Evening star., 1902-03-06
Senate Takes Up the Bill for
Discussion.
MR.. BAC0N'S ARGUMENT
MR.. CLAY RESUMES HIS SPEECH
ON SHIPPING BILL.
Vote to Be Taken on the Measure
March II at p. M.-Hanna
on Ship Subsidy.

the Senate today consideration was begun
Of the bill providing for the protection Of
the President of the United States.
Pending discussion Of the bill. Mr.. Frye
tMe). in charge Of the shipping bill. asked
unanimous consent that a final vote upon
that bill and all amendments be taken on
Monday. March II, at pm. Without COM
ment the Senate agreed to the request.
Mr.. Bacon (Ga.) member OF the judici-
ary committee. then discussed the bill for
the protection Of the President. 1t was,
he thought, very grave question. and he
did not believe the measure ought to be
passed without amendment.
In view of the recent calamity which
had befallen the nation in the assassina-
ton of President Mckinley. the subject of
the pending bill was difficult one to dis
cuss He paid high tribute to President
Mckinley, saying that he was the most
"amiable. courteous and pleasant man
have ever met in high station" and from
him he personally always had received the
kindest consideration.
Mr.. Bacon believed that the proposed
law was unnecessary and did not provide
a more certain punishment for the assassin
than was provided now in the state laws.
The world. he insisted, was not large
enough for the criminal to get beyond the
reach OF the law, and there was no place
secret enough in which to hide himself
from avenging justice. He urged that the
bill indicated there was not sufficient re-
lance upon the criminal laws Of the sew
eral states.
Mr.. Depew On. " pointed out that in
the state laws there was no differentiation
between the assassination Of the President
Of the United States and Of any other per-
son and that an attempt at assassination
was not punishable with death in any
state, as the pending bill provided.
IDla@t Tod thnf
some states had laws against capital pun
ishment.
Mr. Bacon. continuing, said that the bill
involved the right and the propriety OF the
federal government to enforce a law within
a state different from any law on the stat
ute books Of the state. So far as the an
archist was concerned, the death penalty
was not deterrent against the crime of
assassination, as the anarchist was willing
to sacrifice his own life.
Mr.. Hoar (Mass.) interrupted to say that
the pending bill was proper because the
assassination or attempted assassination
Of the President was an interruption OF
the government, and 1t was vitality import
ant to the government that such Interrupt
ton should not occur.
Mr.. Bacon urged that the bill at least
ought to be amended in accordance with
his proposition already offered, so that 1t
should be shown that the crime was COM
mitted against the President because OF
his official position or for the purpose OF
destroying the government or impatring
the execution Of it's constitutional powers"
Mr. Bacon said the bill was practically
an enlargement OF the law Of treason and
proposed to make treason Of something
that, under the Constitution, was not trea-
son.
Had the Scene Been Iowa.
Mr. Patterson (CoL) suggested that a
most embarrassing situation would have
arisen had the assass;nat ton Of President
ToIZ ir1 fnr IN N
state Of Iowa. where capital punishment is
not permissible. It would have resulted. he
believed in the state being disgraced by
mob law, as no American community, ne
thought. would have been satisfied with
| mere imprisonment for the assassination Of
President Mckinley. He agreed with the
main purposes Of the bill.
Mr.. Clay Resumes.
At 2:15 the Senate took up the ship subsi-
dy bill and Mr.. Clay (Ga) continued his
speech begun yesterday.
Mr.. Hanna Replies.
At the conclusion Of Mr.. Clay's speech,
Mr.. Hanna, a member of the commerce
committee and one Of the trainers OF the
pending measure, addressed the Senate In
support of the bill and in answer to the
speech of Mr.. Clay.
Mr. Hanna replied at length to Mr.. Clay's q
argument. He asserted that tho best re-
ply that could be made to 1t would be q
reading of the report Of the committee, and
maintained that tho whole question in
yolved in the ship subsidy bill was one Of
labor. Ninety-five per cent Of the cost Of
| a ship, he said, was purely labor.
Fhe protection asked in this bill was no
more than is given other branches OF in
| dustry. Two dollars per thousand feet
duty on Georgia pine, he declared. was far
larger protection than Is given under the
ship subsidy bill.