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MORE PAY FOR LAWMAKERS Solods Vote By Big Majority to In crease Their Yearly Stipend. SENATE DECIDED MATTER Members oi Two Houses to Get $7,500 and Vice President, Speaker and Cabinet Members £12,000. A Washington special says: The senate Wednesday passed the house amendment to the legislative appropri ation bill, increasing the salaries o£ the vice president, speaker, members of the cabinet and members and sen ators by a vote of 53 to 21. The bill increases the salaries of senators and members to $7,500 and of the other of ficers mentioned to $12,000. In the course of the debate the ven erable Senator Pettus of Alabama paid a frank and sincere tribute to his cob league, Senator Morgan, as an illus tration of the tact that a man who entered the public service, sacrificing liis personal business and personal in terests and his outside pursuits to de vote his time and talents and energy to the government in legislative halls deserved some recognition. He said Senator Morgan had served thirty years; that he had lot accumu lated a fortune in that time, but that the people of Alabama were proud of him just the same and loved him because he had not grown rich in the United States senate. He thought the increase asked was small enough, in view of the $15,0U0 or $20,000 year ly income, which Senator Morgan had sacrificed for so many years in or der to remain in the senate. The in cident was a unique feature of the day’s session. Senator Money of Mississippi voted for the measure and said if he had $750,000,000 per year to disburse he would not, as a business proposition, give absolute power to disburse it into the hands of men whose services were only worth $5,000 a year. A number of speeches for and against the measure were made, the principal ones being delivered by Sen ator Berry of Arkansas, who opposed it, and Senator Tillman, who favored its passage. Senator Tillman, saying that he had just been elected to six more years of service, would vote for the in crease, not because he would get more money, but because he believed it was right. He would rather have voted for it last year before his re-election. If fault was found he was willing to resign. The vote in detail was as follows: Yeas —Aldridh, Allee, Ankeny, Ben son, Beveridge, Brandegee, Bulkeley, Burnham, Burrows, Carter, Clark of Montana, Clark of Wyoming, Clarke of Arkansas, Crane, Cullom, Daniel, Dick, Dillingham, Dubois, Dupont, Flint, Foraker, Foster, Fry, Fulton, Gallinger, Hale, Hepburn, Hopkins, Kittredge, Knox, Latimer, Lodge, McCumber, McEnery, Millard, Money, Newlands, Nixon, Overman, Penrose, Pettus, Piles, Scott, Simmons, Smoot, Spooner, Sutherland, Tillman, Teller, Warner and Warren. —53. Nays Bacon, Berry, Blackburn, Burkett, Carmack, Clapp, Clay, Cul berson, Frazier, Hansborough, Hemen way, LaFollette, McCreary, Mallory, Nelson, Patterson, Perkins, Rayner, Stone, Taliaferro and Whyte —21. SWLTIENHaM AFFAIR IJ> CLOSED. President Wdh>he9 His Hands of the Whole Jamaican Rumpus. The president has finally dismissed the incident connected with the re fusal by Governor Swettenham of Ja-. maica of aid from Admiral Davis in a letter made public at ihe state de partment Wednesday, addressed by Acting Secretary Bacon to British Charge Howard. PENSION AGtNCIiS AbOLISHtD. Payments to War Veterans Will Be Cen tralized at Washington. The house Thursday voted to abol ish all the pension agencies through out the country, eighteen in number, and centralize the payment of pen sions in the city of Washington. This action was taken on the pension ap propriation bill after spirit opposition on the part of those having pension agencies in their states. Ihe pension bill .carrying $138,000,- 000 in round numbers, was passed. OLIVER HAS THE OPTION. Is Finally Award id Canal Contract Provided That He Only Secure Two Independent Pariners. A Washington special says; Fol lowing a conference at the White House Sunday night, it was officially announced that the contract for build ing the Panama canal would be award ed to William J. Oliver, who, with Anson M. Bangs, was the lowest bid der in the recent competition, pro vided that within the next ten days he associates himself with at least two independent constructors whose skill and experience, combined with his own, shall cover the entire field of work to be performed under the contract. President Roosevelt took the posi tion that since Mr. Oliver had met all the requirements of the government, it would be unjust to reject his bid oi 6.75 per cent for the construction of the canal, or even to require him to submit anew bid for the con tract. Mr. Oliver had informed the presi dent that it was his desire to submit an independent bid for the work and that when the canal commission of ficials informed him that it would be necessary to form a partnership with some other financially responsible contractor, they