Democratic Sentinel, Volume 10, Number 23, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 9 July 1886 — CONGRESSIONAL. [ARTICLE]

CONGRESSIONAL.

The Work of the Senate and Hotzsa of Representative* The Senate passed the Des Moines land bill over the President’s veto, on the 29th nit, by a vote of 34 to 15. The Senate agreed to conference reports on the army appropriation bill and the bill to amend the Pacific Railroad acts. Mr. Camden (W. Va.) denied a newspaper state ment that he had telegraphed from Washington that only six votes were necessary to carry the Senate for Payne, and the Standard Oil Company would pay $50,000 each for them. The Sentaor said that at the time named he was not in Washington, and that the story was without foundation and absurd. A resolution was adopted appointing Gen. William J. Sewell, Gen. M. T. McMahon, and Capt. John L. Mitchell as managers of the National Homes for Disabled Soldiers. The Senate took up the legislative, executive, and judicial bill, and some amendments reported by the Committee on Appropriations increasing the clerical force of the State Department gave rise to a sharp debate in which Senators Edmunds of Vermont, Ingalls, of Kansas, and Hale of Maine criticised the administration. Senator Cockrell, of Missouri, brought the discussion to a close with the remark that the administration needed no defender in the Senate. The people of the United States would live to bow their knees in everlasting thankfulness to Almighty God that Grover Cleveland had become President of the United States. He was an honest man, a brave man, a true man. He was doing all that any mortal being could do to give the people of the United States an honest, fearless, economical, and constitutional administration. The discussion having closed, the amendments on which it was based were agreed to. The House, in committee of the whole, rejected the motion of Mr. Laird (Neb.) to strike out the clause in the sundry civil bill appropriating $30,000 for protecting the public lands from fraudulent entry. The general deficiency bill was reported to the House. It appropriates $6,062,845. The House agreed to conference reports on the pension and agricultural appropriation bills.

Senator Edmunds introduced in the Senate, on the 30th ult., a bill vesting in the President the sole power of appointing a large number of officers who are now appointed “by and with the advice and consent of the Senate." Among these are postmasters of all classes, collectors of internal revenue, certain collectors of customs, all territorial officers except judges of the Supreme Courts, all district attorneys, and United States marshals, Indian agents, and district land officers. Resolutions of the Portland (Oregon) board of trade were laid before the Senate to the effect that the previous resolutions of that body protesting against the forfeiture of the Northern Pacific land grant for the uncompleted portion of tin Cascade branch were inconsiderate and illegal and should be expunged from the record of the board. The House in committee of the whole adopted an amendment presented by Mr. Randall (Pa.) appropriating $14,620 for the service of the army and navy hospital at Hot ’Springs, Ark. Chairman Boyle of the Pan-Electric Telephone Committee presented a report signed by himself and Messrs. Oates, Eden, and Hall. The report was accompanied by the following resolution, which was concurred in by Mr. Hale, who also presented a report of his own: “Resolved, That a full, fair, and exhaustive investigation has failed to adduce any evidence which tends to show that Attorney-General Gar; land, Solicitor-General Goode, Secretary Larmar, Indian Commissioner Atkins, Railroad Commissioner Johnstone,or Senator Harris, they being the officers named in the Pan-Electric publications of the newspaper press which gave rise to this investigation, did any act, official or otherwise, connected with the matter investigated which was dishonest, dishonorable, or censurable”

The House bill for the relief of the survivors of the Jeannette and the widows and children of those who perished in the retreat from the wreck of that vessel in the arctic seas was reported favorably to the Senate on the Ist inst. from the Committee on Naval Affairs. Senator Riddleberger introduced a bill providing for a 25 per cent, reduction in the salaries of Cabinet officers, Senators and Representatives. Senator Miller, from the Committee on Agriculture, reported back, without amendments, the House bill taxing oleomargarine, four members of the committee dissenting. The President nominated John C. Shields of Michigan to be Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Arizona, and G. ChnßO Godwin to be United States Attorney for the Western District of Michigan. The House passed the Bundry civil appropriation bill, and refused to pass the Doh Moines River land bill over the President’s veto.

The legislative appropriation bill passed the Senate on the 2d inst. Senator Vance, in opposing an amendm nt to the bill providing for an additional clerk for the Civil-Service Commission, said that if the commission was unable to do any more business it would be so much the better. Senator Saulsbury thought the CivilService Commission, from beginning to end, .a useless piece of machinery. If he nad his way he would repeal the law. Mr. Voorhees said that he had never been for the law, sleeping or walking, but while it was a law he would treat it fairly and give it a fair chance. Senator Ingalls did not wonder that Senator Voorhees was in favor of the civil-service law as administered by the Democratic party, and he quoted from the statement of the Commissioner of Pensions, that out of seventy-seven men appointed by him under civil-service rule seventytwo were Democrats and the other five were of unknown politics. The amendment was adopted, Senator Cockrell, of Missouri, in discussing the paragraph of the deficiency appropriation bill relating to the Navy Department,said that in 1866 there were 320 serviceable vessels in the navy; to-day there were but eighty seven vessels, and of these the Secretary of the Navy certified that only thirty-seven were serviceable. During these twenty years $419,000,000 had been expended for the naval establishment,of which $93,000,000 ha 1 been expended for construction and repairs. The House passed the Senate bill providing for an additional Justice of the Supreme Court of the Territory of Montana. The Senate amendments to the bill repealing the preemption, timber culture, and desert land laws were nonconcurred in by the House, and a committee of conference was appointed. An amendment to the general deficiency bill providing for the payment of the claims of the Pacific Mail Steamship Company for the transportation of troops to Panama in June, 1885, was agreed to by the House. The President vetoed the act granting a pension to William Boone. It appears that Boone enlisted in August, 1862, was in action in November of the same year, and was taken prisoner and at once paroled. During his parole he took part in the Fourth of July celebration at Aurora, 111., in 1863, and was terribly injured by the discharge of a cannon, which he was assisting to manage. In reviewing the case the President says he is unable to discover any relation between the accident and the mi itary service. He says further • “A disabled man and wife and family in need are objects which appeal to the sympathy and charitable feelings of any decent man; but it seems to me that it by no means follows that those intrusted-with the people’s business and tho expenditure of the people’s money are justified iu so executing the pension laws us that they shall furnish a means of relief in every case of distress or hardship.”