The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1902-10-09
PRITCHARD'S OESERTER BILL.
senator Simmons Says He Never Ac-
q"tesced in it and Has No Recalled.
ton OF Being Present When Mr..
Pritchard Made His Spsech.
News and Observer

III i'ShId W tie VARIOUS
and sundry statements that Sen
ator Prltchard is making with refer
ence to his attitude toward the
Iritchard deserter pension bill, Sen
atOr Simmons said that Senator
Prltchard, Ill his desperate efforts to
escape the wrath and condemnation
OF the people, was making some very
remarkable statements concerning
himself and the rules of procedure OF
the Senate
''ln his first reference to this mat
ter, Senator Pritchard said | was
silent when this bill passed. In his
next reference lie warmed up little
and said he presumed | acquiesced in
his bill. In his next reference the
Senator went ii step further and said
that had acquiesced, or at least the
newspapers have so reported him
At this rate OF progress, how long
will it be before the Senator will have
me speaking for his bill and voting
for it? There would be about as
much fOundatiO for this statement
as there is for the inference drawn by
the Senator as above stated.
Now Senator Pritchard must
know that | did not Acquiescc in his
bill and that lido not ucquiesce III il,
and that failure to vote in the Sen
ate when the bill was under consider
alton, even il | We're present, would
not Justify any such Inference IN
the next place, it would seem impos-
sible that he believes that all the
Southern Senators are III favor OF the
bill, or that they acquiesce III it.
| Senator Pritchard knows when there
is It favorable report from the COM
mittee, as there was on this bill,
there is very seldom Il roll call or
| division upon IL nOn-pOlitical ques
ton, and that very frequently when
such a bill is put upon its passage
| but few Senator's vote either for or
against it, and the whole thing is
merely proforma. Senators who are
| opposed to such bills generally know
| that opposition will be futile, and
| they do not take up the time of the
Senate, either in demanding a roll
call or i'll opposing it. Nothing, l
think, is better understood i'll the
Senate than that no such inference
as Senator Pritchard draws is to be
drawn from the prOfOrma failure OF
Senators to demand a roll call, or,
when there is Il profOrma vote, to
actually vote. Any other rule would
make it necessary for Senators to be
constantly in their seats and on their
guard to see that they were either
recorded against every measure that
they disapprOved, or that their OPP
position lit was actually announced
i'm order to exclude the Inference
that they acquiesced i'll the meas
ure.
THE newspaper report OF the Joint
debate between Mr.. Craig and Sena-
tor Pritchard at Greensboro repre-
sents the Senator as saying that his
deserter bill was passed by unani-
nous consent, and that | could have
objected and prevented its passage.
| cannot believe Senator Pritchard
is correctly quoted, because the Sen
ator knows so well that Ill the Sen
ate when unanimous consent is asked
if there is objection. a vote can be
immediately taken upon the motion
to consider the bill, Notwithstanding
the objection, and that this is a com
mon practice in the Senate.
Senator Pritchard said in sub
stance in his speech at Raleigh that
when his bill was up, and while nc
was speaking away as hard as he
could for the bill, he looked across
the aisle and saw me in my seat, anc
the Hon. f. W. Pou sitting by my
side. The Congressional Record re
ports everything Il Senator says
upOn the floor, and here Is what the
: Record represents Senator PrltcharC
{ as saving at the time his bill Wa'
called up and put upon its passage
= | give every word OF 1t. so that 1
d may be seen how strenuOusly th'
Senator was speaking at the time h
said he looked across the aisle an'
f saw Mr.. Pou and myself:
".Mr. Pritchard | understand tha
the Joint resolution Is. Il. - con
STRUNG the act approved June ~
1890, entitled An act grantln!
pensions to soldiers and sailors wht
are reincapacitated for the performance
of manual labor, and providing 10
pensions to widows, minor children
and dependent parents, was passe'
over. / should like to have it con
= sidered at this time The Senate
NAV call this a speech, but | d
not.
Now | have talked with Mr.. PO
about this matter, and neither h
nor myself have any recollection
being present at the time OF the pas
sage OF the bill. or hearing Senate
. Pritchard address the Senate at tina
time. and until examined the Con
gressional Record, | supposed thi
bill was passed during the last fe'
days of the session.
!, Upon examination OF the RECORD
N | find that the vote was taken upO
- this bill on Saturday and that da
had been set apart for the cOdsldel
alton OF pensions and eulOgles upo
the late Senator Kyle, and l am ce
tain | was not present during til
n delivery of any eulOgy upon til
\, death of Senator Kyle. Indeed, l I'll
= not hear a eulogy during the who
session. And, as | took but hit
interest in pension bills, becaus
=. these bills were generally III the hanC
Id ofthe Congressman or Senator Prltcl
W ard. who was a member OF the Con
n. y. mittee on Pensions, seldom remain
Id ed in the Senate when these bills wei
IN being considered. Since Senate
Pritchard' s statement. before quote,
that | was present when he made h
21 2h speech upon this bill, l have sal
; several times that | had no recoile
It, ton of hearing the Senator's bi
read in the Senate or of hearing hi
make any speech upon the bill excel
when he offered it as an amendmel
t. to the general pension bill, and thu
| did remember that at that tim