Committee in hearings on S. 2475 and reported in part 1 of the hearings of April 12, 1928. The danger in the application of the principle is twofold: (1) That unnecessary or illy advised public works may be ordered in these emergencies, thus making an uneconomic orgy out of what purposes to be an economic essentiality; (2) that the financing of these extra public works may create an increased taxation, which, contemporary with depression, may multiply new discouragements while attempting to alleviate old ones. The first element of danger may be answered by the scientific longrange planning of essential public works which are of sound capital account regardless of a transient economic index. In the face of America's vast needs upon this score it is not impossible to budget these essential public works in diverse fields over long periods of time, thus establishing a validated prospectus which may be drawn upon whenever a given industrial index falls below an established safety line. When these works are thus confined and thus validated, the first of these listed dangers disappears. In this connection it should be noted that the British recourse to so-called relief works for kindred purposes has suffered the weakness of dealing in makeshift undertakings." (See Monthly Labor Review for April, 1928, of the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor at p. 4.) It is impossible to build a sound economic system on this basis of "makeshift undertakings." It invites an hysteria of extravagance and waste. Under such circumstances the cure is worse than the disease. But this element of danger need not be present under long-range planning which contemplates public improvements that are inherently worthy and which would be justified and which would be ultimately constructed even under normal conditions. The second element of danger, namely, the problem of financing these public works, never has been adequately met in discussions of this problem. It is against this element that this proposal makes its most important suggestion. When "relief works" has been undertaken in Europe, it usually has been on the basis either of loans or outright subsidies through which central government has sought to encourage local authorities in financing schemes of work for the unemployed. This has been tried in England where the central government in 19201926 made grants of nearly $400,000,000 for loans, and contributions of $85,000,000 on the basis of a percentage of wage bills, and of $5,000,000 in part payment for collateral projects. It has been tried in Germany also where subsidies and loans to local authorities and even to private employers have been drawn upon. Since the depression which began in the fall of 1925, the various German relief work schemes have involved an expenditure of approximately $60,000,000. (See Labor Review for April, 1928, of the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor, pp. 4 to 7.) The foregoing resolution proposes to avoid all such systems of subsidies and contributions in the operation of an American emergency program. Thus avoiding these dangerous elements, the system can also avoid the serious consequences which sometimes have followed the invocation of "relief work" in the old world. The United States is in the fortunate position of being able, in periods of definitive depression and unemployment, to finance its longrange planning of public works by a temporary suspension in public debt retirement pending the stimulated return of normal conditions when current sinking fund appropriations may be resumed. It is proposed to suspend statutory payments into the sinking fund simultaneously with and in an extent equal to emergency appropriations on account of public works undertaken to avert unemployment. It is the contention of this resolution that it is economically sound to say that when we are making emergency appropriations for such a course, we are not in shape to indulge in the luxury of debt reduction. Put differently, it is the contention of this resolution that if and when the country faces economic depression which carries us below an established index, it suffices if we pay as we go and temporarily cease payments on debt account. This is particularly true in view of the rapid rate at which we are reducing the public debt-a rate never heretofore equaled in the history of the world. If public works be thus financed in these periods of depression and unemployment the country can have the benefit of this vast stimulus without the necessity of a penny's increased total in current tax bills. Debt payments are capital account payments. Permanent public improvements are also capital account payments. In other words, we simply would temporarily embrace a different yet equally valuable form of capital account payment while at the same time we would provide the economic stimulus necessary. Witnesses who testified before the Senate Commerce Committee in behalf of the general principle of a "prosperity reserve" have discussed this fiscal program in letters printed in the CONGRESSIONAL RECORD on page 6915 for the present session. MESSAGE FROM THE HOUSE A message