Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1902-03-24


law definite information upon that
point ought to be furnished congress.
He did net care to vote for a measure
making an appropriation that not
only would not accomplish definite
results, but which might be simply
largess to ship owners. He gave
notice of an amendment which he
proposed to offer, providing that the
bill might be amended or repealed by
congress without, however. impairing
any contract made under it's pro-
visions. The amendment would be
notice, he said, that subsidy would
not be safe foundation upon which
to build largely.
Mr.. Allison (rep., Ia.) indicated
that he was not quite satisfied with
the measure as it stands now and
gave notice of amendments he pro-
posed to offer to it, limiting the time
OF it's operation and the amount OF
money annually to be paid from the
treasury on account of it,
Mr.. Teller lind, COLI made a
speech in opposition and Mr.. Elkins
(rep., w. Va.) one in support of it.
The West Virginia senator admitted,
however, that he would much prefer
the adoption of policy of discrimi-
mating duties.
Mr.. Berry (dem., Ark, represent
ing the minority of the senate com
mittee on commerce presented the
report in opposition to the pending
ship subsidy bill The accuracy Of
both the predictions and the facts in
the majority report was denied.
The minority members urge that the
bill is wrong in principle, and declare
that it will utterly fail in the ac-
complishment of it's professed OBJ
iects. The minority continues: The
bill proposes to tax the whole people
to the extent of several millions for
the benefit of one single industry.
Besides the statistics of the last two
years prove that the ship-building in
dustry does not need such special
assistance, but is rapidly increasing
under natural conditions. The high
est rate of subsidy is given to twenty
knot vessels while the fast ocean
mails are really carried in % and "a
knot vessels. The mail compensation
to the slow American vessels, already
too high, is made more for a weekly
service than England pays for semi
weekly service by much faster ships
than ours. The report closes by say
ing: We know that there are hun
dreds and thousands of industries in
our country doing losing business,
but we deny that congress for this
reason can go into the public
treasury and save them from bank
ruptcy. We sympathize with all men
in the hard struggles of life, but it is
not the duty of our government to
interfere in the private business
affairs of the citizen We believe
that all men should have an equal
wealth and happiness-every citizen
should bear his share of the bur-
dens of the government; one class
should never be the recipient of bene-
fits not given to others. Absolute
equality of rights is doctrine we
should never abandon. The bill is
wrong in principle, unjust, vicious,
pure class legislation.
In the house Mr.. Minor (rep.,
Wis.,, rising to question of per-
sonal privilege, denounced the pub
lished statement regarding the
fo1C
Speaker Henderson also stated that
there was not shadow of truth in
the article. The article in question
was a Washington dispatch in Gin
cinnati newspaper to the effect that
Mr.. Minor had changed his position
on the shipping bill and on the Cuban
tariff question because of the speak
ers intention to advance the local
revenue cutter measure in which the
Wisconsin member was interested
Washington, March 17-After pro
longed debate the senate passed the
ship-subsidy bill, the final vote be-
ing AZ to 81. Messrs Allison and Dol
liver of Iowa, Spooner and Quarles of
Wisconsin, and Proctor and Dilling
ham of Vermont, all republicans,
voted against passage, and Mr.. Nc
Laurin (dem., S. CO. for it. Some
amendments were adopted but they
were all agreeable to those in charge
Of the measure, the friends of the bill
voting down all other amendments.
With the exception of the amend
ments offered by Mr.. Allison and ac-
copied by Mr. Frye, limiting the time
of the operation of contracts made
under the provisions OF the bill to
July /, 1920, and that the amount OF
expenditure under the mail subsidy
paragraph should not at any time ex-
ceed $8,000,000 annually, none of the
amendments agreed to materially af-
fected the bill as it was reported from
the commerce committee. Amend
ments by Mr. Vest (dem., Mo- pro-
viding for free ships" and for the
application of the provisions of the