The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1911-01-12
APPROPRIATIONS
FOR THE RIVERS
AND HARBORS
WILL BE SMALLER
THAN USUAL AND THERE is
EVERY INDICATION THAT THE
MEASURE WILL SECURE EARLY
PASSAGE. u

WASHINGTON. Jan. 1.-THE senate
commerce committee has lost no time
getting to consideration Of the r1veF
and harbor appropriation bill. work
was resumed on the bill on Thurs
dav- the day the session Of congress
resumed. There is every indication
that the bill will be reported early
and there is no reason to doubt that
| It will secure an early passage by tine
senate. 49,,
| The senate amendments TO the bill
will be proportionately considerably
less than usual. To date the aggre-
gate sum carried i'm the senate amend
lnent is approximately $2,SOo,Ooo. Inc
senate amendments to the bill OF fasE
wear amounted to over $10,000,00O for
straight appropriations $6.3SO,567 and
for continuing contracts $3,627,675.
| II seems pretty certain that the SEN
ate will not depart far beyond the
noI1cv observed IN the bill as 1t came
from the house, which was dlsan-
gun shed as a pairing down to well with
in the estimates of the engineers. The
senata amendments, although increas-
ing the size of the bill to close to $780,
600, 900. are all within the engineers
estimates, with no new legislation pro-
posing new projects included.
No Danger to Bill.
Other senate amendments are ex-
pected to be offered, but 1t seems TO
be well understood that nothing wall
be done to endanger the bill by any
amendments calling for large appro-
priations or attempting to provide TOT
new projects.
In this respect both committees
house and senate-having charge OF
the river and harbor bill have acted
cons istently with the cardinal doctrine
Of the National Rivers and HarborE
| Congress for "a policy and not
| project The organizations policy
has regard strictly to the adoption o.
no waterway enterprise not fully ap
proved by the board Of engineers TO
rivers and harbors and it must ais
be a project SO obviously beneficial Il
commerce in the broadcast sense tina
lit will have the unouestioned approva
of the business interests of the terri
tory concerned.
II AT every session in which the ser
l ats fras mad to consider river an
harboir bill there has been dispos'
ton to tack on new projects otter
j times such as have failed of approvs
, by the house committee. House men
bers interested in local projects hav
/ resorted 10 bringing the matter u
again Through their senators, with tn
| result that it has happened that insii
tence upon minor local waterway Ell
/! lterprises has imperilled the enttr
measure, with all of its madboriou
and thoroughly approved and undi
|puted schemes of improvement. eve
to setting back work under continutn
contracts. The Rivers and HaTbo1
Congress has earnestly sought TO ed
cate the public and impress congress
upon the point. What General Bixb,
chief of engineers, says in his rece1
annual report and subsequently rel
Grated at the National Rivers and Ha
bors convention when he delivered b
inter esting and instructive address
that body. particularly with referenc
to projects now in hand, is we'll wort
citation
Re-exarninations Made.
Under existing law" said Gener
Bixby. tre-examinations of existir
projects are made by the board Of e
gineers for rivers and harbors
either the committee on commerce