The Savannah morning news., 1902-01-12

upon the overladen trenchers. Fortune
favored him in the last Congress. The
escapade of Thomas II. Carter in the
Senate blocked the river and harbor
bill and saved the country untold mil
lions. He will hardly be so fortunate
in the present Congress. A similar bill
is sure to demand the right of way.
with millions in the way of irrigation
added to it. An outcry will also be
raised from the Committee on Public
Buildings and Grounds. The continu-
Gus appropriations for postoffices and
custom houses are about exhausted
and new opening is sought. Seth
Milliken, of Maine, once took out
nearly ten millions in two days. 1t still
stands as high water mark and an
effort to surpass 1t is already overdue.
Then the President favors a large in
crease in the navy. and this demand
is enhanced by the fact that the recon-
mendation of the Committee on Naval
Affairs last year was disregarded by
the House. The ship subsidy men are
glrding their loins for leap toward
the Treasury. and there is a plan for
presidential escurial involving mil
lions. Back of all this turks a scheme
for grand boulevard running from
the Capitol past the Washington Mon
with costly public buildings and to in
volve transfer of the Botanic Gar
dens. Such a scheme thoroughly de-
veloped might reach a total of $50. O00.-
600 or $40,000,00 and make Pennsyl-
vania avenue look like back alley.
The Nicaragua canal project may de-
mand $l0,000000 for beginning. But
this would be only flea bite in COM
parison with other mooted schemes.
There will be plenty of work at the
front for the man from Iowa, and he
will probably remain there night and
day.
There is another man from Iowa at
the front. and one who also attracts
the attention of the nation. He is
william +. Hepburn, chairman of the
Committee on Interstate and Foreign
Commerce. Hepburn is the head and
front of legislation in behalf of the
Nicaragua canal. Six years has he
waited the fruition of his hopes, and
now the sunlight of success is painting
the eastern sky. Reed barred his way.
in the Fifty-fourth Congress. He Of
Tered the bill as an amendment to the
sundry civil bill in the Fifty-fifth Con-
gress. 1t was an almost hopeless eff
fort to break the effect of the Reed
rules. The amendment was offered i'm
Committee of the Whole. Albert J.
Hopkins, its chairman, ruled it out of
order. Hepburn took an appeal and
made fierce fight. Speaker Reed was
alarmed. He appealed to conscientious
members not to sustain such a palna-
BILE infraction of the rules. and de-
feated the man from Iowa by eighteen
majority. If the minority had voted
soidiy with Hepburn, he would have
been victorious. Reed. however. con-
Vlnced many of them that such a vote
would be worse than perjury. In the
last Congress Mr.. Hepburn succeeded
IN getting a special order from the
Committee on Rules providing for the
consideration of the bill by the House.
Joseph G.. Cannon assaulted il most
numerically, and singing personaIi-
ties were exchanged, but the Hawkeye
carried his bill exactly as it was re-
ported by forty-eight majority. It
went over to the Senate with the com
plments OF its author. and was buried.
the Senate being unable to agree ,lnon
any action in view of the failure or
the first Pauncefote treaty This wear
the fierce man from Iowa took time by
the forelock. He had accurately esti-
mated public opinion, and was backed
by the platforms of both political par
ties. He was reappointed chairman OF
the Committee on Interstate and For
elsn Commerce on Dec. 10. Before
many OF the committees were thor
oughly organized he reported the bill
TO the House. The report under the
rules was quietly handed to the clerk
and promptly placed on the calendar.
Just before the holiday recess was
taken Hepburn happened to catch the
eye of the Speaker and was gracefully
accorded recognition. He asked unan-
lmous consent that the bill be made
special order for Jan. and remain
special order until disposed of. but
not to interfere with revenue or an
preparation bills. The request brought