from the House of Representatives, by Mr. Chaffee, one of its clerks, announced that the House had passed without amendment the following bills of the Senate: S. 1828. An act to amend the second paragraph of section 5 of the national defense act, as amended by the act of September 22, 1922, by adding thereto a provision that will authorize the names of certain graduates of the General Service Schools and of the Army War College, not at present eligible for selection to the General Staff Corps eligible list, to be added to that list; S. 1829. An act to authorize the collection, in monthly installments, of indebtedness due the United States from enlisted men, and for other purposes; S. 2463. An act to amend an act entitled "An act for the purchase of a tract of land adjoining the United States target range at Auburn, Me.," approved May 19, 1926; S. 3463. An act to recognize commissioned service in the Philippine Constabulary in determining rights of officers of the Regular Army; S. 3752. An act to amend section 3 of an act entitled "An act authorizing the use for permanent construction at military posts of the proceeds from the sale of surplus War Department real property, and authorizing the sale of certain military reservations, and for other purposes," approved March 12, 1926; and S. 4216. An act to authorize the adjustment and settlement of claims for armory drill pay. The message also announced that the House had passed the bill (S. 3057) authorizing the Secretary of War to transfer and convey to the Portland Water District, a municipal corporation, the water-pipe line including the submarine water main connecting Fort McKinley, Me., with the water system of the Portland Water District, and for other purposes, with an amendment, in which it requested the concurrence of the Senate. The message further announced that the House had passed the bill (S. 4235) for recognizing aviation accomplishments, with amendments, in which it requested the concurrence of the Senate. The message also announced that the House had passed the following bills and joint resolutions, in which it requested the concurrence of the Senate: H. R. 6480. An act to authorize appropriations for construction at military posts, and for other purposes; H. R. 7938. An act to regulate sales by utilities in the Army; H. R. 8314. An act to amend an act of Congress approved March 4, 1927 (Public, No. 795, 69th Cong.), to provide for appointment as warrant officers of the Regular Army of such persons as would have been eligible therefor but for the interruption of their status, caused by military service rendered by them as commissioned officers during the World War; H. R. 9961. An act to equalize the rank of officers in positions of great responsibility in the Army and Navy; H. R. 10304. An act authorizing the Secretary of War to erect headstones over the graves of soldiers who served in the Confederate Army and to direct him to preserve in the records of the War Department the names and places of burial of all soldiers for whom such headstones shall have been erected, and for other purposes; H. R. 10363. An act to provide for the construction or purchase of two L boats for the War Department; H. R. 10364. An act to provide for the construction or purchase of two motor mine yawls for the War Department; H. R. 10365. An act to provide for the construction or purchase of one heavy seagoing Air Corps retriever for the War Department; H. R. 10478. An act providing retirement for persons who hold licenses as navigators or engineers who have reached the age of 64 years and who have served 25 or more years on seagoing vessels of the Army Transport Service; H. R. 10809. An act to provide qualifications for the superintendents of national military parks; H. R. 11623. An act to authorize construction at the United States Military Academy, West Point, N. Y.; H. R. 11722. An act to establish a national military park at the battle field of Monocacy, Md.; H. R. 12106. An act to erect a national monument at Cowpens battle ground; H. R. 12110. An act to amend the act entitled "An act to readjust the pay and allowances of the commissioned and enlisted personnel of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Coast and Geodetic Survey, and Public Health Service," approved June 10, 1922, as amended; H. R. 12352. An act to require certain contracts entered into by the Secretary of War, or by officers authorized by him to make them, to be in writing, and for other purposes; H. R. 12449. An act to define the terms "child" and "children" as used in the acts of May 18, 1920, and June 10, 1922; 1928 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD-SENATE H. R. 12624. An act to amend section 17 of the act of June 10, 1922, entitled "An act to readjust the pay and allowances of the commissioned and enlisted personnel of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Coast and Geodetic Survey, and Public Health Service," as amended; The VICE PRESIDENT. 