even went so far as to suggest that he enter into an agree ment with Anson M. Bangs, of New York City. Mr. Oliver said that after receiv ing this suggestion from Chairman Shonts, he visited the war department and was informed that Mr. Bangs would be entirely satisfactory to the government. Mr. Oliver told the pres ident with this assurance as to the reliability of Mr. Bangs, he imme diately entered into an agreement with the New York contractor. Powerful influences were brought to bear on the president and Secretary Taft to reject all bids and advertise for new proposals, but the president insisted that Mr. Oliver should he given a reasonable time in which to make a satisfactory arrangement to substitute another contractor, or group of contractors, to take the place of Mr. Bangs. At the White House conference on Saturday night the friends of Mac- Arthur Gillespie syndicate argued that the contract figures should be in creased to 9 per cent of the total cost of construction and that the contract be awarded to Oliver, MacAr- Lliur and Gillespie. This suggestion, however, did not meet with the ap proval of the New York firm, who insisted that they could not undertake the work for less than 12.50 per cent of the total cost, the figure mentioned in their original bid. The president, Secretary Taft and the canal commis sion officials decided to award the contract to Mr. Oliver, provided he could make satisfactory arrangements with at least two other financially re sponsible contractors. (Secretary Taft and R. R. Rogers, general counsel to the canal commis sion, were in conference with the president for two hours Sunday night and the whole matter was again gone over. At the direction of the presi dent Mr. Rogers prepared the official statement for the press. When informed of the statement by the direction of the president, Mr. Oliver’s representative said: ‘ There is absolutely no doubt about Mr. Oliver being able to fulfill the requirements of the canal commis sion. There are now at least twen ty of the most responsible contrac tors of the United States who have expressed a willingness to join Mr. Oliver in the work mentioned in his original bids. These names will be submitted to Fresident Roosevelt at once, with proof of their financial ability. Before entering into another arrangement Mr. Oliver wants to know positively that the contractor he chooses will be acceptable to the government.” HIGHLIT POSTAL KAIIS fO.i NLWSPAPtRS Is Provided in Joint Report of Commission at Washington. A Washington special says: The report of the joint postal commission consisting of senators and represen tatives, after a prolonged and excit ing session, altered its original report Id so far as daily and weekly news papers are concerned. The commission provided that the postal rates on daily and weekly news papers throughout the country shall De increased 12 1-2 per cent. ONLY THE BEST OF IMMIGRANTS Selected for Georgia By Special Agent in the Orient. ARE SCOTS AND SWEDES State Immigration Society is Actively at Work and Urgent Calls for Help Will Soon Be Answered, The Georgia Immigration Associa tion, through the chairman of its exe cutive committee, Mr. John A. Betje man, of Albany, announces that he is conferring with the representatives of the principal steamship lines relative to bringing in immediately a few hun dred Scots and Swedes to relieve the very urgent call tor help in some quarters. The result of this conference will be given to Commissioner T. G. ud son with a request that the state do what is needful at this juncture, it is hoped to have immigrants in tran sit tor the port of Savannah within the next three weeks. The greatest care has been taken in giving infor matiorf about Georgia to only such people in Europe as will make de sirable citizens. There is ready in Savannah at any time a cargo of freight for the returning vessel. Sa vannah, it will be recalled, supplied two-thirds of the cargo tor the re turn trip of the “Wittekinu.” With the heavy freights accessible to Sa vannah, there is no port on the At lantic coast which can provide a re turn cargo as easily as she can. This, in a large measure, reduces the com mercial side of a line of immigrant steamers to Georgia in securing the immigrants from Europe. Mr. Betjeman, in discussing recent statements by prominent Georgians and by the state press on this very vital subject, said: "I know of no better way to re assure any man who doubts the wis dom of the work outlined by the Geor gia Immigration Association than to state again that the work is under the direction of eighteen of the best far mers, lumber-men, fruit growers, man ufacturers, mill men and professional men in active business in the state of Georgia today. These men have held repeated conferences since the nineteenth of October, and have con sidered not only the federal and slate laws on the subject, but have given more time and more