The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1901-01-04
WASHINGTON LETTER.
THE PAST RECESS CENTERS OF IN
TEREST IN CONGRESS.

Bills-Foreign Steamship Influence
Against Last Named Measure.
WASHINGTON, Jan. The holiday re-
cess is nearing it's close, and members
of congress are returning to the city
to take up anew the details of national
legislation. In the house interest will
center during the first few days sue
ceeding the holidays in the great river
and harbor bill-the S60,00O,000 omni-
bus measure which has somewhere, by
some one, been characterized as the
greatest piece of log rolling in the world.
The members of the committee which
drafted the bill have done some heroic
work in pruning down its unwieldy
proportions from an $S0,000,000 to a
S60.000,000 proposition" After it has
run the exciting but brief gantlet of
the house it must be sent to the senate,
where it is referred to the committee
on commerce.
There is some significance in the fact
that the same committee of the senate
which has favorably reported the ship
ping bill is the one that the river and
when it reaches the senate. 1t takes a
long time to carefully study the pro-
visions of such a vast measure as the
river and harbor bill, and it would not
be at all surprising if the senate COM
merce committee did not interfere with
hn fu1ln of
ping bill in the senate while it was
giving in committee the fullest consid
Grafton to the river and harbor i'm
provement bill. Meanwhile, of course,
in the senate precedence will be given
to the appropriation bills and, it is ex-
pected, to the army reorganization bill
Considering the bitter partisan feel
ing that has run so high on the subject
of army reorganization and the dispo-
sition of the senate to debate indefinite
ly any measure of national Importance
on which the great political parties
take sides in opposition, there is a
growing feeling that the outcome of
the whole discussion may, after all, be
a continuance of the existing law for a
couple more years, leaving for congress
In the long session and in the light of
subsequent developments the perfec-
zion and passage of just such meas
ure as our military needs in our chang
ed conditions indicate as desirable. Z
-.
Next in Importance and Of consum-
ing interest is the shipping bill. Re
Gently there has arisen a very general
feeling of confidence in the ultimate
passage of some kind of a shipping bill
before the close of the present session.
1t would be a strange thing, but not
entirely out Of the range of probabili-
ty, to find the provision admitting for
eign built ships to American registry
either eliminated or vastly changed
before final passage. This has been
regarded as one of the features most
likely to attract and hold the votes
of Democrats, as the free admission
Of foreign built vessels to American
registry is in line with their demands
for a long time back. And yet if this
provision is stricken out it will not be
by Republican votes.
-.
The real facts seem to be that the
of the bill find it much easier
to get into communication with Demo
Gratis than they do with Republicans,
and, as the former are prone to believe
statements that are made to them in
good faith and with seeming
they have absorbed an Inn
mense amount of misinformation con-
corning the provisions and objects Of
the bill. The opponents Of the bill are
most happy when they are mystifying
people concerning it's provisions. And
SO it is that men are working at cross
purposes in perfect good faith and are
doing precisely what the enemies Of
the bill desire to have them do-divide
on all kinds of points to degree that
will make it impossible for majority
to unite upon the entire features Of any
measure.
-.
If the most dangerous congressional
of the bill are not led by the
foreign steamship lines in their oppo-
sition TO the bill, they are, at least to
great extent, guided by the line Of ar
gument that has been put forth in the
interest of these great foreign lines.
The lines of foreign steamships that
have as their American terminus the
port of New York alone receive in
freight and passenger tolls from the
American people considerably over
$100,000,O00 each year. These people
know that the passage of the shipping
bill means long period of fierce COM
petition with American ships and
consequent reduction in the rates Of
that will wipe out prac-
tically all of the profits in the business
for years to come even If American
ships do not succeed in wrestling from
them fair share Of the carrying.
-.
So the remaining couple Of months
Of the session promise to present bat
tie royal between American and for
eign interests, with the chances favor
ing the foreigners, so far as the 'po-
tency' of their argument" goes, but
with the great preponderating Ameri-
can sentiment backing up the friends
and advocates of the bill. The friends
of the bill have nothing else upon
which to rely for support and in which
to hope for success but the sentiment,
patriotic and determined, of the Ameri-
can people. If the foreign interests
by this sentiment suffer as
we may be sure that the
American people will benefit in reduc-
ed ocean freight charges and in larger
and SIIrar markets for their cl1rnlus