8927 Eighty-two Senators having an swered to their names, a quorum is present. H. R. 12953. An act to authorize the Board of Managers of reporting pursuant to law, on the claim of Christina Arbuckle, the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers to accept title to the State camp for veterans at Bath, N. Y.; H. R. 13250. An act to authorize the Secretary of War to fix the percentages of enlisted men of the Army in the sixth and seventh grades, and for other purposes; H. R. 13446. An act to amend the national defense act; H. J. Res. 39. Joint resolution authorizing the Secretary of War to receive for instruction at the United States Military Academy at West Point two Chinese subjects, to be designated hereafter by the Government of China; H. J. Res. 40. Joint resolution authorizing the Secretary of War to receive for instruction at the United States Military Academy at West Point two Siamese subjects, to be designated hereafter by the Government of Siam; and H. J. Res. 224. Joint resolution to ascertain which was the first heavier-than-air flying machine. ENROLLED BILLS SIGNED The message further announced that the Speaker had affixed his signature to the following enrolled bills, and they were signed by the Vice President: S. 744. An act to further develop an American merchant marine, to assure its permanence in the transportation of the foreign trade of the United States, and for other purposes; S. 1341. An act to amend the act entitled "An act to provide that the United States shall aid the States in the construction of rural post roads, and for other purposes," approved July 11, 1916, as amended and supplemented, and for other purposes; S. 3555. An act to establish a Federal farm board to aid in the orderly marketing and in the control and disposition of the surplus of agricultural commodities in interstate and foreign commerce; S. 4405. An act authorizing the Detroit River Canadian Bridge Co., its successors and assigns, to construct, maintain, and operate a bridge across the Detroit River at or near Stony Island, Wayne County, State of Michigan; H. R. 5695. An act authorizing the Secretary of the Interior to equitably adjust disputes and claims of settlers and others against the United States and between each other arising from incomplete or faulty surveys in township 19 south, range 26 east, and in sections 7, 8, 17, 18, 19, 30, 31, township 19 south, range 27 east, Tallahassee meridian, Lake County, in the State of Florida; H. R. 8110. An act withdrawing from entry the northwest quarter section 12, township 30 north, range 19 east, Montana meridian; H. R. 9112. An act for the relief of William Roderick Dorsey and other officers of the Foreign Service of the United States, who, while serving abroad, suffered by theft, robbery, fire, embezzlement, or bank failures losses of official funds; H. R. 9411. An act for the relief of Maurice P. Dunlap; and H. R. 11022. An act to extend medical and hospital relief to retired officers and retired enlisted men of the United States Coast Guard. Mr. SMOOT. quorum. CALL OF THE ROLL Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a The VICE PRESIDENT. The clerk will call the roll. The legislative clerk called the roll, and the following Senators answered to their names: George Gerry Gillett Glass Nye Ashurst McLean Barkley McMaster Bayard McNary Black Blaine Goff Mayfield Borah Gould Moses Bratton Greene Neely Brookhart Hale Broussard Harris Norbeck Bruce Harrison Capper Hawes Caraway Hayden Copeland Heflin Couzens Curtis Pittman Cutting Jones Ransdell Deneen Kendrick La Follette Sackett Locher McKellar Dill Howell Johnson King Oddie Overman Schall Shipstead Steck Stephens Walsh, Mass. Waterman Watson Mr. GERRY. I desire to announce that the Senator from New Jersey [Mr. EDWARDS] is necessarily detained from the Senate by illness in his family. This announcement may stand for the day. Mr. GOULD, from the Committee on Commerce, to which was referred the bill (H. R. 11950) to legalize a pier and wharf in Deer Island thoroughfare on the northerly side at the southeast end of Buckmaster Neck at the town of Stonington, Me., reported it without amendment. Mr. WALSH of Montana, from the Committee on the Judiciary, to which was referred the bill (H. R. 9024) to authorize the appointment of stenographers in the courts of the United States and to fix their duties and compensation, reported it with amendments. Mr. SHEPPARD, from the Committee on Irrigation and ing the time of construction payments on the Rio Grande FedReclamation, to which was referred the bill (S. 4167) extenderal irrigation project, New Mexico-Texas, reported it with an amendment and submitted a report (No. 1181) thereon. Mr. BORAH, from the Committee on Foreign Relations, to thorizing the President to invite the States of the Union and which was referred the joint resolution (H. J. Res. 292) auforeign countries to participate in the International Petroleum Exposition at Tulsa, Okla., to begin October 20, 1928, reported it without amendment. Reclamation, to which was referred the bill (S. 1142) amendMr. ASHURST, from the Committee on Irrigation and acts relating to the Yuma auxiliary project, Arizona, reported ing the act of January 25, 1917 (39 Stat. L. 868), and other it without amendment and submitted a report (No. 1183) thereon. ENROLLED