Evening star., 1904-03-17
COL. SYMONS MAY GO
HIS SERVICES NEEDED ON NEW
YORK CANAL COMMISSION.
House Committee Reopens Case and
May Reverse Its Recent
Adverse Action.

Upon the urgent request of the admins
tration and the pressure of strong political
influence the House committee on military
affairs today granted hearing in the mat
ter of the resolution enabling Col. T. w.
Symons of the engineer corps, officer in
charge of public buildings and grounds IN
this city, to serve member of the ad-
visory canal commission of the state of
New York. Several days ago the commit
tee. by vote of to 4, acted adversely
upon the joint resolution which had passed
the Senate. Representative Prince of Illi-
nois was directed to draw up the report.
Today Senator Depew. who fathered the
resolution in the Senate; Representative
Payne of New York. the republican floor
leader Of the House: Representative Alex
ander of New York. who introduced the
House resolution. and Col. Symons appear
ed before the House committee to ask thi:
further consideration. be given the matter.
IL was claimed by these gentlemen thai
there could be no harm to the government
resulting from the loan of Col. Symons,
who had given great deal of time and
attention to the New York canals during
the six years he was in charge of govern
ment engineering work at Buffalo. Ii wds
further claimed that the New York can II
project Is a very great work. entirely out
OF the ordinary. and that no bad precedent
would be set by allowing government as
sistance to works Of such magnitude.
Action Postponed.
Representative Payne explained the par
liamentary situation resulting from the ad-
verse action of the committee day before
yesterday, and said 1t would not be neces-
sary for the committee to reverse itself in
order to grant the permission desired for
Colonel Symons. The adverse action of
the committee. he stated, was upon the
Senate resolution. That action could stand
The House resolution, said Mr.. Payne, is
still before the committee and had not been
acted upon one way or the other. If the
committee desired to grant permission to
Colonel Symons it could do so 1y ia
vorable report on the House resolution. Ii
the latter should be adopted, It would
throw the matter back into the Senate.
The committee postponed action until to-
morrow in order that the members might
have time to receive and read the adverse
report prepared by Mr.. Prince. This report
,--n"+ed from the printing Office yes
terday, but was in some manner delayed
and did not appear until a few moments
after the COMMITTEES had adjourned for the
day. The adverse report on the Senate res
olution sets forth the facts as stated In
The Star day before yesterday.
Increase in Salary.
1t develops that Colonel Symons' total
salary while a member of the canal COM
mission would be $4,000 a year instead OF
$11 800, as at first stated. Although ma
jor in actual rank, Colonel Symons receives
while on duty in this city the pay and al
lowances Of a colonel. amounting to $4, 800.
The pay as canal commissioner would be
s., 500 a year, and. 1t is said, the term of
service would be approximately ten years.
The concluding paragraphs of the adverse
committee report are as follows:
''In view of the absolute necessity for in
creasing the engineer corps of the army.
your committee cannot see its way clear to
favor the adoption of this resolution. be-
cause if adopted 1t would take from the
engineer corps one of it's ablest and most
efficient officers, when by the letter of the
Secretary of War, as well as by proposed
legislation, there Is absolute need for every
engineer officer now connected or who may
be connected with the engineer corps of the
army by reason of proposed legislation.
1.-THE COMMITTEES Also believes that 1t
would show a bad precedent in that 1t
would encourage the ablest officers and of
the highest rank in the service to accept
private or additional employment to the
detriment of their service in the army; and
that Congress and the War Department
would be besought by officers who could
secure remuneratiye; positions outside of
the regular service for leave to accept said
positions" '~f.s--