Evening star., 1909-03-03
Only Four Big Appropriation
Bills Now in Conference.
TAFT'S PAY TO BE $4,000
Legislative, Executive and Judicial
Bill Agreed to Finally.
CONFLICT OVER PENSION BILL
Hope for Ship Subsidies Is Abandon
ed in House-Senate Considers
Penal Code.

Congress has pulled out of Its chaotic
condition of three weeks ago and today
began the last day Of the Sixtieth Con-
Gress in better shape than at a CORE
spending time in the last sessions.
All appropriation bills have been passed
in both House and Senate. Only four
remain to be acted upon in conference.
These are the Military Academy bill.
the general deficiency. sundry civil and
the pension bills.
The last has been in conference for
several weeks over the refusal of the
House to agree to increases Of salaries
for the President. Vice President. Speak
er Of the House and federal Judges which
were made by the Senate.
Salary Increase Defeated.
The conferees on the legislative. exec
finally. after many days of deadlock.
on all points.
The salary Of the President Is fixed at
$4,000. as finally agreed to by the House.
Increases for the Vice President. the
Speaker of the House and members of
the judiciary, including Judges Of the Su-
Preme Court and Court of Appeals Of the
District. all Senate amendments. are
eliminated.
The provision for an under secretary of
state and another assistant secretary of
state also goes out of the bill. The SEN
ate does not win on any one Of the many
points that have been in disagreement for
so long.
In the sundry civil bill there is an
amendment giving the President $4,000
for travelling expenses If this is agreed
to the annual compensation of the Presi-
dent will be 100000.
A full agreement on the Military Acad-
emy appropriation bill was reported by
approved.
Penal Code Before Senate.
Todays session of the House began at
n:3O o'clock, and the Senate at 10 o'clock
Senator Hepburn demanded the earlier
hour in order that additional time might
be given to further effort to adopt the
conference report on the penal code BILL
There will come before the Senate in
the joint commission to revise the laws.
a resolution offered just before adjourn
ment yesterday and sent to the committee
on contingent expenses.
After another futile effort to reach
agreement on the pension appropriation
and House adjourned to meet once more
at 10 o'clock tonight. If toe big bill.
which carries appropriations for practi-
cally every pensioner of the United
ing the special session of Congress will
probably be called upon to appropriate
for this purpose.
Trouble Over Agencies.
The difficulty lies in the attempt Of the
House to consolidate the eighteen pen
sion agencies throughout the country into
20 I4 xAJ
three years the House has endeavored, to
abolish seventeen agencies. but twice
has consented to a compromise in which
the agencies were retained temporarily.
+. Secretary Of State Bacon is desirous
that action be taken on the Canadian
boundary waterways treaty. Effort will
be made to bring 1t before the Senate
again. Opposition is anticipated.
There will be few matters passed upon
by the Senate except conference reports,
and few of those other than the neces-
sary agreements on appropriation bills.
House Abandons Ship Subsidies.
When the House met today there was a
general understanding that an effort
yesterday whereby ship subsidy was de-
feated Anticipating such action the op-
ponents of the measure had out their full
strength prepared to fight the bill to the
last ditch.
1t then became apparent to the repub-
lican leaders that any further attempt to
revive the bill at this session would be
useless. The conclusion accordingly was
reached to let yesterdays action stand
When the House adjourned last night
it was with the prospect of another fight
on the floor today to adopt the Senate
bill, rejected yesterday, providing a SUBJ
sidy for mail steamers.
Various miscellaneous matters and bills
on the private calender received consid-
Grafton.