BILLS PRESENTED Mr. GREENE, from the Committee on Enrolled Bills, reof the United States the following enrolled bills: ported that this day that committee presented to the President S. 744. An act to further develop an American merchant maforeign trade of the United States, and for other purposes; rine, to assure its permanence in the transportation of the S. 1341. An act to amend the act entitled "An act to provide that the United States shall aid the States in the construction of rural post roads, and for other purposes," approved July 11, 1916, as amended and supplemented, and for other purposes; S. 3555. An act to establish a Federal farm board to aid in the orderly marketing and in the control and disposition of the surplus of agricultural commodities in interstate and foreign commerce; and 'S. 4405. An act authorizing the Detroit River Canadian Bridge Co., its successors and assigns, to construct, maintain, and operate a bridge across the Detroit River at or near Stony Island, Wayne County, State of Michigan. A bill (S. 4488) declaring the purpose of Congress in passing the act of June 2, 1924 (43 Stat. 253), to confer full citizenship upon the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, and further declaring that it was not the purpose of Congress in passing the act of June 4, 1924 (43 Stat. 376), to repeal, abridge, or modify the provisions of the former act as to the citizenship of said Indians; to the Committee on Indian Affairs. AMENDMENT TO TAX REDUCTION BILL-TARIFF ON COTTON Mr. SHIPSTEAD submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to House bill 1, the tax reduction bill, which was ordered to lie on the table and to be printed. INVESTIGATION RELATIVE TO UNEMPLOYMENT Mr. LA FOLLETTE. Mr. President, I desire to enter a motion to discharge the Committee to Audit and Control the Contingent Expenses of the Senate from the further consideration of Senate Resolution 219, providing for an analysis and appraisal of reports on unemployment and systems for prevention and relief thereof. The VICE PRESIDENT. The motion will be entered. PORTLAND WATER DISTRICT, MAINE enlisted personnel of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Coast and Geodetic Survey, and Public Health Service," approved June 10, 1922, as amended; H. R. 12352. An act to require certain contracts entered into by the Secretary of War, or by officers authorized by him to make them, to be in writing, and for other purposes; H. R. 12449. An act to define the terms "child" and "children' as used in the acts of May 18, 1920, and June 10, 1922; H. R. 12624. An act to amend section 17 of the act of June 10, 1922, entitled "An act to readjust the pay and allowances of the commissioned and enlisted personnel of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Coast and Geodetic Survey, and Public Health Service," as amended; H. R. 12953. An act to authorize the Board of Managers of the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers to accept title to the State camp for veterans at Bath, N. Y.; H. R. 13250. An act to authorize the Secretary of War to fix the percentages of enlisted men of the Army in the sixth and seventh grades, and for other purposes; H. R. 13446. An act to amend the national defense act; H. J. Res. 40. Joint resolution authorizing the Secretary of H. J. Res. 224. Joint resolution to ascertain which was the first heavier-than-air flying machine. MESSAGE FROM THE HOUSE A message from the House of Representatives, by Mr. Haltigan, one of its clerks, announced that the House had passed without amendment the bill (S. 2148) to fix standards for hampers, round stave baskets, and splint baskets for fruits and vegetables, and for other purposes. The message also announced that the House had passed the joint resolution (S. J. Res. 46) providing for the completion of Dam No. 2 and the steam plant at nitrate plant No. 2 in the vicinity of Muscle Shoals for the manufacture and distribution of fertilizer, and for other purposes, with amendments; that the House insisted upon its amendments to the said joint resolution; requested a conference with the Senate on the disagreeing votes of the two houses thereon; and that Mr. MORIN, Mr. JAMES, Mr. REECE, Mr. QUIN, and Mr. WRIGHT were ap The VICE PRESIDENT laid before the Senate the amendment of the House to the bill (S. 3057) authorizing the Secretary of War to transfer and convey to the Portland Water District, a municipal corporation, the water pipe line, including the submarine water main connecting Fort McKinley, Me., with the water system of the Portland Water District, and for other purposes, which was, on page 2, line 13, to strike out "Posts," and insert Posts: Provided, That before exercising the authority conferred by this act, the Secretary of War shall require and receive from the Portland Water District, of Port-pointed managers on the part of the House at the conference. land, Me., the execution and delivery of an obligation in such terms and with such surety as shall satisfy the Secretary of War that the Portland Water District will at all times in the future maintain a good and sufficient water line