The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1902-03-21
DEBATE IN THE SENATE
ON THE BILL FOR The PROTECTION
OF The PRESIDENT.
SENATOR BAGON'S AMENDMENT
To ~DiGerentiafe Between Assaults
Upon the President Personally and
as President Draws the Fire of
Senators Hoar and Mason-Senator
Bacon Takes Exception to their
Language Lively Debnte Over
Philippine Lctters-House to Close
General Debate on River and Har-
Dor Bill oday

Dor Bill Today.
Washington, March 1S.-For three
hours today the senate had under con-
sideration the bill providing for the pro-
lection OF the president of the United
States and for the punishment OF those
who commit assault upun him by the
United States courts. 1t was discussed
at length by Senator Bacon, Of Georgia,
who opposed it. and by Senators Hoar,
OF Massachusetts. n Mason, Of uli-
nois. who supported IL.
Earlier in the day a lively debate was
preclpitated by he effort Of Senator
Rawlins, of Utah to have printed as a
document some Philippine correspon-
dence. Eventually. tn, matter was or
dered printed, as requested.
Senator Bacon, of Georgia, offered an
amendment to the first paragraph of
the bill for the protection Of the presi-
dent, providing the penalty of death for
an assassin OF a president If the assault
upon the president w9s committed be
caus of his political position or for the
purpose of destroying the government
or impairing the exercise OF it's consti-
tutional powers"
Senator Vest, Of Missouri, suggested
the possibility of a federal Jury acuuit-
ting an assassin of the president be-
cause the motive as specified by Sena-
tor Bacon'S amendment had not been
proved. In such a case he asked would
the assassin be liable 10 Indictment I'M
der the state law?
Senato Bacon said an assault upon
the president might be a crime against
the person and it might be a crime
against the government. The purpose
Of his amendment is to differentiate be-
tween the two crimes. He contended
that an assault upon the president as
a person ought to be punished precisely
as any similar offense against any other
citizen was punished; otherwise, an of
fetal class would be created in the
United States. The foundation stone of
our government, he maintained, was
absolute equality before the law.
Senator Mason, Of Illinois, said the
| pending bill was but the formation
and shape Of public opinion which
thrice had been aroused bv the murder
Of the president" To his mind it was a
we'll considered and thoroughly matur-
ed measure and the amendment offered
by Senator Bacon, he thought, was not
warranted by the conditions or by the
law; that the present was a bad time
to fix special pleading for anarchistic
criminals.
In the course of a legal and constitu-
tional argument in support of the bill,
Senator replied to some of the
points made by Senator Bacon. He
| suggested that Senator Bacon'S amend
ment and his objections to the bill were
] founded. not on a special rule of law,
| but a special rule of escape for the
| criminal specified by the measure.
Senator Bacon took sharp exception
| to the criticism of Senator Hoar, assert
| ing that the Massachusetts senator's
| statements were "un1uStifiable," and
"misrepresented," his argument.
senator Bacon replied with some evil
denCes OF e to criticisms of mis-
| amendment made by Senator Mason
criticism which he felt reflected upon
him personally. He demanded to know
whether there was a senator on the re-
publican side who believed he could be
guilty of defending anarchists or their
schemes, or a senator who believed that
he had presented anything that would
afford a method of escape of anarchists
from just punishment when guilty of an
assault upon the president.
Senator Mason replied that he CEN
tainly believed what he had said and
was willing to state 1t again. The SEN
ator from Georgia knew, however, h a
he was incapable Of rejecting upon his
(Bacon'S) honor or integrity OF purpose.
iio L ~ tNPAASN $4,000
was that the amendment offered by the
senator from Georgia was a basis of
special pleading Cor men who shall be
caught in the act of taking the life of
the president. 1t opens wide the door
for special pleading. What I said did
not reflect directly or remotely upon the
honor of the senator. / was Charcteriz-
ing the amendment, not the senator
House of Representatives.
The general debate on the river and
harbor appropriation bill in the house
was enlivened today by Mr.. Hepburn,
of Iowa. who made his annual on
slaught upon the measure. Contrary tC
his usual custom. Mr.. Hepburn found
several things in the bill to commend
although some of his criticisms were
7 quite severe. He said that congress
should set a definite limit upon the
depth of water sought to be obtained
in seaport harborS-thlrty feet for In
~stance-and place a limit upon nava
architect. Otherwise, he declared, there
would be no end to the depth of water
which would be demanded.
The other speakers today wer'
Messrs. Ball, of Texas, and Lawrence
of Massachusetts,, both members of tn
committee, and MessrS. White, of Ken
lucky, and Thompson and Burnett, o
Alabama, who spoke in favor OF i'm
provements of interest to their dis
!. tricts.
1t was agreed that general debate Oh
the bill should close tomorrow at
1'o10oE