The Ebensburg Alleghanian. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1865-1871, 1866-08-09
Closing Scenes Of the First Ses'
sion of the seth Congress.

1t is difficult task which we have i'm
posed on ourself to portray the closing
scenes of the first session of the 59th
Congress; still as our readers may desire
to hear from US respecting this adjourn
ment, we will endeavor to give such salient
points of interest as revealed themselves
to us during the long night of the 9th
and the morning of the 2Sth ultimo -
Early in the evening of the 9th, and as
the hour for the meeting of the two
Houses approached, throngs of people
were seen vending their way to the capi-
tol, where the assembled wisdom Of the
nation" was gathered, to give the finish
ing touches to such legislation as was
deemed needful to the country's welfare
On they rushed, a mass of brave men with
a preponderance of fair women. till the
rotunda, corridors and galleries were filed
almost to overlooking with living, think
ing human beings, gathered to see what
Congress would do in the last hours of its
first session..
The first point of attraction was the
rotunda, where the crowds cen;ered to
witness the novel method of lighting the
dome with Gardeners electrical battery,
by which some two hundred gas-iets are
ignited in an instant by electricity. The
dome and the tholus above the dome when
fully illuminated, present most brilliant
display, and can be seen for miles around.
The tholus, particularly, makes magnif-
Icent exhibition, presenting the appear
ance Of column Of fire some fifteen feet
high. The crowds were some time pas
sing through the rotunda and on 10 the
gallaries of either House but at last these
spacious receptacles were filed to their
utmost capacity.
Business commenced at precisely u
o'clock, and the members addressed them
selves to tho work in hand, determined to
continue iD session till everything in the
shape of legislation necessary to be done
had been accomplished There was a
constant buzz of voices on the floor, and
an almost constant ringing of the Speak
er's mace, with cries of order and motions
to amend this bill and that, till look er-
Oh who did not know how these things
are done would come to the natural CON
clusion that the Representative chamber
was but a second Babel Bnt IN the
midst OF all this disorder, there sits, calm
and collected, clerkly looking man, who
is able to evoke order ont of chaos and to
so direct the course Of legislation that the
good sought fn- in the shape of laws is
readily attained and the evil avoiGeG-
and that man is the Speaker of the House
Hon. Schuyler Colfax.
Every stranger visiting TIE House i.
at once struck by the noise ard confusion
there existing but in course of time, one
becomes accustomed to that sort Of thing
and learns to consider it an insepara5le
adjunct to the business of legisating -
The Senate being much smaller body
is also much more dignlfied body, aud
transacts its business with becoming calm
ness and moderation.
On this last night of the session, much
very much business was accomplished in
both Houses, and the clerks of either were
kept constantly employed in conveying
messages and bills backward and forward
The most interesting part of the proceed
;ngs Of the House was the discussion which
arose upon joint resolution passed by the
Senate modifying the test oath, or setting
it aside, to enable Judge Patterson, SON
in-law of President johnson and Senator
elect from Tennessee, to take his seat IN
the L. S. Senate. The speeches were all
able, those of Mr. Shellaberser and Mr..
Roscoe Conkling particularly so. The
Tennessee members took part in the de-
bate, MessIs. Maynard and Taylor in favor
of the resolution of the Senate, and Col.
Stokes against it. The latter made a
thrilling and intensely interesting speech.
and showed himself TO be genuine Union