The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-12-06
BIG APPROPRIATION
NATIONAL WATERWAYS CONvEN- TION MEMORIALIzEs CONGRESS-
Wire PresIdeut FaIrbanks FavOrs Such Al Appropriafion-speaker Can-
 non Received COmmittee Tn Al
 Mc~t Cnrdial Manner.

d. A.propriafion Cas-
 -c. Received Commiftee Tn
 Most Cordial Manner.
 Wash sbgton, Dec. 5.-A committee or fifty delegates to the recent convention at Memphis of the Lakes to the SuH Deep Waterways Association. @ ,ea oy President w. K. Kavanaugh. called or Vice President Fairbank g and Speake Cannon at the Capitol today and pre- sented to each a memorial adopted py the convention praying the support oi Congress to the project for ship ca nal from the Great Lakes to the cur of Mexico through the Atlantic coast States, and recommending an adaitlonaI appropriation of $50.00o,0o0 for harpofs and waterways improvement as pro- posed by the Rwers and Harbors con gross &s
 President said he would take great pleasure in presenting 1t to the senate and in referring it to the proper com mittee at the earliest possible moment
 ..Speaking for myself personally" the Vice President said, T want to say that the movement for the improvement of our great navigable waterways has my heartiest and most ardent support and good will. am not recent con vert to this general proposition. For a good many years in Indiana, we have been advocating and urging more lio- erai appropriation for the improvement of the Ohio River and all of its naviga- ble affluents. I think among the ques- tions which engage the attention Of the people today there Is not one or greater importance than this. It af- fects forty millions of people represent ed by you; in fact, fin affects every citizen of the republic.
 "The importance of the subject has cfS aA Y nj Ua not taken 1t up early enough. do not see how there can be any opposition to such a movement as this. do not understand where 1t can come from. It is so wide in it's beneficient scope. I only regret that do not have vote upon the proposition. But in the event there is a tie 1t would be improper for me to say what would debut I do not think you would need to memorial ize me as to what should do." tLaugh- | ter and applause.)
 Speaker Cannon greeted the commit | tee cordially and at once went to the point by asking whether the memorial recommended a bond issue for the pro- posed expense. MT. Malone, for the the delegates to the convention ex- pected such a recommendation to be l made, 1t had been omitted.
 | q wanted to see." said the speaker, If you had so specialized. I was un- der the impression that a resolution was adopted that looked toward the | improvement in a business-Iike way of the waterways of the United States and if there was any specification then 1t | was that the waterways should join the unsalted seas with the Gulf of Mex leo which by inference, if not by con- struction, was indicated as the prob- ably most important thing to be done. - k~ t.S @H Atn movement that started out at Keokuk and ended at Memphis or vicksburg. I was busy then. I was busy then. One year in four a poor devil of a member of Congress, if he faces his lpeople after being in Washington, has got to run something of personal er- rands. I was quite busy during the vacation in looking after the bread and butter problem.
 q would hesitate long-and that Is the reason I asked you the question to vote to issue a thousand million. five hundred millions, one hundred mil lions or five millions of dollars of the securities of the Government for the improvement of rivers and harbors. am not sure that the sober second thought of the country would approve it, and I am glad you left 1t out oi your recommendations.
 This country's appropriations, in- cludfng the permanent approprlaLlons for the public service, are over nine hundreds of millions of dollars for the current year; and. gentlemen, the ex- penditures will be within the revenues and something left. We have already $24o. 900, 900 of surplus in the Treasury quite enough to pay for vigorous prosecution of all things that are be- ing prosecuted in the way of work and quite enough to get ready just as fast as possible with surveys, plans and estimates. Now then, any repre- sentative who is accountable to his people would in my judgment be ar ass to rush in and vote $500. 100000 oI $1,O00, ,O00, ,000 of bonds when he could not get ready in two years to spend 5 per cent. of it.
 we have got to leave something fol the next Congress to do. gentlemen
 Daughter and applause.) I believe 6 great development will go hot-foot along that line. I think you are 1T the right line looking to this matter of waterways; but hold fast to youl resolutions. one or two things that art practicaI--finish them up and they will speak for themselves and make others easier. That Is what we have got t' do in this matter. In the course O time, if my constituents shall continue to give me their confidence, I keeping my life and moving along as I know you and every man here would desir' that I move, my voice and my vot shall be along the line I have given