Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1908-04-29
FROM WASHINGTON.
Senator Hale's Great Work on Naval
Appropriation Bill -PrOgress Of
Public BUILDINGS RiII.

WAshlNGIoN, ~. ", April ~ tspeclal)- -,
Senator Hale came out with flying colors
last week, after the big fight over the navy
| appropriation bill. The attention of the
country was riveted upon the considera-
ton OF that measure because the Presi
dent, having sought in vain to have four
new battleships authorized in the House,
renewed the fight in the Senate. Mr. Hale
stuck to his plan Of two new ships,
believing that those were sufficient, and
| ne won out handsomely, but not till after
there had been nearly seven days Of fight
/ ing.
| The Presidents supporters made ni,mer-
Gus Insidlous attacks upon the Maine
senator. They knew he had great pro-
gramme of supply bills TO handle, and that
he was exceedingly anxious to dispose of
that measure so he could proceed to the
other appropriation work which was await
/ ing him, and upon the disposition Of
which the early adjournment OF Congress
depended. So these opposition senators
pitched in for long and fruitess debate,
calculating thereby to annoy the Maine
senator and possibly counting on their
ability to drive him to accept some kind of
compromise.
! Senator Hale, on the other hand. met
\ their tactics with good nature, would not
| listen for minute to compromise, and
went ahead with his bill as rapidly as he
could. He knew. Us all the Senate knew
from the very start, that majority was
not in favor of the Presidents big navy
| programme, and that flock of little fell
lows we're talking against time.
The President asked his personal friend,
Senator Lodge, to make the big speech for
the four battleship idea, but Mr.. Lodge,
who is also good personal friend of Sena-
tor Hale, refused, saying it would be to no
purpose. He contented himself with brief
| remarks, explaining that he should vote
for the four ships, but making no ex-
tended speech. 1t was left for Senator
Beveridge, who is disgruntled because the
| senate Will not bestow upon him the
leadership honors he Graves, to make a
long and horid speech for the four battle
ships. The speech made no votes, but was
listened to attentively for its eloquence
and dramatic power.
| The weeks fight over the navy appro-
priition bill, which Senator Hale conduct
ed wit such success, will stand out as one
Of the events OF the session. The White
House organized for the fray. The Presi-
dent was in constant communication with
senators Of both parties, whom he hoped
| to interest in his four batsleship pro-
gramme. As he was chairman Of the naval
committee in charge Of the bill, Mr.. Hale
allowed no grass to grow under his feet.
He took steps to prevent the President
| from winning over senators, although 1t
was never probable that the President
could win over votes enough to have q
/ majority. The Name senator, however,
enlisted the aid Of the shrewd junior sena-
| tor from Massachusetts, w. Murray Crane,
who took the work OF lining up the oppo-
nents OF four battleships, in charge.
Mr. Hale put little stress upon speech
making. He. from time to time, answered
any points that were raised in the debate,
| but as long as the opposition orators were
simply windy and INDUCED in glittering
| generalities, which was the situation most
Of the time during the debate, Mr.. Hale
kept his seat and allowed those orators to
| exhaust themselves.
i've work as half q dozen orators could be
expected to do. He was having heart to
i heart talks with senators, who had been
visiting at the White House, and was
looking out that the friends OF the two
battleship programme stayed around so as
| to get their votes in when the roll-call
came.
| Senator Hale stood by his convictions
about the advisability of appropriating
for and authorizing only two big battle-
ships. The Senate would hardly have been
willing to vote for more than two ships.
Its attitude in that regard was the attitude
OF the House. And yet il Senator Hale
had yielded, the result might have been
different. Many senators would have ac-
cepted his judgment, just as many repre-
sentatives would have done. But they
| knew that no other living man has done
as much as he has toward the building up
| OF an efficient navy, and they prefer to
follow his Judgment about any question
that materially affects the governments
naval policy.
Representative Burleigh has just emerged
from an unusually busy week. His ad-
| dress in the evening for several days has
been at the House office building. His ad-
dress in the morning and the afternoon
has been at the same place. At intervals
he has been running over to the House
along with big group Of other members
answering hurry calls to make quorum
against the democratic filibusters or to get
in his vote, along with numerous other
republicans on some measure which the
democratic filibusters have forced to a
| roll-call.
The governors day vigils and night
| yigils have been with the omnibus public
buildings bill, which has had fortuitous
course of ups and downs ever since the
first steps toward framing it were taken
some five or six weeks ago. Gov. Burleigh
is chairman of subcommittee No. =,
which embraces the six New England
States and the states of Ohio, Alabama,
Georgia and Louisiana, and in that
capacity has had hand in passing upon
more than 100 projects, and has personally
| interviewed every member of Congress
from these states.
When he and his subcommittee had
decided upon the projects they favored,
they had TO take these projects before the
full committee, have them fitted into the
omnibus bill and adjusted so as to be in
harmony with those allowed fof other
sections of the country.
1t was a long and tedious task, and Gov.
Burleigh, as well as other members OF the
public buildings committee, has reason
to dislike the sound Of the words, ''public-
building" But after all the fus5ing the
country will get a public buildings bill,
carrying about S20,00O,000. 1t will mean
step toward the providing OF necessary
facilities for conducting public business.
The work required to erect these build
ings will keep large number Of men EN-
ployed in these hard times. 1t will occupy
large forces of cutters in the granite quar-
ries of Maine and other states in getting
out the building material, and incident
ally the bill will carry quite number OF
items for Maine cities, some of which are