The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1850-02-01
WEDNESDAY. JANUARY 80, 1885,.

1 n Il J ata Il
HOUSE, OF REPRESENTATIVES,.
After the reading of the journal; sat e1Sy yAE4 i
Mr.; COBB, Of Alabama, asked and obtained leave to
given, provide for all American soldiers who had not
been provided for with bounty lands bill read twice,
referred to the Committee on Public Lands. and ordered
Mr.. ASHMUN asked the unanimous consent Of the
House to introduce BILL of which previous notice had
been given; but objection being made, leave was not
Mr.. McLANE called for the orders Of the day
Mr.. BOWLIN moved that the rules be suspended, to
enable him to move that for thirty minutes the members
be allowed to introduce bills oil which previous notice
T The s SPEAKER deciding this motion to be out Of or
der Gas the permission desired would require the unani
nous consent OF the House announced The first busines
in order be the consideration of the resolution reported
from the Committee on Mileage, and discussed yester-
Mr. RICHARDSON. being entitled to the floor, moved
the previous question; but withdrew il at the request OF
| Mr.. SWEETSER, who said that the resolution had
elected remarks requiring reply from him. Il had been
charged that the resolution, adopted would abrogate
law which had been in existence Tor thirty years, far
as the enactment OF resolution by one house OF Con-
gress could have that effect.
The chairman Of the Mileage Committee had admitted
that the resolution had not met his Appreciation and as
had been thus apparently fixed him as an individual
member of the committee, he felt called on to give his
reasons for offering il. That the House might under
stand the matter thoroughly, Mr. s. read passage lthe
ed secton) of the law of 1918 the subject The reso
uon though appeared to set at naught the practice OF
the House, and MIR SwEErsER was understood 70 say)
sponsbty of attacking that practice He would take the
broad distinction between the law itself and the received
practice under it He was well aware that some gentle
feel delcacy about taking on their own RESPONSE
bity the amount Of mileage allowed them under the
practice Of the House Mr.. s. desired that one and all
the members should each be responsible for receiving the
sum paid on mileage account to each In the preamble
complained OF, reflection was intended to be made on
any member but it not in his power to diyest 1t OF
dsssd ask The gentleman wase
in the preamble intended intimate that all the an
swers received the circular Of the chairman OF the Com
muee on Mileage were indistinct, therein set FORTH
Mr.. SWEETSER answered in the negative. So far as
he had examined those replies he could say that some OF
them were to the point i saet sfa
Mr. SWEETSER (continuing) was understood to say,
that he differed from the chairman OF the committee, who
had expressed the opinion that the reply OF his coesgue
mr. RooTl was sufficiently distinct for the purpose OF
the committee The law says that mileage shall be al
lowed by the usually travelled between the residence
lion simply | proposed to fix the Construction which should
be put upon the language Of the lawto say that the
most usually travelled route should be that on which
there may be regular sagecoach conveyance Tins, ne
thought, was the only proper rule by which the law
should be construed He did not fear TO have his position
upon this subject criticised, although, as gentlemen had
remarked, it was directly in opposition to what Tor
thirty years had been the practice OF the House Under
that practice wrong had been done TO the treasury,
money having been pad theeiron under ih,s constuc
template In fact the practice was SO consrung the iaw
through it to perpetrate frauds on the treasury
-.
members He was for paying Congress well, but could
never TO sanction custom by which money was
indreey taken from the treasury In TRUTH by the usual
construction OF the law gentlemen were IN the habit OF
receiving indirectly compensation TO which il is claimed
they entitled account Of their services different
and fair construction OF this law was desaole-a con-
struction which would do away with indirect compensa
ton TO members. His resolution was designed to give 1t
such construction and It was TO be hoped that genue
men disposed to do away with the practice OF sndrsay
appropatng money from the treasury would vote Tor IT,
Before taking his seat, in reply what had fallen yes.
erday the Of the debate from the two gentle
men from Mississippi [Messrs BRowx and THosssosl
ecseS Ss s integrity @ Of the House. would have been
well for them 10 recoec that there yet remains among e
rules Of The House order limiting the amount Of stslIon-
cry which should be allowed TO each member That rule,
he understood, had been adopted because one member
only had violated grossly the permission that each mem
Der should be allowed much stationery a. mightbe
necessary for his own use in dschargng his duties 10
the country and his constituents Who was that mem
Der whose violation Of the implied obligation TO take no
more stationery than necessary Tor his own use
caused the House to adopt the order to which he bad re-
ferred which embraced an mputation oil peut larceny
upon all the membersi
Would not some member OF the 27th Congress rise IN
his place. and, naming the man, thus relieve the House
from the stain upon its integrity involved ~ the contnu
ance of this rule as a standing order OF the HOUSE
Mr. WHITE, remarkng that the subject had been suf
ceny discussed moved the previous question: not sec
Mr. GREEN had been member Of the Mileage Com.
mttee the last session That committee had construed
the law ia question according its letters and, If he had
been correctly informed the majority Of the present COM
mittee conceded In that construction. This resolution
that OF the member introducing IT, rather than that OF
the committee He (Mr. SwEErsER1 had asked the IN
diligence OF the committee to permit him TO introduce u,
and thus TO bring the matter before the House Ihe
proposition was strictly his own only. fg.iE
Mr.. SWEETSER (explaining) remarked that he had
introduced the resolution in the committee room, and tnat
the committee had agreed that should be reported with
| their sanction. -,
Mr.. FITCH had not understood the member from Ohio
lMr SwEErsERl assuming in the commlfiee room Al
the responsibility for this resolution, as intlmated y
the gentleman from Missouri, tMr; GREEN ne wi
SwEETsERl had introduced the resolution ana ine COM
mittee not being willing TO assume the IesPonsony oi
assessing the amount OF mileage to be ad eacn memoef'
had agreed and directed him Mr. 70 report the reso-
LUTON to the House. that the House sei mgnt consuue
the rule or law by which the mileage OF each member
| should be assessed. tssa a s.asi
| Mr. GREEN The majority Of the House entertain no
doubt concerning the proper construction OF the law
What are we called on todo Not to say what s right
and poper to do the subject OF mileage, but to decide
whether right and proper to charge mileage by the
usual route II is strictly question OF law. VIII you as
lawyers say that the construction sought TO be put by
this resolution admssibe2 The law says that mileage
is to be estimated according to the most usually av-
eled route" He [Mr. SwEErsERl demands that you
shall consrue il to "by the nearest mail route On
which there is stage running AT the last session ne
Mr. GREEs) had occasion 10 examine this law ausnuye
ly, and would not hesitate to declare that woula shx
OF no such construction. The compensation lmueasel
should be ascertaned according TO the rule ph iaAe
fhc af accOrd1nG 70 ar18o-