Vinson Naval Bill Overwhelmingly Passed Except for Guam Base; Isolationism Wanes "Washington, Feb. 23.
HE House of Representatives ioday gave an overwhelming standing vote of 368 to four in approving the $52,000,000 Vinson Naval Base Bill which will establish ten major naval and air bases in the Pacific, including Midway and Wake islands, A coalition of isolationist Republicans and Democrats defeated the provision in the bill calling for the fortification of Guam Island, 1,200 miles south of Japan, but joined t he Democratic majority in overwhelmingly approving all other portions of the bill.
The defeat of the Guam provision came after bitter debate regarding the advisability of extending United States defences too far to the west and possible consequences of antagonizing Japan through the construction of a strong base so close to Tokyo. Despite. the defeat of the Guam proposal, however, the bill passed today would give the United States a new and powerful defence line reaching from Alaska to the Philippines via Midway and Wake islands, both of which will be greatly strengthened.
Senator David L Walsh, Democrat of Massachusetts and Chairman of the Naval Affairs Committee, predicted today that the Senate would uphold the House's refusal to authorize harbour and airport developments at Guam. Senstor Walsh said the "emphatic vote in the House on Guam question ends it for the present."
Pacific base appropriations as approved today were: Wake Island, $2,000,000; Midway Island, $5,351,000; Johnson Island, $2,884,000; Palmyra Island, $1,110,000; Kodiak Island, $8,741,000; Sitka, Alaska, $2,884,000; Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, $2,821,000; Kaneohe Bay, Oahu, $5,800,000; Tongue Point, Ore., $1,500,000.
The original Vinson Bill provided for the appropriation of $5,000,000 to begin the fortification works on Guam Island. One of the major factors in the defeat of the provision was the belief in some naval circles that it would be impossible to convert Guam into a strong enough base to warrant the heavy expense. Navy Department experts, who urged fortification of the island to afford the Navy an advanced observation post, admitted before Congressional Committees that Guam probably could not be defended more than a few days regardless of the extent to which it might be developed
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.