Democratic Sentinel, Volume 11, Number 48, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 23 December 1887 — NATIONAL LAW-MAKERS. [ARTICLE]

NATIONAL LAW-MAKERS.

Whmt Is Being Done by the tional Legislature. The Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections investigat d the West Virginia con-tested-election case, on the 13th inst., and decided unanimously to report in favor of Mr. Faulkner’s claim to the vacant seat. Mr. Ingalls introduced bills to remove the limitation in the payment of arrears of pensions and granting arrears in certain cases to those pensioned by special acts of Congress. Mr. Cullom introduced a bill to equalize the rate of pensions. It fixes the pension for loss of sight or disability requiring regular medical attendance at #72 per month. Mr. Cullom also introduced a biU to establish the United Stateapostal telegraph, and another to define and extend the powers of the Interstate Commerce Commission. Senator Jones, of Arkansas introduced a bill to open the great Sioux reservation in Nebraska to settlement. Senator Dawesintroduced a bill taxing manufacturers and dealers in adulterated lard, and requiring it tobe stamped. The Senate Committee on Agriculture will give a hearing on this subject inJanuary. The Finance Committee made a favorable report on the Morrill bill to refund tothe States the direct taxes imposed by the act of 1861. The aggregate is about $15,000,000. The bill was placed On the calendar. The Senate voted to continue Senator Cockrell’s select' committee to inquire into the executive departments, with leave to report at any timeprior to Jan. 25. Senator Chandler introduced a bill to regulate the holding of Congressional elections in South Carolina, Florida, Mississippi, and Louisiana. The House unanimously adopted a resolution offered by Mr. Cannon (Ill.) declaring that the following named gentlemen should constitute the Committee on Flections: Messrs. Crisp (Chairman), O’Fenali, Outhwaite, Barry, Maish, Heard, Johnson (N. C.), O’Neill (Ind.), Moore, Rowell, Houk, Cooper, Lyman, Johnson (Ind.), and Lodge. Speaker Carlisle then dij rected that ajl papers in the varions contested election oases be referred to this committee. The committee report on the West Virginia contested election case was unanimously . adopted by the Senate on the 14th inst, and theoath of office was administered to Mr. Faulkner. Mr. Morrill addressed the Senate at some length on his biU relating to foreign immigration, the principal object of which, he explained, was to have the character of the immigrants examined by the United States Consul at the port of departure. He stated that nearly one-third of the population of the country was composed of foreigners, and expressed a doubt as Jo the possibility of transforming them into good American eftizens. Among the bills introduced in the Senate were the following : By Mr. George, to protect innocent purchasers of patented articles; by Senator George, to annex the public-land slip south of Indian Territory to the Territorv of New Mexico; also, a bill to appropriate #IOO,OOO for the erection of a public building at Vicksburg, Miss. Senator Butler introduced withhl ig tit amendments the bill reported from the Committee on Improvement of the Mississippi River last session, and known as the Cowden outlet bill. It is entitled “A bill to make the Lake Borgne outlet, to improve the low-water navigation of the Mississippi River from New Orleans to Cairo, and incidentally to reclaim and protect the valley lands of the Mississippi from overflow without levees.” The House was not in session. Senator Butleb introduced in the Senate, on the 15th inst., a bill, framed by the National Association of Railway Conductors, t« license conductors. It provides that no railroad shall employ any person as a railroad conductor upon any train engaged in interstate commerce unless the person iB licensed as provided by the act. Senator George introduced a bill to protect employes and servants engaged in foreign and interstate commerce, which provides that they shall be -entitled to receive damages for any injury sustained through the carelessness, neglect, or unskillful act or omission of their employers or masters, or of their lellow-servanta engaged on the same service. Senator Stewartaddressed the Senate in support of his coincertificate bill. A bill was introduced by Mr. Plumb to forfeit lands granted to the State of Michigan for a railroad from Marquette to Ontonagon, and another by Mr. Palmer to increase to 52,000,000 the limit of the appropriation for a public building at Detroit, Mich. The House was not in session. In the House of Representatives, on the lGth inst., Mr. Hatch, of Missouri, submitted a concurrent resolution that when the two houses adjourn on Monday, Dec. 19, they stand adjourned until Tuursday, Jnn. 5. Mr. Reed, of • Maine, opposed the resolution. He said Congress was pressed upon by a serious public duty, which was the reduction of a surplus which was coming into the Treasury in amanner calculated, uhder the management of the Treasury Department, to be an embarraaiment to the finances of the country. AU were agreed—at least on the Republican, side—that this surplus should be reduced, and the Republicans stood ready now to make onereauction to which the other side wasagreed, and that was in reference to the tobacco tax. He hoped that an opportunity would be given them by the powers" that be, or were to be, to vote thereon and show to the country some proper disposition in this regard. If the gentlemen on the other side found it somewhat difficult to range themselves alougside of the recent message, which had been sent them, that the Republican scould well understand and could give their assurances of most profound sympathy. Mr. Cox of New York, commented on what no termed the sudden conversion of the gentleman from Maine. He did not think that there had been such a sudden conversion since s the time of Saul of Tarsus. [Laughter.] / He could recall the time when the most eminentmen on the other side of the House had insisted upon the reduction of the tariff to prevent the accumulation of a surplus. Among the resthad been the gallant man from Maine with the white plume. Among them had been Frye and Hale, insisting in the reduction of the tax on salt and other articles, except lumber. He would like to see every man in the House regard this fiscal question as outside of politics. It was a business question in every sense of the word. There were members of Congress from Republican States like Minnesota demanding the reduction of taxes, but this could not be done by picking out one article. It must be general; it must be stable and permanent. He hoped that when a tariff bill was considered all parties would unite and act for the best interests of the whole people. and not for aggrandizement of one man or one set of men, or one party. Mr. Mills of Texas offered as a substitute for Mr. Hatch’s resolution a resolution declaring that when the twohouses adjourned Thursday, Dec. 22, they stand adjourned until Wednesday, Jan. 4. Mr. Hatch, accepted the substitute, and the resolution as modified was agreed to.

An improvement in sugar has been lately made, insuring *hmch greater simplicity and economy. The most important feature of this new plan is a vacuum pan for the finishing process of boiling and crystallizing the sugar. The heat is imparted by steam to the contents of the pan through an inner bottom of copper, and by a series of copper coils or worms, and the operation is conducted in vacruo by means of a suitable horizonal vacuum pumping engine. This pan is mounted on an elevated platform, for convenience in discharging its contents into the hopper of the centrifugal drying machines, and the discharge of the pan is equal to six tons of dry sugar. The sugar, after having been concentrated and crystallized in the vacuum pan, is run into the hopper, or mixed over the centrifugal sugar-drying Machines of improved construction. These machines are on the well-known self-bal-ancing suspended principle, the cylindrical baskets which receive the sugar revolving at a high speed and purging the sugar from all molasses.