The Washington times., 1912-05-03
ANNUAL MILEAGE
FIGHT ONCE AGAIN
WAKES IN HOUSE
Attempt to Reduce Allow
ance Meets With Caustic
Resistance.

With the annual unsuccessful fight
OF members mileage allowances and
an exhibition Of jealousy because
some Senate employees receive more
money than similar employees in the
House, the debate on the Legislative.
executive, an djudicial appropria-
bill continued in the House today.
The House declined once more to
reduce the 20 cents per mile allow
ance for mileage by its members GO
ing to and from their homes. This
action was taken after Uncle Joe Can
non had reminded the House that for
thirty years some member had arisen
and proposed to cut the mileage. This
he characterized as false economy. as
serting the members deserved all they
received.
Chairman Fitzgerald said the Appro-
prtations Committee had provided tne
usual $164,o00 for mileage because pre-
vious votes In the House had demon
strated that the members would not
broo kany change
The real fight on the legislative bill
probably will come at a night session
tonight, when those sections arc
Court, the Bureau of Standards, and
provides in addition for the retirement
Of Government clerks at the age Of
sixty-five years without a pension.
To Stick To Bill.
As the debate proceeded the House in
dicated its determination to stick close
ly to the context Of the bill, and varioiS
amendments offered were voted down
when members of the Appropriations
Com mittee objected.
Among these amendments were one
by Congressman Lafferty to apDropri-
aate $500 for a clerk to the committee
on nlilage, and another by Congressman
In the House Office building. Congress-
man Garner proposed an Increase from
S720 to S9U0 Of the night telephone opera
tor at the House Office building. but
this motion. too. was defeated. and tho
House Is sticking to the economv Of
the Appropriations Committee, which is
not encouraging to the various clerks
whose positions are abolished In the
PENDING bill.
Austin Raps Senators.
Soon after the reading Of the legisla-
tive bill started today Congressman
Austin of Tennessee demanded to know
why the secretaries and clerical assist
ants of Senators receive more than
those of members of the House
why does Senator's secretary re-
ceive $4,000 and his stenographers 81. .20C
and 300 when II member OF the House
gets along with one secretary at N,500?"
asked Mr.. Austin.
II notice also that the bill carries q
telegraph operator and a telegraph page
for the Vice Presidents office. The
House cuts out its telegraph operator
and its page. Why this injustice
House employees all around seem to get
less than Senate employees. It ii
neither fair to them nor to u.s.
Congressman Fitzgerald, chairman OF
the Appropriations Committee, said that
the Senate should be given some lau-
tude in stating it's needs. and that the
House was not inclined to attempt tc
dictate to the upper body when It said
that 1t required certain clerical assist
ance.
Congressman Garner observed rather
warmly:
I'm other words, we are to do moth
ing, no matter If the Senate gets ex.
travagant."
Mann Speaks.
Congressman Mann and Olmsted ex.
planned that the constituency of n Sen
ator is perhaps as great as that of d
dozen members of the House combined
that the demands upon his time ART
greater. and that his correspondence
covers an entire State, which CORES,
pondence may be divided up among 6
score Of House members.
After this little jealous by-play, the
House adopted the provisions of the bill
as they stood and did not attempt tc
reduce the secretaries, stenographers
and messengers to Senate committees.
Congressman Page OF North Caro-.
lima, precipitated the annual mileage
fight" when that section of the bill
was reached which appropriated $15A.
House. Mr. Page offered an amend
ment to compute the mileage at
cents per mile each way instead of 2C
cents each. the latter sum has beer
Cannon pointed out today somebody
has made an effort almost every year
to reduce the allowance.
Congressman Sherley offered a sub
stitute providing that members shal
receive mileage bases on the actua
travelling expenses of the member and
the immediate members of his family
travelling to and from Washington
The sherley substitute was yelled
down with thunderous rnoes" and Mr.
Pages amendment Jared little better
meeting defeat, without roll cal
vote, 10 to 43.
manded Congressman Page in proposing
to vitality stab the time-honored mileage
perQuisites of the House members.
Cannon Caustic.
"Uncle Joe" Cannon was rather .sar
castle in referring to such attempts. II
observed that he had been here thirty
eight years and that every year some
body proposed a cut In tn mileage. Th
late Congressman Holman OF Indians
famed a score of years ago al the ''orig
inal watchdog of the treasury" MI