The Birmingham age-herald., 1904-04-02
POSTOFF|CE IS
 ID BE AN ISSUE BeVGridge Presses Simmons to
 Commit Himself WOULD NOT EXPRESS CHOICE The Question Is Asked Point Blank Whether He Alluded to Parker
 or Hearst in His Dec
 laration.
WOULD NOT EXPRESS CHOICE

laration.
 Washington. April 1.-Good Friday was devoted by the senate to almost con- tinuous discussion of political questions. The time until o'clock was devoted al- most entirely to the Carmack resolution proposing an Inquiry into the legality of the recent executive old age pension or- der. MT. Carmaek was the principal speaker, but he was frequently inter- rupted by republican senators. He con- tended that Secretary Hitchcock had transcended the limits of executive au- thority Is issuing tho order.
 The latter half of the day was de- voted to the postofice appropriation bill, but no appreciable progress was made with that measure the speeches on it being in the main political and of gem eral character. There was a spirited debate between Mir Simmons and MT. Beveridge on the question of the proprie- ty of congressional investigation into the affairs of the postofhce department.s during which the prospective presidential nominees of the two political parties In the next campaign were freely discussed, Mir. Beveridge admitted that the repub- licans had agreed on a candidate and named President Roosevelt as the man. There was also further discussion of the committee amendment for the purchase of an additional postofhee site in New York city.
 Chinese Exclusion Act.
 MT. Patterson introduced a bill for the amendment of the Chinese exclusion act of 1892, giving notice that on Wednesday next he would address the senate on the bill. In giving this notice he said he had received what he considered definite in- formation that the Chinese government had denounced the treaty between that government and the United States, and that the treaty would expire December T. next. Unless the law should be amend- ed Chinese can come into the United States after that time without obstruc- ton. Mir. Patt of Connecticut expressed a dissent from this view
 A bill was passed authorizing the free transmission through the malls of books for the blind.
 Also a bill authorizing the detail of re- tired officers of the army and the detail of retired officers of the army and navy to schools as instructors
 MT. Mallory then addressed the sem ate on the Carmack resolution. instruct ing the committee on the judiciary to make inquiry into the legal right of tho secretary of the interior to issue the old age disability pension order recently pro- mulgated. He said at the outset that there need not be any appropriation that the resolution was intended to affect the status of the pensioners for there was no such intention or desire on the part af tha daF..o Cfslt ti1 fore IIa fnFaA- ed that the question of liberty to the vet erans Is not involved in any respect what ever. but the only point was whether the executive branch of the government had not transcended it's authority and usurped legal functions in establishing the rule by the new order. He contended that such usurpation had occurred and agreed that this order was not in line by the order by Judge Lochren during MT, Cleveland's administration. He ac- knowledged. however. that MT. I,ochren had transcended the law in fixing seventy-fiye years as evidence of total disability.
 Lochren Had No Authority.
 MT. Mallory said Mir. Lochren had no authority to fix seventy-five years as the age of even presumptlve disability nor was there any sanction for the recent or- der reducing the age to sixty-two years. The law, he said. requires due proof" of infirmity and consequently either pre- sumption was entirely unjustified. Mir. Foraker took exception to MT. Mallorys characterization of the new ruling as ar bltrary, saying 1t fixed sixty-two years only as "an evidentlal fact of disability" MT. Mallory argued that the operation might work a great hardship as the effect would be to award pensions regardless os the length of the length of service or the cause of disability aside from age.
 MT. Mallory entered upon a line of ar- gument to show that 1t Is in some re- spects equivalent to a service pension law.
 MT. Spooner interrupted with the state- ment that congress had fixed the age of | sixty-two years as the age of the disa- bilty in the case of Mexican veterans.
 That" he said. was not a service pension bill"
 Mir. Mallory replied that congress had perfect right to act as In that case, while an executive official had not.
 Congress acted then" interrupted Mir. Carmack because it did not have a sec retary of the interior to legalize for it. Consequently congress had to act for itsel'"
 marked MT. Spooner
 MT. Mallory had not concluded when at 2 o'clock the postoffice bill was taken up.
 Before the consideration of the post office bill could be proceeded with Mir. Perkins presented a partial conference report on the Qualifications appropriation bill. He stated an agreement had been reached on all the items of difference ex- eept those relating to the submarine boat and to an elevated gun carriage. both of which matters were still in dispute. He added that the house provisions concerns ing the purchase of a site for fortifca- tions In the Hawaiian islands had been accepted. The report was accepted and further conference ordered. Postoffice Bill Comes Up. The postoffice bill was again taken up. and Mir. Simmons spoke In favor of the desirabilty of congressional investiga- ton into postofflee affairs. Mr Simmons declared that the investi- gation Into the affairs of the postoffice department had been limited to only one branch of the department. and said that "wherever graft was looked for graft was | found; that wherever crime was looked for there crime was found: that wherever swindIlng and corruption was looked for, there swindllng and corruption had been | found" If all this had been found in one branch of the department. there was no | right to assume that similar conditions