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Show ARMY BILL GOES RACK CONGRESS LEGISLATION FOR NATIONAL DEFENSE PREPARED FOR QUICK SETTLEMENT. 6upporters of Administration Expected Expect-ed to Make Determined Effort to Secure Construction of Sixty-six Vessels. Washington. National defense legislation leg-islation In congress is approaching completion. On Monday the conference confer-ence committee on the army appropriation appropri-ation bill submitted a complete agreement agree-ment and the conferees on the naval bill voted to disagree on the big construction con-struction program and personnel increases, in-creases, the only remaining points of dispute in the measure, so that the issues might be referred back for quick settlement by the two houses themselves. Members of the house, the majority majori-ty of whom are away on vacations, will be called back to Washington next week for a vote on the building and personnel sections of the naval bill. President Wilson, navy department officials and other adequate defense champions of the administration are expected to make a determined effort to induce house leaders to yield to the senate program for construction of Bixty-six vessels, eight of them to be capital ships, during 1917. The house provided for only five capital ships. If it votes to insist on its original ori-ginal provisions, it Is said, the senate conferees will offer to give up the three-year continuing program in the senate hill as an inducement to house leaders to reconsider and accept the big program for the first year. Among the big army appropriations, as agreed to, are: For aviation, $13,281,666; pay for officers of the line, $10,000,000; transportation trans-portation $23,000,000; clothing, $20,-280,000; $20,-280,000; subsistence, $20,000,000; ordnance, ord-nance, stores and ammunition, $10,-000,000, $10,-000,000, of which $5,000,000 shall be expended for purchase of munitions, the remainder to be used for manufacturing; manu-facturing; ordnance stores and supplies, sup-plies, $9,500,000; armed motor cars, $500,000, reduced from $1,000,000; field artillery and ammunition for national na-tional guard $20,000,000, reduced from $28,200,000; for automatic machine ma-chine rifles, $12,000,000, reduced from $15,000,000. For training camps, such as that at Plattsburg the bill appropriates $2,-000,000, $2,-000,000, a reduction from $4,300,000 in the senate bill. |