Evening star., 1924-06-08
Much important Legislation
Goes Into Discard as Clock
Automatically Brings Close
to Fighting Session.
WESTERNERS STRUGGLE
FOR RELIEF MEASURES
Funds to Start Bonus Payments
and Provide for Necessities of
Government Departments Held
Up by Pittman's Angry 0bjec-
ton Over Omission.


Congress ended it's six months
session last night in an atmosphere
OF controversy and turmoil charac-
tcristic of the bitter dissension
which had marked its proceedings
from the start
Western senators and representa-
tivcs in the final hours of the ses-
sion fought and lost desperate fight
for legislation to relieve the farmer
and TO reform the reclamation policy
of the government.
Many other measures, including
the bill authorizing construction of
eight new cruisers and moderniza-
ton of battleships, and the de-
fciency appropriation bill, carrying
funds to begin operation OF the
bonus law and for many other pur-
poses, failed in the final crush of
legislation when the session ended
automatically at 7 pm.
Special Move Lost
Not only did the deficiency bill
go down to defeat in the race against
time, but a special resolution passed
in the last FIVE minutes by the House
to make the bonus appropriation
available regardless, was lost in the
Senate.
Republican leaders declared that
only special session of Congress
could provide the necessary funds for
the initial costs of the compensation
measure.
The deficiency bill itself was block
ed at the last minute by Senator Pitt
man, Democrat, Nevada, because of
the omission of reclamation appro-
priation proposed by him, and action
on the emergency bonus resolution
was prevented by objection by Sena-
tors Borah, Republican, Idaho, and
King, Democrat, Utah.
Let PostnI Pay Bill Go.
The postal salaries increase BILL
PASSED by both Senate and House by
almost unanimous votes, also went
by the board when President Cool
idge vetoed it on the ground that it
was "extravagan No effort to call
it up for repassage was made in the
short time remaining.
4 renewal of the Teapot Dome de-
bate in the Senate, growing out of
futile effort by Senator Walsh of
Montana to secure approval Of the
majority report of the oil committee,
tied up business at that end of the
Capitol most of the afternoon.
The House cleaned up many minor
bills, but spent most of the day quar-
reling over the reclamation legisla-
ton, which had been attached by the
Senate to the deficiency bill. The
principal features of the administra-
TONS reclamation plan finally were
accepted, but other changes were
made to which the Senate would not
agree.
DauEherty Probe Ended.
Among the mourners over the un-
usually painful demise of the session
was the Senate Daugherty committee,
whose plans to resume sessions in
midsummer went awry because Chair
man Brookhart. failed to obtain op-
portunity to call up an authorizing
resolution drafted for that purpose.
An hour before the final fall of the
gavels on the presiding officers desks
in the Senate and House President
Coolidge went to his room in the
Capitol to affix his signature to last
minute Legislation. He signed a
number of bills and received there
the Senate and House committees ap-
pointed to formally notify him of the
adjournment.
After it had disposed of the defici-
ency bill and its reclamation rider
ing the last half hour of the session,
but in the Senate the partisan strife
contributed it's dramatic note until
the very end.
Action ON OIL Report.
Senator Walsh tried early in the
day to secure action on the oil report,
but Senator Spencer, Republican,
Missouri, objected to a vote until he
had opportunity to state at length
his objections to it. Despite Demo-
cratic charges of a filibuster, he
talked for more than two hours. and
when he had finished Senator Nor
beck, Republican, South Dakota, OBJ
tained the floor to make a fight for
farm relief.
No sooner had the South Dakota
senator moved to attach a wheat ex-
port bounty provision to a pending
House bill, however, then Senator
Smoot, Republican, Utah, launched
6nto a speech of more than a half
hour on the financial record of the
administration. That aroused a de-
bate which continued until the de-
fciency bill. with the reclamation
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