The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1906-02-12
NAVY BILL.
IN CONGRESS
Disposition to Cut the
Appropriations
Down.
(Mail Special to the Advertiser.)


WASHINGTON, D. c., Jan. 20
The Navy Appropriation bill, Chairman
Foss said/today, will not be completed
| and reported to the House for over q
| month. 1t may not be before the mid
die of March. Already, however, there
is evident in both branches of Congress
| disposition to apply the pruning knife
more vigorously than ever in recent
years. Heretofore Chairman Foss has
generally sided with the demands of the
Navy Department and its large bureaus
for very large appropriations. Now he
is practically in accord with Speaker
Cannon and other House leaders to
keep the navy expenses down.
The House Committee on appropria-
tlons enforced the economy program in
refusing to vote large deficiencies for
navy bureaus on the bill which was
passed last week. Chairman Tawney,
who led in that work, said today that
the figures had become appalling. "We
have much to say he added, "about
what great project the Panama Canal
is. But We do not stop to think that it
our navy every year as, according to
present estimates, it will cost to build
that canal
Last year s naval appropriation law
carried about $102, 100000 and large
sum over and above that will be re-
qulred to make up deficiencies. 1t
would be several millions should Con-
gress vote all the bureaus are asking.
congressman are pondering over the
proportions of those figures more than
they were at the last session, when the
chief objections were that the naval
appropriations were preventing appro-
priations for public buildings and other
local projects. Now their reasoning
goes beyond that to realization of
how the expenditures for the navy have
been growing and what a difficult thing
it is going to be to check that increase.
For the first time there is something
unanimity of opinion in
the Senate and House about what the
program should be. Speaker Cannon
and Chairman Tawney are not at odds
about it, as they have been for the /
most part ever since Mr.. Foss was put |
at the head of House Naval Affairs by |
Speaker Henderson. The House Navy |
Committee, too, is pretty much of one
fore there have been two factions, one
for economical and the other for lib
eral expenditures
Mr.. Foss favors giving attention
largely to the navy personnel in the
pill his committee is now framing He
'easons that in the annual navy laws of
,he last few years great attention has
0een given to material features, like
'ew ships and navy yards He ques-
ions the advisability of authorizing
my further battleships at present, as
everal ships are now building and two
last year, have not even
'een begun. He likewise thinks there
hould be decided curtailment- of ex-
enses in the navy yards, where ac-
ording to the department s figures, ,
My about $6,000,000 worth of work is
eing done annually. The Committee
as taken no action on these matters
ct, but it is known that it's members '
re largely in accord with their chair ]
ian s views. c
The disposition is to blame the bu- /
eau chiefs for much of the present con- f
ltlon. CONGRESS has followed their
Communications to a considerable de- I
rec. 1t has voted many millions for |
fCorttnued on Page g.,