The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-03-28
HOUSE WILL
 INVESTIGATE
Continued from Page one.)


 q take 1t that the Senate of the United States did not lknow, on the 17th day of February, that $50O,OOO of that money had , been bargained away for the corrupt purpose of buying them and you and the balance of us into the support of this measure, and yet, on the 1ith day or February, the American Senate almost unanimously, as I believe, and has been published in the newspapers, ratified this treaty. Did they know, MT. Speaker, when they ratified this treaty, that these things were being published in Copen- hagen, Denmark? Did these United States Senators, did the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the Senate, know this? FI do not know, but this is the first time the attention of this House has been called to this dsgraceful state of affairs. 1t seems to me there is one thing un- pardonsble in this whole business. and that is that the Department of State must have known of the publication of these infamous charges in Denmark and in Copenhagen for two weeks, or nearly three weeks. before this treaty was rati- fed"
 Change in Resolutions.
 MT. Hit pointed out that. as framed. the resolution asserted facts of the re- sponsibility of the House of Representa- | tlNeS, WHeTedS they were HleTc CHdI 8SS ol an outside party. Mir. Richardson there- upon changed the preamble so as to read. Whereas. it is alleged" etc. MT. Cannon Qll) said so far as he could catch the charges, it appeared that some man named Christmas. who acknowledged himself "a bribec and worse.'' made charges of which it was proposed to make an investigation whether any member of the House of R representatives was guilty I@f L.slx -F l.usl MT. Cannon pressed Mir. Richardson to know whether the report gave the name of a member or members to have been bribed and they engaged in very sharp clash. Mir. Cannon was plainly laboring under considerable excitement. MT. Richardson insisted that the report did charge members of the House and Senate. .I have mentioned several of the names" said he. "I will repeat them. If need be-"
 Cannon Fights Hard
 ''It seems to me-" said MT. Cannon, that it would be wise to make this inves- tigation if it is worthy of investigation, after the members of the House have had opportunity to examine the documents which the gentleman from Tennessee has read. They are ready to be printed in the Record. When they are printed. we can see what substance there Is in them. There is no man on the floor of this House who does not demand a full inves- tigation if the honor of any member is authoritatively called into question. But do not believe that there is a man here who wants to investigate the mere state- ment of an acknowledged thief. I would be glad if the whole matter go over un- til tomorrow, when members can have had an opportunity to examine the docu- msn nts. I make this suggestion in the greatest good faith
 And I have offered the resolution in the greatest good faith,'' observed MT. Richardson.
 "The gentleman asks action, on docu- ment the extracts of which has been read" retorted MT. Cannon hotly.
 ''The gentleman need not become ex- oited or agitated. I am perfectly willing to have the clerk read the entire dcou- ment," responded Mir Richardson.
 ''I move to postpone the consideration of the resolution until tomorrow" inter- posed MT. Cannon.
 Pensions and Probity.
 Thereupon Mir. Miers und.) protested that tomorrow was pension day, and asked that MT. Cannon change his motion to Saturday.
 "Is not the honor of a member of the House more important than the passage of few pension bills?" cried MT. Pierce CTenn.).
 Mir. Underwood (Ala.) then declared that the honor of the country was at stake, and that 1t rose far above the honor of n ere individual. He insisted that Christ mas, after coming here to negotiate the sale of the Danish Islands, had gone back as the accredited agent of the United States. It mattered not, he said. whether he was thief or knave, he had made the charges. While he hoped for the honor of the country that they were not true. they should be thoroughly investigated.
 In answer to an interrogation from MT. Hit Ull.), MT Richardson stated Christ mass report was dated October 1. 1901.
 MT. Cannon declared that he had never heard of Christmas until today. but, ac- cording to his own belief. he was a briber and worse.
 But he was accredited by the Secre- tary of State" interposed MT. Richard son, and instructed to go to our minis ter in London"
 Cannon Sees Light.
 "The gentleman artfully says the Sec retary of State made this man his agent" cried Mir. Cannon, indignantly. 'I don't know anything about it. If anything ought to be investigated, I am for an in- vestigation. l am not in favor of pro- ceeding upon the extracts the gentleman has read. Let the documents be printed in full. No one will be more swift than l to investigate charges affecting Federal officials and members of the American Congress"
 But these charges were printed in Denmark and were known here from Jan. 2S to Feb IT," interposed MT. Rich ardson. Docs the gentleman not think the Secretary of State should have called