serious thought than perhaps any others to the effect on the state of Georgia of the intro duction of new blood from Europe. They have been investigating the character of available people in Scot land, in the north of Germany and in Sweden. No man in Georgia has his state’s welfare more at heart than the members of this directorate whio are giving their time and thought to this subject from a purely patriotic) motive. Over 30 per cent of the tillable land in the state of Georgia is lying idle for want of sufficient help to cultivate it. A little calcula tion reveals the fact that on an ex ceedingly rough estimate the land Owners are not only losing the in terest on the value of 1,770,000 acres of land which for the sake of this calculation is estimated at fifteen dol lars per acre, but on a Lax rate of 4 per cent are paying $265,000 in taxes, the burden of which is being carried by other lands. The need for help in the homes through the cities and in the industries is even more striking, it being estimated that very nearly every fifth family in the state has room for one or more domestics, and that nearly 25 per cent of the ma chinery in our industries is either lying idle or is turning out less than one-half of its capacity because there are not enough people to do the work. “It is proposed to lay the details of our plan before the convention to be held in Macon on February 19th and 20th.” NtG.tG FINALLY LOal our. Disposed ol His Property for Much Less I ban first Oiler. George W. Vanderbilt has Just pur chased for two thousand dollars six acres of land and a log cabin from Charles C. Collins,. colored. When Biltmore was first established the ne gro declined to sell to Mr. Vanderbilt for what the latter considered a rea sonable figure, though it is said Mr. Vanderbilt offered him $8,500, and the negro contended for SIO,OOO. The property was practically surrounded by the Biltmore estate, of which it now becomes a part. CHINA IN FAMINE GRIP. Most Horr.ble State of Affairs is Shown in Reports from American Consular Ofiicers. Mail reports from American consu lar officers in China, which reached tiie state department Monday, regard ing the famine and resulting condi tions, still further confirm the stories of suffering and hardsnip among the poor in file districts affected. In fact, Consul Haynes, at Nanking, says that the famine -is ten times worse than anything known in that part of the empire for forty years. The government Is trying to help the starving people to keep tlieir cat tle, and to tiiis end is taking their exen and buffaloes in pawn for two taels each. Consul General Rodgers, at Shang hai says an inquiry which he has made through entirely private sources gives the general conclusion that the famine by March 1, will be regarded as severe, and perhaps more so than that of 1878, by which it is thougnt 10,000,000 lives were lost. The report of iVlr. Rodgers is ac companied by a statement by Dr. Henry M. WTcods of the Southern Presbyterian Mission at Hwai-An-Fu, who estimates that 10,000,000 people are aflected by the famine, 1,000,000 of wnom are starving. He says there are at present more titan 500,000 ref ugees at Tsiug-Kiang-Pu, huddled in mat sheds, and that the pitiful sight is daily witnessed of parents offer ing their children for sale at from $2 to $4 each. Brigandage and rob bery, be adds, are everywhere rife. Money Wanted for Sufferers. Consul General Rodgers cabled the state department under Monday’s date relative ot the Chinese famine as fol low’s; “Strongly advise that money contributions be sent instead of food at present. Provision can be purchas ed at Shanghai a.t favorable prict's. Time saved is a great object.” SOWH SLBJfcr 01 A lIKADE At a Meeting of the Congregational Club in I osi on limn The Congregational Club, at Its an nual meeting in Boston Monday night, listened to a discussion of the “Church and National Perils,” by Professor Bushnell Hart of Harvard University; Professor Kelly Miller of Howard University, Washington, D. C., and Rev. W. J. Cooper of New York, secretary of the American Mis sionary Association. All the speakers dealt with the negro question in the south and the recent speech of Sen ator Tillman was referred to fre quently. Professor Miller, speaking on the topic “Race Conditions in the South,” said in part: “The adjustment of the advanced and backward races of mankind is the greatest problem of the twentieth century. They tell us that the negro is a menace to white man’s civiliza tion. In this new propaganda of race enmity and hate, Benjamin Tillman is the chief priest, with a trinity of Thomases as his literary evangelists, Thomas Nelson Page, Thomas Wat son and Thomas Dixon, Jr. Professor Miller denied that the members of the nogio race had band ed together to protect one another in the commission of crime against the white race, but, on the other hand, lie claimed that negroes by thousands have