The semi-weekly messenger., 1908-01-28

Washington, d. c., January %
The Urgent Deficiency Appropriation
bill occupied the attention of the house
today to the exclusion Of all other mat
ters
A surprise was sprung when Chair
man Tawney Of the appropriations
committee warned the members that
the country was confronted with GER
tainty of 100000 900 deficit unless
the estimates for the next fiscal year
should be cut down materially.
The Urgent Deficiency bill carries
total appropriation Of $24,O74,45O.
Mr.. Tawney declared that he deemed
it his duty to call attention to the
necessity Of keeping expenditures with
is estimated revenues. Il do not make
this statement for the purpose Of eX-
citing alarm" he said, nor for the
purpose of exciting any apprehension
in the minds of any one regarding the
ability of our government to meet all
of it's obligations now existing or that
this congress may create"
Continuing Mr.. TaWney said he had
been ultra-conservative in his state
ment of the financial condition of the
country.
Replying to a question by MI Clark:
Missouri, Mr.. TaWney made ii plain
that there would be no new apDropria-
tions this session for rivers and har-
bors or public buildings, for he said
his calculations did not include them.
A discussion on tariff revision was
injected into the proceedings in which
leaders on both sides of the house
tried to commit one another to a de-
finite announcement as to whether
II successful at the ..ovember elec
tions there would be tariff legisla-
ton.
Mr.. Mann, Illinois, referred to the
promises of both parties that if sue
cessful they would revise the tariff
and inquired of Mr.. Tawney if it was
not true that always Immediately pre-
ceding a revision of the tariff there
was a great decline in the customs
receipts of the government. Mr.. Taw-
ney replied that such was the case and
said there was always a decrease in
the internal revenue as well.
Mr.. Tawney stated that the esti-
mates did not take into consideration
the fact that the tariff probably would
be revised nOf the effect on the. reve-
nues Of the government resulting from
the recent financial depression. The
estimates were made prior to the
money stringency rs the gentleman
ready to guarantee revision of the
tariff provided the republicans prevail
next NOVember?" asked Mr.. Living
ston, Georgia.
NO" said Mr.. Tawney, "and l am
not willing to guarantee that there
will be tariff revision if the demo-
crats prevail in November.
Mr.. Davis, Missouri, wanted to know
if republican tariff revision would in
crease or decrease the revenue Mr.
TaWney replied that it would depend
altogether upon the nature Of the re-
vision and the character of the items
revised. "One thing is certain" said
Mr.. Tawney, republican revision
would be along lines to bring revenue
enough to pay all expenses Of the gov
ernment"
Asked by Mr.. Cochran, New York
if the efficiency of the government
could be maintained by scaling the
estimates $10O,OOO,OO, Mr. Tawney
emphatically replied that it could
Mr.. Underwood, Alabama, took Mr..
Tawney's warning as the text for
lengthy discussion of the recent finan-
cial depression. Mr Underwood main
tanned that there were no ordinary
conditions that produced that depres-
sion The country, he said, was pros
porous and there were no exterior
causes, 1t was not an act Of God,
1t was not because Of fire, pestileNce
or famine, crop failure or dearth of
money, but because of a lack of con-
fidence. 1t therefore had been demon
strated, he said, that so far as the
republican party was working for the
prosperity of the country it had dis
solved partnership with God, because
what "the Almighty has produced in
this country had been lavished boun-
tifully upon it and only the republi-
can party has failed in it's part OF the
partnership" He put the blame for
the money stringency Of he present
national banking laws, which he said
the republicans had failed to adjust
in order to avert just such condi-
tion
The method of making appropria-
tions was criticised by Mr.. Keifer, of
Ohio, who said it was unbusiness like.
Pv annronriatino onlv for +bo thin orc