The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1912-06-07
CONGRESS Has
4 BUSY DAY
NELSON GETS $50 1 MONTH PEN.
SION FOR WIDOW OF 40.
M!RAL scHLEY.
NEW OCEAN SAFETY BILL
Senate Restores eattleship Provision
to Naval AppropriatIon-costs
Six Dollars to aatt,e q U. S.
Senator.

Washington, June 5. - With tears
shining in his eyes and his voice
broken with the emotion he felt, Sen.
ator Nelson paid a tribute to the mem.
DRY of Admiral Schley, and contribut.
ed in great measure toward inducing
the United States senate to break an
established precedent and vote an un.
usually large pension to the widow Of
the admiral.
This action by the senate followed
speeches by Senator Raynor OF Mary.
land. directly on behalf of Admiral
Schley's widow, and that of Senator
Nelson, who spoke eloquently and
avowedly as representative of the
fighting soldiers of the Civil war. The
action was also taken in the face of
a protest by Senator McCumber of
North Dakota, chairman of the senate
pension committee, who declared that
to vote a pension Of $3.50 a month to
Schley's widow would be an injustice
to the many widows of officers of the
army and navy to whom the uniform
sum of $50 month had invariably
been voted by congress. Attention
was called to the fact that the widow
of General Joseph r. Hawley Of Con
necticut, who was for many years a
senator of the United States, had been
denied a pension of $50 month.
The senate rejected the policy of
the committee on pensions, and by a
decisive vote increased the pension of
Mrs. Schley to $3.50 month.
ocean Safety Act"
An all-inclusive bill. to be denom-
mated "The Ocean Safety Act of 1912"
designed to cover all the navigation
lessons drawn from the Titanic disas-
ter, was introduced by Senator Nelson
Of Minnesota, chairman Of the com.
merce committee. which, through a
subcommittee, Investigated that dis
aster.
The bill includes stringent regula-
tions for better wireless equipment,
continuously operated, on ocean and
Great Lakes vessels, carrying so or
more persons, just as provided in a
bill which passed the house yesterday
and almost identical with bill al.
ready passed by the senate. This
wireless section vests control of the
apparatus in the master of the vessel
and to avoid the wireless communica.
ton being shut off by failure of the
vessels engines, requires powerful
auxiliary power supply that can com.
municate 100 miles at all times.
The Nelson bill would recognize for.
eign steamships laws whenever they
are as effective as American laws and
regulations; would equip every pas
senger craft leaving an American port
with sufficient life boats to accommo
date everybody aboard. together with
other safety equipments, and would
create a commission of five persons to
Investigate here and abroad merchant
marine construction. it would require
rigid port examination, boat drills, de
fine qualifications of seamen, penalize
failure to assist any person in dis
tress at sea and make criminaly liza
BILE any master, managing ownes
steamship director or principal resi-
dent agent Of a foreign steamship fol
sending from an American port YES
sci so unseaworthy as to endangel
life.
Provide for BattIeshlps.
The senate committee on naval at
fairs restored to the naval appropria
ton bill provision for two battleships
stricken out by the house.
In addition to the battleships the
senate committee provides for eigh
submarine torpedo boats instead o.
four voted by the house; retains tn.
house provision for six torpedo boa
destroyers, two fuel ships, one to b,
built in Pacific coast navy yard: {
tender to destroyers and submarin,
tender.
The committee struck out the hous,
eight-hour restriction on government
contract work; adopted an amendment
incorporating the Hobson plan TO
creation Of national council for de
tense; and provided the grades Of I'D
miral and vicc-admiral for the com
manders-in.chiefa and second officers ii
command, in the Atlantic and Pacia
fleets. while they held such com
mands.
The committee fixes the terms Of al
enlisted men Of the navy at four year
with provision for voluntary extension