Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1907-01-18
President Will Urge Passage
of Substitute Measure in
Congress
SPECIAL RULE TO CHECK GRAFT
Backers Claim They Are Assured of
Majority When the Vote Comes in
the House-Friends of Bill Are Well
orsanized-HiII Not a Subsidy
Seeker.

Washington, Jan. lS.-NoW that d
subsidy bill has been reported to the
house President Roosevelt will send
special message to congress, urging leg
islation along this line.
Wednesday and yesterday he had
conferences with friends of the bill,
and is gathering material to be includ-
ed in that message, and it is UNDER
stood that he will make some special
mention of the necessity for subvention
to vessels between the United States
and oriental ports in view of the threat
of Japan to gobble up all American
shipping on the Pacific coast 1t is ex-
pected that the message will go to con-
gress several days before the house is
ready to act upon the bill.
The program of the house leaders is
to bring the bill up for consideration
under special rule, limiting the time of
debate and prohibiting amendment
opponents of oriental subsidies from
cutting them out of the bill. The chief
of these opponents is Representative
Fordney, of Michigan, who wanted to
amend the bill in that way in commit
tee, but didn't because he was afraid
it would defeat the South American
subsidy, which he fsLvors. When the
vote was taken, Fordney gave notice
that he would move to strike out the
oriental subsidy provision when the bill
came upon the floor of the house, but
he will not be able to put his motion
If the program of no amendment is
carried out.
Opponents of the bill, other than
Fordney, say that it will be passed.
altho probably as many as forty repub-
licans will vote against the rule and
bill. Even with this opposition, and
the solid democratic vote against the
bill, the leaders will have majority
of from fifteen to twenty.
Republican opponents of the propos-
ed law say that friends of the legisla-
ton are organized and aggressive,
while the opposition is apathetic. and
probably won't do anything further
than to register objections by voting
against the bill.
Those who have given the subject
attention, and talked with members Of
the house, say that the republican OPP
position will be among, delegations rep
resenting middle-west states The Min
nesota delegation vote probably will be
about five to four in favor of the bill.
1t is said that majority of the Wis
consn and Iowa delegations will vote
N hn Nd 10.
Cannons own state. Illinois, there will
be some votes against the bill
1t was largely thru the aggressive
ness of Representative Fordney that
discrimination in the speed of vessels
going from San Francisco and Seattle
was eliminated, and all vessels getting
the subsidy will be required to make
sixteen knots. This provision. it is
claimed, will bar all vessels now rum
ming out of Pacific coast ports, as none
of them make sixteen knots regularly.
and will necessitate construction of
new and better ships.
There is much comment at the cap
ital over the provision said to have
been agreed upon that vessels on
South American routes should clear
from port north of Cape Mendocino,
which would have necessitated vessels
clearing from Seattle or Portland, and
would have meant the payment of sub
sidy for carriage of the mails between
Seattle and San Francisco. This pro-
vision was in the original bill, but was
stricken out by the committee, and the
South American provision on the Pa
cific side now reads that it should be
paid to vessels plying between amy
port on the Pacific coast and South
American ports"
San Francisco and Seattle are both
assured share of the oriental trade,
as there are paragraphs in the bill
authorizing the payment of subsidy
to ships sailing from ports both north
and south of Cape Mendocino.
1t is said today by member who
knows that no matter what the bill
had provided, the. Great Northern
Company's vessels, plying between Sc
attic and oriental ports would not have
applied for participation in the sub
sidy. James j. Hill would not have
been willing to bind himself to some
of the requirements of the bill, which
he considered onerous and exacting on
shipowners.