The southern press. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1850-1852, 1851-03-05
SOUTHERN PRESS
WASHINGTON CITY.

End OF the Session.

w 81 WEDNESCOAI, MAhNu ., 1901.
aa' End Of the Session.
The second session of the Thirty-first Con-
gress ended yesterday at nearly the hour of
roon-the fourth of March. The day fixed by
the Constitution Il the third of March, but both
bodies decided that the third Of March ended in
the middle Of the fourth. This government, or
the first Congress began. it is said, in the middle
of the day, and therefore that was the begin
ming Of the political day. So it seems from the
book Of Genesis, that the sun. when made, was
placed in the meridian, and hence the evening
and the morning were one day.
4 Yet, long as was the last day and night Of the
session, they were not long enough for legisla-
tion--and at one time, several hours before the
adjournment, serious apprehensions existed that
the appropriation bills would fail for want of
time
On the morning of the third, when the Senate
convened, and when the civil and diplomatic,
army and navy bills, were yet before the Sem
ate, the friends of the river and harbor BILL who
were majority, carried motion to take that
bill up, with the intention Of passing it in ad-
vance of the others This bill had been con-
cocted by members of the House Of Represent
atives, so as to comprehend as many interests as
were deemed sufficient to pass it in that body,
and it had been passed under the stringent
rules of the House with but little debate.
1t was now attempted to pass it In the Senate
almost without debate, and for that purpose to
give it precedence of the regular appropriation
bills. The members opposed to it resisted this
attempt They denied the right of the majority
to pass such an important bill by the mere force
of vote, when there was no time Ybr discus
sion: and therefore insisted that it should lay
on the table, at least until the appropriation bills
were disposed of. Some of the minority were
opposed to the principle Of the bill, and some to
several of it's details, and wanted time to discuss
and amend This it's friends at first determined
to refuse, and the alternative was presented to
the minority of discussing the bill at length,
and thereby defeating, not only it, but the appro-
priation bills, or of compelling majority to lay
it aside and pass them. The majority persisted
In attempting to pass the bill from eleven O'Clock
on the third of March, when the Senate met,
until four o'clock on the following morning
the minority persistng in the discussion Of it.
At this time II became obvious that the minority
would continue to oppose it to the last moment,
and the majority gave way--the bill was laid
aside the three appropriation bills of some thirty
or forty millions were taken up, and all passed
in less han eigha hours!
Z The minority, we think, acted nobly. They
asserted the freedom of speech and debate in
the Senate against a majority And in times
like these, when power and will are continually
armyed against reason and right, it was exceed.
ingly important that this principle should be
maintained: and it was peculiarly proper that
the test should be made on such measure as
the river and harbor bill.
1t is, perhaps, already impossible, with such Q
large population and territory as onrs, to DELHI.
crate duly on the multitude of questions that
arise in Congress, even in reference to cases OF
acknowledged power and expcdiency. But
when great mass of irrelevant and improper
measures are presented, nothing less than the
power Of Joshua to command the sun to stand
still in the valley of Ajalon, would make the
year and tho session long enough for the delib
erations. The subjects of slavery, colonization
insanity, tariff, currency, commerce, manufac-
lures, agriculture, jurisprudence, astronomy. en-
gineeFirg, electioneering, printing, engraving
architecture, diplomacy, revenue, fertilization
tactics surveying, socialism, agraranism, emf
grafton, all coming before two assemblies, with
three hundred disputants to discuss them, would
require session longer than the term of human
life TO adjust them. a
1t is gratifying that notwithstanding the enor
nous amount of the appropriations Of this year
most of the extravagnnt schemes Of the session
were defeated Among them we rccollect thu
following:
Ths appropriation Of lands for y
the insane. say $l20oo.oOt
French 4p0iation, --- b,OO0.OOt
Ebony line. 0,OO0,OO(
River and Harbor bill, 2300,00t
Fertilization bill, ~ 100000
.ahpt $25, 100000
psd then the scheme Of Mr.. WHrNHr did no