Democratic Sentinel, Volume 12, Number 6, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 2 March 1888 — CONGRESSIONAL. [ARTICLE]

CONGRESSIONAL.

Woxk of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Mr. Vocrbees introduced a bill in tho Senate appropriating $75,000 for a public building at Lafayette, lad., and teuator Vest reported favorably a bill appropriating SBO,OOO for a building at Helena, M. T. 'Hie beuute committee on public buildings, Februaiy 20, ordered favorable reporta on the bill appropriating $1,200,000 for a postoihee at New Orleans, and on that appropriating $850,000 for a postoffice at San Francisco. The Senate committee on agriculture reported favorably the bill to establish a bureau of animal 'industry. The Senate likewise adopted an amendment to the bill incorporating the Washington Electric Hailway Company, requiring that the rails should bo of American manufacture. When the amendment Was reached Mr. Edmunds suggested that that was in opposition to the President's message aud at variance with ail the principles of the administration, and, in order to have the votes of Senators placed on the record on this indirect tariff question, he demanded yeas and nays. The vote resulted: Yes, 25; nays, 17. Of the seventeen Senators voting in the negative, all are from the South, with the exception of one—Hearst, of California. The Secretary of War sent to the House his answer to the Boutelle battle-flag resolution. The Secretary says that of the whole number captured and deposited with the department 235 were United states flags originally captured by Confederates and recaptured from them and 544 were Confederate flags taken by United States troops, making a total of 780 in the custody of the department. The Secretary states that none of the flags have been removed from the degpxtmentlsince it came under his control. Mr. Blunt introduced a bill to reclassify postmasters apd their salaries. Bills were introduced in the House and referred for the erection of public buildings at the following points: Sterling, Ill.; South Bend, Ind.;. Burlington, Iowa; Opelousas, La.; Canton. O.; Shebovgan, Green Bay and Manitowoc, Wis.; Yankton.D.T., and Oberllu, Has. A motion to suspend the rules and pass the Hoar joint resolution proposing a constitutional amendment changing the date of inauguration day and extending the terms of members of Congress until April 30, was defeated in the House, after a long debate, by 129 yeas to 128 nays. Mr. Simons of New York introduced a bill for the apportionment, on the basis of illiteracy, of $85,000,000 among the States and Territories for educational purposes. A bill was introduced by Mr. Jackson of Pennsylvania to amend the homestead laws so as to provide that only eighty acres can be entered instead of 160, and to permit only citizens of the United States to enter homesteads.

MB. Hoar, from the Committee on Privileges and Eleotions, reported to the Senate, Feb, 21, a resolution authorizing that committee to continue the investigation ordered last session into the events alleged to have taken place in Texas, and set forth in the petition of Btepben Hackworth and others. Mr. Platt introduced a bill to provide for the establishment of an experimental grass and forage plant farm, and for the conducting of experiments relating to grass and forage plants. The President sent to the Senate the fisheries treaty, accompanied by a message urging its ratification. In the House of Representatives Mr. Culberson, from the Judiciary Committee, reported a joint resolution proposing the following amendments to the Constitution : “1. Polygamy shall not exist or be lawful within the United btates, or in any place subject to their jurisdiction. 2. Polygamy shall consist in a marriage relation by contract or in fact existing at the same time between one person of either sex and more than one person of the other sex. 3. Congress shall have power concurrent with the several States to enforce this act," In reporting the resolution the committee say the object is to clothe the General Government with concurrent powers with the several States to suppress the crime of polygamy in tho several Btates.

Among the bills passed by the Senate Feb. 23 were the following: To carry iuto effect th* international convention for the protection of submarine cables; to enable California to take lands in lieu of the 16th and 35th sections, found to be mineral lands ; to provide for an international marine conference for securing greater safety for life and property at sea; to extend the laws of the United States over certain unorganized torritory south of Kansas, popularly known as “No Man's Land;” it establishes the Cimarron land district. The Public Buildings Committee reported favorably bills for erection of public buildings at Cheyenne, Wyoming Territory, SBO,000. and Sioux City, lowa, $250,000. The House passed bills appropriating $300,000 for a public building at Birmingham, Ala., $150,000 for another at Duluth, Minn., and $<50,000 for the improvement of the public building at Newark, New Jersey.

A long discussion took place in the Senate, on Feb. 24, over the point that the bill to incorporate the Maritime Canal Company of Nicaragua does not contain the restrictions and safeguards inserted in bills of a similar character. Mr. Sherman hoped that the bill, which simply incorporated certain well-Known gentlemen who proposed to build one of the greatest improvements of modern times, should be passed without unnecessary delay. He would vote from the Treasury of the United States enough to commence the work, and to complete it, but that was so evidently against the general popular voice that the idea had of course to be abandoned. The House Elections Committee presented a report in the contested election case of McLuffie vs. Davidson of Alabama, favorable to tbe claims of Davidson, the sitting member. Mr. Lodge of Massachusetts presented a minority report .fn favor of McLuffie. Mr. Springer reported adversely from the Committee on Territories the bills for the admission of North and South Dakota as separate States, and Mr. Baker of New York presented minority reports on the same measure. The Senate bill increasing tbe pension for deafness was favorably reported to the House.