been lynched and murdered by banded assassins, who have stood together oathbound to pro tect one another in crime, and against a helpless race. CONVICT KIJjHtU 10 LtVIE. -quad is Hurried by Governor Vardanian to a threatened Point. Governor Vardama n was requested Monday to send a squad of convicts below Greenville, Miss., where there is a threaten/.'d break in the levee. He directed Superintendent IJeelund to hurry firty convicts to the scene at once and take a? many more as might be necessary. MONTHLY CO I TOM (.INNING KEPORT. Number of (Tales Turned Out to January 16, Totaled 12,167,873 At Washington Wednesday the cen sus report was issued, which shows that 12,167,873 bales of cotton, count ing round bales as half bales, have been ginned from the growth of 1906 to January 16, 1907. The number of active ginneries this year is 218,525. The sea island cotton ginned tc January 16, 1907, distributed by states, was: Florida 23,666 bales, Georgia 24,- 775 and South Carolina 7,701. GEORGIA LAW “DEAD LETTER” Declares Beveridge in a Senate Address on Child Labor Bill. ENFORCEMENT IMPOSSIBLE Bold Assertion ot iniianian Brought Forth Challenging Protest lrom Bacon, Carmack and Tillman. “Th.e child labor law oi Georgia i a dead letter. There is no system of mill inspection provided, and no means of enforcing it,” said Senator Beveridge, in bis discussion of child labor in the senate Monday. When ho began to pay attention to condition* in Georgia and other southern states, the southern senators began, to bo heard lrom. Among them were Sena tors Bacon of Georgia, Carmack ot Tennessee and Tillman of South Car olina. Senator Bacon asked that the child labor act, passed by the Georgia leg islature, be admitted in the pubiisned report of Senator Beveridges speech. In connection with his remarks dealing with Georgia. This the senator trom Indiana declined to allow done, and the senator from Georgia gave notice that, at the conclusion of Senator Bev erdige's remarks, he would ask tile at tention of the senate long enough to call attention to the Georgia child la bor act approved August i, IHCo, in order that it might go in the record immediately following the Beveridge address. Senator Beveridge declared that since this law went into effect, on January 1, forbidding children be tween 10 and 12 years of age being employed in mills, unless they were orphans or children of indigent pa rents, more than 3,000 applications for permission to work children in the mills of Fulton county had been re ceived by Ordinary John R. Wilkin son of that county. “How many have been granted?” asked Mr. Bacon. “All of them.” Mr. Bacon then explained that the law prohibited children under twelve years of age from working after Jan uary 1, 1907. ’ Yes,” responded Mr. Beveridge, “but there is not an inspector In the state, and no means of enforcing that provision. What good is a meas ure of that kind?” Senator Bacon had made the point that the specific instances cited by Senator Beveridge were isolated cases, and not indicative of conditions gen erally prevailing. In reply the advo cate of a national child labor law bill said that the filing of applications af fecting 3,000 children in one county, was not evidence sustaining the scarcity claims of such cases. Senator Bacon made clear the point that he was heartily in favor of rea sonable regulation of child labor, and said that his objection to the Bever idge national child labor law was based upon the ground that it con llicted with state authority. §o far as the evils of child labor were concerned, Senator Bacon ad mitted that there was probably a great deal of force in the arguments pre sented, but that Georgia was in the way to correct it, and that condi tions would improve since the pass age of the state child labor lav/. He thought state legislative action the only way to deal with the question. Mr. Beveridge stated that Ihree fourths of the cotton factories of the south were opposing the bill; that the railroads of the south were opposing it, and that, the coal mine operator® of the south were opposing it. He presented an illustrative map siiowing toe location of the opposing indus tries, and said that in anticipation of this weighty opposition he should de mote the major portion of his speech to setting forth evidence of the de plorable conditions he had pictured. I his evidence, he said, was all sworn to and in the form of affidavits. MORGAN W LL AJBIBI Oit.AR. Selection ol Captain Joe Wheeler is Re* called lor Unknown Hensons. Notice has been given by the war department at Washington that Cap tain J. N. Morgan of the twelfth cav alry, United States army, stationed at Fort Oglethorpe, has been assigned to assist Inspector General W. G. Obear in the inspection of the Georgia otate rational guard. Orders were promulgated some days ago saying that Capt. Jos. Wheeler, U. S. A. would be assigned. No reason is given for the change.