The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1918-06-01
WHAT CONGRESS- IS DOING


The house has refused to accept the
salary increase amendments to the
postoffice" appropriation bill provided
by the senate and instructed it's con-
ferees to insist upon the provisions of
the salary increase bill passed by the
house recently. This bill gives an av-
erage increase Of 5000 a year and
makes the increases permanent. The
senate amendment to the postoffice
bill provides for increases of approx
imately the same amount, but only for
the fiscal year covered by the appro-
priation bill.
Both the house and senate have
passed bill providing for prohibition
throughout all Of the Hawaiian islands
for the period Of the war
The rivers and harbors appropria-
ton bill, carrying $21,572,O0O, has
been passed. The differences between
the two houses which are immaterial
must be reconciled in conference.
Senator Hoke Smith of Georgia has
| introduced new bill for the rehabili-
| tat1on of soldiers and sailors. It is a
| substitute for one introduced several
! weeks ago and Is intended to clearly
define the authority over the work of
! rehabilitation. Medical attention is
placed under the authority Of the war
and navy departments. The work of
instruction in vocations and control of
the men in the various schools is to
hA 1pt11 In - IN
board for vocational education. An
appropriation Of 100000 for carry
ing on the work is provided in the
bill.
Senator La Toilette of Wisconsin,
through his attorney, Gilbert E. Roe,
is urging the committee on privileges
and elections to dismiss the charges Of
disloyalty against him and uphold his
| right to keep his seat in the senate
The charges filed by the Minnesota
Public Safety commission have been
pending since last October. Attorney
Roe argued before the committee that
the charges against Senator La Foil
cite were entirely unfounded.
Without roll call and after only
four hours of discussion the senate
passed the naval appropriation bill
carrying a total of $1,6O9,323,415, or
24,506,999sm more than provided by
the house bill. BY amendment the
senate abolished the ''stopwatch" sys-
tenn controlling labor in navy yards,
and by a vote of 81 to FL refused to
abolish the bonus system in navy
yards. The discussion was based upon
these two proposals almost entirely.
Representative Madden of Illinois
has introduced a resolution in the
house calling upon the head of every
department and the interstate COM
merce commission to inform the house
how many men they have requested to
be exempted from military service.
The resolution calls for the names, ad-
dresses. and character of work per-
formed by each for whom exemption
has been asked.
Discussing his resolution for an in
ventory of the man power of the coun-
try, Senator Cummins of Iowa, pre-
dicted long war and declared that
| C"c1J OullCo VI Gllo national energy
must be exerted to win it. He strongly
favored action by congress definitely
fixing the size of the army and op-
posed any plan that would leave that
subject to the judgment of any one
person or number of officials.
Under the terms of bill introduce
by Senator Overman, clerks of United
States district courts would receive q
salary Of $4,000 a year and 81 a day
travelling expenses instead of fees, sal
aries, and percentages as under exist
ing law.
Believing that additional war; rev
enue legislation would have to be un-
dertaken at this session, Chairman
Kitchin, of the house ways and means
committee, announced that the bill
would be framed to raise between
$1,000, 100000 and $4,000, 100000, and
that 80 per cent Of the revenues under
the new bill would be levied on excess
profits and incomes.
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