to Fort McKinley, and will furnish by means of said water line an abundant supply of suitable water for use for all purposes at Fort McKinley, at fair and reasonable prices." Mr. REED of Pennsylvania. I move that the Senate concur in the amendment of the House. The motion was agreed to. HOUSE BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS REFERRED The following bills and joint resolutions were severally read twice by their titles and referred to the Committee on Military Affairs: H. R. 6480. An act to authorize appropriations for construction at military posts, and for other purposes; H. R. 7938. An act to regulate sales by utilities in the Army; H. R. 9961. An act to equalize the rank of officers in positions of great responsibility in the Army and Navy; H. R. 10304. An act authorizing the Secretary of War to erect headstones over the graves of soldiers who served in the Confederate Army and to direct him to preserve in the records of the War Department the names and places of burial of all soldiers for whom such headstones shall have been erected, and for other purposes; H. R. 10478. An act providing retirement for persons who hold licenses as navigators or engineers who have reached the age of 64 years and who have served 25 or more years on seagoing vessels of the Army Transport Service; H. R. 10809. An act to provide qualifications for the superin- H. R. 11722. An act to establish a national military park at the battle field of Monocacy, Md.; II. R. 12106. An act to erect a national monument at Cowpens battle ground; H. R. 12110. An act to amend the act entitled "An act to readjust the pay and allowances of the commissioned and The message further announced that the House had agreed to the amendment of the Senate to the bill (H. R. 2473) for the relief of Louie June. MUSCLE SHOALS The VICE PRESIDENT laid before the Senate the amendments of the House of Representatives to the joint resolution (S. J. Res. 46) providing for the completion of Dam No. 2 and the steam plant at nitrate plant No. 2 in the vicinity of Muscle Shoals for the manufacture and distribution of fertilizer, and for other purposes. Mr. McNARY. I move that the Senate disagree to the House amendments and agree to the conference asked by the House, and that the Chair appoint the conferees on the part of the Senate. The motion was agreed to; and the President pro tempore appointed Mr. MCNARY, Mr. NORRIS, and Mr. SMITH conferees on the part of the Senate. Mr. NORRIS. I ask unanimous consent for a reprint in bill form of the Muscle Shoals joint resolution as it passed the Senate and showing the House amendments. The VICE PRESIDENT. Without objection, it is so ordered. TAX REDUCTION The Senate, as in Committee of the Whole, resumed the consideration of the bill (II. R. 1) to reduce and equalize taxation, provide revenue, and for other purposes. Mr. SMOOT. Mr. President, as I understand it the pending question is the amendment relating to estate taxes. Am I right? The VICE PRESIDENT. The Senator is correct. Mr. SMOOT. The Senator from Connecticut [Mr. BINGHAM] desires to be here when that amendment is considered. He may be here later in the afternoon. I am going to ask unanimous consent that the amendment may be temporarily laid aside. I do not mean by that, that I am going to hold the bill up, because if all the other amendments are disposed of and the Senator from Connecticut has not returned, I shall then ask that the estate tax amendment be considered. But I do want the Senator from Connecticut to have a chance to be here, as he offered the amendment, and therefore I ask that the amendment be temporarily laid aside. Then we can take up the other amendments. Mr. MOSES. Mr. President, a parliamentary inquiry. shire will state the inquiry. Mr. MOSES. We are in the stage of individual amendments now? The VICE PRESIDENT. The Senator is correct. Mr. MOSES. May I ask the Senator from Utah if there are many of those individual amendments which are controversial? Mr. SMOOT. There are a few. I think the estate-tax amendment will take the greater part of the time. Mr. MOSES. I make the inquiry because I would like to have some time during the day for the consideration of the conference report on the postal rates bill. I am entirely willing to wait and ask consent for its consideration later in the day, if it suits the convenience of the Senator from Utah. Mr. SMOOT. I wish the Senator would do so. I would like to have the day for the tax bill, if I can. Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. President, will the Senator advise me just what he means by laying aside the estate tax amendment temporarily? Will it be taken up this afternoon? Mr. SMOOT. Yes. If all the other amendinents are passed | upon, then we will take up the estate tax amendment. Mr. JOHNSON. So that no time will be lost. Mr. SMOOT. No time will be lost. If all the other amendments are acted upon, then I shall ask that the estate tax amendment be taken up immediately. Mr. JOHNSON. The desire of the Senator, if I understand him, is simply to transmute the order and proceed with amendments to the bill now, and then during the afternoon, if the other amendments shall have been concluded, to proceed with the estate tax amendment? Mr. SMOOT. That is correct. Mr. REED of Pennsylvania. Mr. President, will the Senator yield? Mr. SMOOT. For what purpose? Mr. REED of Pennsylvania. For the purpose of allowing me to request the passage of four House bills which are exact duplicates of four bills which have already been passed by the Senate. Mr. SMOOT. They will lead to no discussion? Mr. HEFLIN. What are the bills? Mr. FLETCHER. Mr. President, before that is done I should like to know something about the arrangement proposed. The pending amendment is the Bingham amendment? Mr. SMOOT. It is. I ask unanimous consent that that amendment be temporarily laid aside for the reason that the Senator from Connecticut [Mr. BINGHAM] is out of town, and that we proceed with the consideration of other amendments. Just as soon as they are finished, whether the Senator from Connecticut gets back this afternoon or not, I shall ask that we proceed with the estate tax amendment. Mr. ROBINSON of Arkansas. What is the amendment that is in order if that arrangement be entered into? Mr. SMOOT. Any individual amendment. Mr. ROBINSON of Arkansas. The committee amendments have been disposed of with the exception of the estate tax amendment? Mr. SMOOT. Yes. Mr. FLETCHER. That means the Senator will lay aside the estate tax amendment indefinitely, because we do not know how long the other amendments will take. Some of them may take a day or two. Mr. SMOOT. My unanimous-consent request was that, until the Senator from Connecticut returns or until all the other amendments have been acted upon, the estate tax amendment be laid aside. Then we will take up the estate tax amendment at once. Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. President, has the chairman of the committee any assurance that the Senator from Connecticut will be here this afternoon? Mr. SMOOT. No; I have not. If there is the least question about granting my request, I shall not insist upon it; but the Senator from Connecticut having offered the amendment, and as we have other amendments to consider and no time would be lost, I did feel that it would only be the proper thing and a matter of respect shown to that Senator to let his amendment go over until at least we have concluded all the other amendments. Mr. ROBINSON of Arkansas. I do not understand that the Senator is asking for any delay. He is merely asking to proceed out of order with other amendments. Mr. SMOOT. That is all there is to it. Mr. ROBINSON of Arkansas. I do not see any objection to his request. Mr. SMOOT. I do not ask for a moment's delay in the consideration of the bill. Mr. SIMMONS. I do not object, except that the Senator from Florida [Mr. FLETCHER] makes the statement that he understands the Senator from Connecticut will not be back to-day. Mr. ROBINSON of Arkansas. The Senator from Utah has said that at the conclusion of the consideration of the other amendments, whether the Senator from Connecticut is here or not, he will ask the Senate to proceed immediately with the consideration of the estate tax amendment. Mr. NORRIS. It seems to me that out of courtesy the action proposed should be taken. Mr. SIMMONS. I have no desire to interfere with any arrangement which may have been made. Mr. NORRIS. I have no desire to postpone it; I am just as anxious as any other Senator can be for the Senate to consider the amendment of the Senator from Connecticut, but it is only common courtesy that we lay the amendment aside for a while, if we do not thereby delay the bill. Mr. ROBINSON of Arkansas. That is exactly the thought I had. Mr. NORRIS. When we get through with the other amendments, if the Senator from Connecticut is not then here, we can go ahead and take it up. Mr. SIMMONS. With that understanding I am content. Mr. SIMMONS. But if it is to be delayed for several days, I can not consent to that. Mr. FLETCHER. Mr. President, I will say that if the Senator from Connecticut made the request, of course it ought to be granted. The Senator, however, assured me that we might go ahead in his absence. Does the Senator from Utah think he will be back to-day? Mr. SMOOT. I do not know; but if he shall not come back, it will make no difference whatever, because just as soon as the other amendments shall be out of the way then this amendment will be brought before the Senate, whether the Senator from Connecticut is here or whether he is not here. Mr. REED of Pennsylvania. Mr. President Mr. SMOOT. I yield to the Senator from Pennsylvania. Mr. REED of Pennsylvania. The four bills of which I have spoken Mr. NORRIS. Mr. President, let us have this matter settled before we go into something else. Are we going to lay aside this amendment or are we not? The VICE PRESIDENT. The Chair understands the amendment has been temporarily laid aside. Mr. HEFLIN. Mr. President, where is the Senator on whose account the business of the Senate has got to be held up until he arrives? Mr. SMOOT. The business of the Senate will not be held up. Mr. HEFLIN. Where is the Senator, if he he is not here? Mr. ROBINSON of Arkansas. He is