The Savannah morning news., 1903-02-20
AN EXTRA SESSION
OF THE SENATE WILL BE CALLED
BY ROOSEVELT.
IF TREATIES AREN'T RATIFIED.
ANXIOUS ABOUT CANAL AND CUBAN
RECIPROCITY.

His IntentiOn-He Was Emphatic,
Left no Doubt of His Determine
tiOn-TrcntieH May be Ratified ut
the Regular Session and Make an
Extraordinary Session Unneces-
sary Reasons of state Demand
Early Ratification.
Washington, Feb. 19.-President
| Roosevelt will call an extraordinary
session OF the Senate of the 5Sth Con-
| gress unless both the Panama canal
and the Cuban reciprocity treaties are
ratified at the present session. The
President made this declaration of his
intention to several senators to-day,
and he made 1t as emphatic and I'M
| equivocally as he was capable of max
| ing it.
1t is deemed likely by officials OF the
administration and by many senators
| that both treaties will be ratified be-
fore March 4, but the necessity for
| their early ratification is regarded by
the President as so urgent that in the
event of the failure of either one or
both at the present session, he will is
sue Immediately his call for an extra
session.
1t is said there are grave reasons of
state why both treaties should be rat
| flied as soon as possible. These have
! induced the President to make the an
| nouncement to senators of his deter
| mination.
Statehood Bill and Canal Treaty.
| There is a movement on among some
| of the friends of the statehood bin in
| the Senate to couple the fortunes of
| that measure with those of the Panama
| canal treaty, and make the ratification
| of the one depend upon the passage OF
| the other. The details of the plan have
not come to light fully, but It is under
stood that the scheme is to menace the
! treaty by delay until an agreement to
| vote on the statehood bill can be Sc
cured.
Many of the statehood advocates on
| both sides of the chamber say they Will
not allow Senator Morgan to be forced
by a test of physical endurance to COM
| plete his speech in opposition TO the
treaty before he is willing to conclude of
his own accord.
The rumor of such a purpose was
current about the Senate before the ex-
ecutive session began at 1920 to-day,
and those who had heard it merely as
a rumor were convinced that 1t was not
without foundation in fact, when, in
| stead of Senator Morgan resun1ing his
speech soon after the executive session
began to-day, Senator Quay addressed
the chair and sent up some documents
| to be read, among which was the con-
| stitution of Colombia. He made no ex-
PLANTATION beyond saying that the docu-
ments would throw light on the SUD
| ject, and that he thought that especial
| ly at this time the Senate should be In
1 g. Il a IL.
stitution Of the country with which the
United States is doing business.
Senator Quay took the copy OF the
| Colombian constitution which he ask
| ed to have read from quite a large
pile of documents which lay on his
desk and when he asked to have it
read, the Republican senators sitting
near him Immediately reached the con-
| clusion that he had united his forces
with Senator Morgan, and that the
| step was intended to force the accep-
| lance of the statehood bill
| Without giving voice to such a sup
| position, Senator Aldrich objected to
the reading of the document by the
| clerk, saying that evidently the pro-
| ceeding was merely intended for the
purpose of delay.
Senator Quay replied that such was
not his intention and that he would
ask to have nothing read which would
not throw light upon the subject UNI
| der consideration. Senator Morgan
also said that so far as he was con-
| cerned there was no collision
| IT was then agreed that for the
present and until 1t should become
| evident that the reading was for de-
lay it should continue.
The antl-statehood Republican SEN
at nada -
surprise ct Senator Quay's proceeding,
and all or them who would express an
| opinion at all said that the move
would not result in the passage of the
| statehood BILL whatever might be it's
effect upon the treaty. They did not
believe, they said, that it would pre-
vent ratification of the treaty.
Before Senator Quay took the floor,
| Senator Hoar made a brief speech in
| support of the treaty saying that
| since the Spooner act had become a
| law the United States are in honor
| bound to consummate the transaction
provided for by that act
After the reading of the Colombian
| constitution had been concluded Sem
ator Morgan continued his speech, dis
| cussing what he characterized as a
discrepancy between the terms of the
! Spooner act and the terms of the
| treaty. He quoted from the treaty
| the clause providing for the lease of
the canal zone and from the act the
language of the second section author
izing the President to acquire per-
petual control of strip of land six
miles in width. and charged that the
two were utterly inconsistent
Senator's Bacon, Daniels and Raw
Inns supported Senator Morgan, while
several Republican senator's opposed It,
Shortly before 6 o'clock a recess was
taken until O'Clock, when Senator
Morgan resumed speaking until IL
o'clock. when the Senate took a recess
until IL o'clock tomorrow.
Senator Morgan devoted his evening
discourse largely to the relation OF the
Colombian government to the Catho-
lie church.
Just before the close of the session
Senator Cullom sought unanimous
consent to fix a time for a vote next
Saturday, but Senator Morgan CD
jected.