The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-01-16
PULLMAN IS SCORED Spooner Round1y Re
 bukes Senator cOLLOQUY GREW HEATED Wisconsin Man Declares South
 Can Solve Problem. Believes That People Like Pitchsork solon. whe Continually AEitate Question Are Responsible for
 the Attending Trouble.
 


 Washington. Jan. 15.--senator spoo- ner today resumed his discussion of the BrownsvfIIe resolution, his speech on this subject having been interrup- ted by the adjournment of the Senate yesterday. He said he agreed that it Is for Congress to determine the oath of enlistment of land and sea forces, the duration Of term. the pay. the method of punishment and many other regulations for the government of the soldiers. but he could not agree that the commander in chief is in time of peace or war under the supreme control of Congress.
 The constitution made the president commander in chief of the army with out defining his functions, declared MT. Spooner. He read from a decis- ion in the swayne case in the court of claims that Congress may reduce or abolish the military forces, but so long as there Is a force the comman- der in chief IS supreme. This decis- ion set forth the view that the pow CTS of Congress and the powers of the commander in chief are supreme and that one cannot encroach on the power of the other.
 'T never heard until yesterday" said Mir. Spooner. that the president had not the power of sending forces where he chose. never heard that that was not a part of the rower of commander--until this was proclaimed yesterday by the Senator from Geor- gia." (Mr. Bacon.
 The point was made by Mir. Spooner that the constitution does not say that Congress has the power to gov ern the military forces but to make rules for the government of the army i. He claimed that the words Ito make trtt3es,f enc ant D At tal9s enforcement of the regulations for the government of the army rests absolutely with the President as commander in chief In cases where Congress has legislated to reappoint men to the army and navy, Mir. Spooner said that 1t merely gave to the president authority in his dis- cretion to reappoint men or permit their re-enfistment.
 On this subject. he engaged In brief coIloquy with MT. Bacon, in which the General Fftzjohn Porter case was referred to, and 1t was recalled that President Arthur had vetoed the first act of Congress concerning Gem eral Porter on the ground that Con- xress had no right to pass an act to compel him to reappoint any man by name.
 MT. Spooner then recited the recent act of Congress authorizing the Presi- dent to reappoint cadets to the Naval Academy after they had been dismissed for hazing. saying that Congress then merely removed the bar against reap pointment that had been raised by Congress. Contending that Mir. Bacon's theory that Congress has supreme con- troI of the army and navy and over the commander n-chief is the most dan gerous proposition that could be ad- vanced, MT. Spooner again brought the Georgia Senator to his feet.
 A Dangerous Pow CT.
 Mir. Bacon insisted that there could be no more dangerous proposition than the great power of the army and navy should be lodged in the will of one man, and the two Senators came into direct and positive conflict on this point.
 MT. spooner declared that Mir. Ba- eon'z nosition was in utter disregard of the constitution itself; that absolute mower has to be lodged in the Govern ment somewhere, and in the case un- der discussion this absolute power had heen divided between the President and Congress. He said the question of Uhether the IF negro soldiers had been discharged from the army by an order not in accord with the Presidents con- stitutionaI authority could be tested any day. These men may go into the Court of Claims and sue for their pay and thus test the constitutionality of their discharges.
 Messrs. Spooner and Bacon agreed that there are statutory provisions au- thorizing the President to take the course he did, and Mir. Spooner said 1t