somewhere else. Mr. HEFLIN. I understand he is somewhere else. It is 20 minutes after meeting time. The Republicans ought to attend the sessions of the Senate. Mr. SMOOT. The Senator from Connecticut is out of the city, I will say to the Senator. Mr. President, I had yielded to the Senator from Pennsylvania. Mr. NORRIS. Let us settle this question first. Mr. REED of Pennsylvania. The Senator from Utah only asked that the amendment be laid aside temporarily, and that in the meantime we proceed with other amendments. Mr. HEFLIN. Mr. President, the Senator from Connecticut was kind enough the other day to ask that a bill in which I am interested and in which the farmers of the South are vitally interested should go over. I am going to return to him good for evil and permit, so far as I am concerned, this amendment to go over until it is the pleasure of this Republican Senator to return. Mr. BROOKHART. Mr. President, on behalf of the Senator from North Dakota [Mr. FRAZIER], I offer an amendment to the pending revenue bill. The VICE PRESIDENT. The amendment will be stated. The CHIEF CLERK. On page 196, section 412, in line 9. it is proposed to strike out "$10" and to insert in lieu thereof "$25," and in line 14 to strike out $10" and to insert in lieu thereof "$25.” 66 Mr. SMOOT. Mr. President, to the amendment just offered by the Senator from Iowa [Mr. BROOKHART] I have no objection; and, so far as I am concerned, I hope that it will be adopted. It simply increases the exemption in the case of dues from $10 to $25 in order to take care of the small clubs throughout the country. Mr. GERRY. Mr. President, if the Senator from Utah will yield, I understand that the Senator from Kentucky [Mr. BARKLEY] had an amendment on this subject. Therefore I should like if the amendment offered by the Senator from Iowa could go over for a few minutes until I can send for the Senator from Kentucky. Mr. SMOOT. I ask the Senator from Rhode Island to allow the amendment to be agreed to, with the understanding that if any Senator desires later to reconsider the vote by which it was agreed to, the vote may be so reconsidered. Mr. GERRY. The Senator from Kentucky, I think, is detained in connection with the work of a committee. Mr. SMOOT. He can at any time in the afternoon make a motion to reconsider the vote by which the amendment was agreed to, if he so desires. Mr. GERRY. Very well. The VICE PRESIDENT. Without objection, the amendment Mr. NORRIS. Mr. President, before the amendment shall be agreed to, I wish to make an inquiry. There is so much confusion in the Senate that I am unable to hear what is being said. I understand that there is an amendment, pending offered by the Senator from Iowa [Mr. BROOKHART], and I should like to know what the amendment is. Mr. BROOKHART. The amendment relates to exemption from taxation of dues of small clubs; it raises the exemption from $10 to $25. Mr. NORRIS. Is this the same matter we had up the other day when we undertook to cut out the tax and it was suggested that instead of cutting out the taxes we should increase the exemption? Mr. BROOKHART. I think so. The Senator from North Dakota [Mr. FRAZIER] is the author of the amendment. Mr. NORRIS. Yes; the Senator from North Dakota was talking about it, and so was the Senator from Kentucky. Mr. President, as I understand the amendment I have no objection to it, and I am constrained to favor it. My understanding is that under the bill as the committee have brought it in there is imposed a tax on dues of clubs, particularly golf clubs, wherever the dues or the initiation fee into the club exceeds $10, and exempting everything under $10. We had a vote on the question, as I remember, of cutting down the tax, and that was defeated. Now the Senator from Iowa, in behalf of the Senator from North Dakota, offers an amendment that raises the exemption; in other words, the dues of these country golf clubs where they are $25 or less are not to be taxed. Mr. SMOOT. That is correct. Mr. NORRIS. The Senator from North Carolina, I think, made a speech that convinced me that we ought to increase the exemption, because there are a good many country clubs in small towns of which the dues are more than $10 and less than $25, and, as he said, golf is a very healthful pastime. Mr. ROBINSON of Arkansas. Mr. President, may I ask the Senator a question? Mr. NORRIS. Yes. Mr. ROBINSON of Arkansas. Why should there be a tax on the right to indulge in this wholesome, healthful entertainment, exercise, or occupation? Why should the golfer be required to pay a tax? Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. President, may I say to the Senator from Arkansas that when a former tax bill was before the Senate we made a very earnest effort to reduce the tax, but the Senators on the other side voted us down. As the Senator from Nebraska said, I insisted then that golf had ceased to be a rich man's amusement, and had become the amusement and the exercise of a large number of people in every little town in the country, and was very healthful exercise, and ought not to be taxed out of existence. I want to say that this amendment meets with my hearty approval. I think it will relieve to a great extent those small clubs. I should like to have the exemption raised a little bit. Mr. NORRIS. Mr. President, I took the floor not for the purpose of opposing the amendment, but mainly to find out what it is. Since I have found out what it is, I want to say that I feel favorably inclined to it, although I do not know anything about the pastime in which these people indulge. Mr. SIMMONS. Neither do I, Mr. President. Mr. NORRIS. I understand it is an amendment in behalf of old age, of gray hairs, and of bald heads. It is going to relieve from taxation the old man's game of golf. Mr. ROBINSON of Arkansas. Mr. President, will the Senator yield? Mr. NORRIS. Yes. Mr. ROBINSON of Arkansas. The Senator now is entering upon a very comprehensive field of learning, one that absorbs the attention and engages the activities of thousands, not to say millions, of his fellow countrymen. There is not any subject that more promptly invites the exercise of the imagination and more frequently stimulates the faculty of exaggeration than that which the Senator from Nebraska is discussing. Mr. NORRIS. That accounts, then, for a lot of exaggera tion I have heard from golf players. I did not know that. Mr. ROBINSON of Arkansas. It is a subject that provokes discussion around the fireside, where the results obtained are very different from those secured on the links. Many a golfer in that presence can shoot around in par when he reaches what used to be known as the nineteenth hole or assembles with fellow golfers around the fireside who disgraces himself in the actual engagements of the game. Mr. EDGE. Mr. President, does the Senator from Arkansas feel that the nineteenth hole has been entirely eliminated? Mr. ROBINSON of Arkansas. The Senator from Arkansas reserves an expression of opinion on that subject. It is too difficult to discuss here; but there is not a reason that appeals to my mind why those who do not play golf should penalize by taxing those gentlemen who think they can play the game. Mr. CARAWAY. Mr. President Mr. NORRIS. I hope Senators will not take up my time. Mr. ROBINSON of Arkansas. There is a very violent issue on the horizon between the Senator from Nebraska and myself. Mr. NORRIS. No; I think there is not any disagreement. In fact, I expected to make what I believed would be an argument in favor of the amendment. Senators are misconstruing my purpose. I have been taught since I was a boy to respect old age, and I do not want to take any action that would interfere with my early training or teaching. Mr. WATSON. But in that the Senator has no reference to the Senator from Arkansas? Mr. NORRIS. I have not said I had reference to anybody. Mr. ROBINSON of Arkansas. Let me make a confession hu the time of the Senator from Nebraska. Every old man who attempts it persists in the effort to learn golf. No old man ever can learn it. Few young men ever master it. It is the exercise par excellence of the middle-aged; it is the consolation of the senile; it is the despair of the ambitious. The Senator from Nebraska, whose experience has been so broad, whose attainments are so comprehensive, has missed something in life, and the time is approaching when he will be old enough to quit indoor games and undertake outdoor sports, including golf. Mr. SIMMONS, Mr. President Mr. NORRIS. I believe I have the floor, and I hope Senators will let me proceed. The VICE PRESIDENT. The Senator from Nebraska has the floor. Mr. SIMMONS. Will not the Senator let me say a word? Mr. NORRIS. Let the Senator get the floor after I am through. Mr. SIMMONS. I just want to say a word in behalf of two of my colleagues. Mr. NORRIS. I know the Senator does and I am anxious to hear him; but I am also anxious to finish my argument in favor of this amendment. Mr. SIMMONS. I do not want to worry the Senator, butMr. NORRIS. The Senator is going to say it anyway, so he can keep right on in concert with me. Mr. SIMMONS. If the Senator will just allow me to say this, the Senator is putting his argument upon the ground of relief of the poor man. I want to tell him that there are two Senators here whom I happen to know, one of whom spends his afternoons until a late hour playing golf-he is from Arkansas--and the other spends his mornings playing golf. He gets up before sunrise. They are both poor people and they ought to be relieved. Mr. NORRIS. Mr. President, both of them are liable to injure their health by the loss of sleep. Mr. ROBINSON of Arkansas. Mr. President, will the Senator yield to me, on behalf of the junior Senator from Arkansas [Mr. CARAWAY] and the senior Senator from Washington [Mr. JONES], to express my appreciation to the Senator from North Carolina? Mr. CARAWAY. Mr. President, I hope the Senator will let me say that my colleague is what I understand is known as a Civil War golfer. He goes out in 61 and comes back in 65. [Laughter.] Mr. NORRIS. Mr. President, if Senators will permit me now, I desire to say briefly that I have rather been convinced by what the Senator from Arkansas has said that this game of golf is not as undesirable as I supposed it was from what I |