Speech #560024357

Mr. President. some days ago in the debate upon this bill I stated it as my recollection that the Senator from Alabama . in the last session of Congress. when the Senator from Indiana was pressing the passage ofthe bill extending the contractlabor laws or the immigration laws of the United States to Hawaii. objected upon the ground that it would be ruinous to the people of Hawaii to extend those laws to that people. The Senator from Alabama rose and stated that he had not taken that attitude. I spoke from recollection. for I remembered distinctly one part of what the Senator had uttered in that debate. Upon examining the RECORD I find that there were two bills pending. a bill to give a government to Hawaii and a bill alto to extend to Hawaii the contractlabor laws and the immigration laws of the United States. On reading the RECORD of what was said upon the subject. I find that the objection made by the Senator from Alabama to the proposition of the Senator from Indiana was not directed to the merits of the extension or the proposition to extend the contractlabor laws and the immigration laws of the United States to Hawaii. but was addressed to the proposition that to extend the onein other words. to pass the one bill without passing also the otherwould produce -great confusion in Hawaii and lead to great embarrassment in the administration of the law. and therefore would be ruinous. 1 avail myself of the first opportunity possible to me to place upon the record here my statement that I did injustice to the Senator from Alabama. I hope that will be satisfactory to him. as I would not be willing to do an injustice to any of my brother Senators on any subject.