rockets OF special benedciaries.
a =aB1c opinion opposed TO rne sun
r sidy Bill.
r "The public opinion Of the country,
says the New York Press, a stauch RI
publican organ, referring TO the penC
ing subsidy measure, sis, without n
, gard 10 party lines, largely opposed
u this bill. IL Is so opposed because th
n bill proposes to pay a man So for doin
d what for the last ten years he had bee
d doing for SO. And yet the man and h
,t friends have no explanation to mal
e Of the causes Of this extraordinary d
A mand."
l. AsToRoLoGERs claim to have learn
~ from Babylonian tablet that the wor
o will be deluged in December, Ie,
DR. Predictions ofworId disasters have be
d