Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1872-12-11
HOUSE,


Bills were introduced and referred, au-
th0rizing Collectors TO grant special orders
for unloading steamships at night; also es-
tablishing new scale of fees and salaries
for Customhouse officers; repeating the
bankruptcy act.
By MIR. Rice, Of Kentucky: Repeating the
special tax on retailers of Leaf tobacco.
By Mr.. Arthur, of Kentucky: Repeating
the enforcement act; abolshing the stamp
duty On bank checks, and abohshing the
special tax on leaf tobacco.
By Mr.. Peek, of Ohio: TO amend the
act of the I'd of May, 1872, for holding
United States Court in Toledo.
By Dir. McHenry; For 2 railroad bridge
across the Ohio st Greensboro.
Patriotic Land Speculation.
The House then resumed the bill report.
ed last session by Mr.. Coburn, of Indiana,
to enable honorabl7 DISCHARGED soldiers and
sailors, their widows and orphan children
to acquire homesteads on public LANDS with
authority to assign their certificates and to
locate By attorney.
Debate ensued. Mr.. HaWley, of Illinois,
spoke against the bill, claiming that the
better provisions in it we're already con-
tanned in the Law passed by the last session.
He stated that the quantity of land that
would be covered by these certificates to
soldiers, not counting sailors, would be four
hundred and fifty million acres. The bill
ought to meet with the condemnation OF
the House, as it was for the benefit of claim
agents and land spectators.
Mr.. Stoughton, of Michigan, member
Of the military committee, defended the bill
and cOutended that it established no new
principle, but merely carried out what had
been the policy Of the government after all
great wars. He explained that under the
provisions Of the bin there was no danger
of the certificates getting into the hands Of
spectators, for it limited the quantity that
should be held by any one person to three
hundred and twenty acres and required
settlement and occupation.
The bill was debated until the expiration
g 60 morning hour, when it went over
Gi.l tn g.or
The EGd.cn Question.
The House then at 1870 went into Com
mittee of the Whole, Nr. Dawes in the
chair, on the Indian ap. 0priation bill.
Dir. Sargent, who reported the bill from
the Committee On Ap, r0priations, made q
general statement about j.. He said that
the amount appropriated Il the current
year for the expense of the Indian servic G
was S6,362,062, and the amount proposed
ia the bill was $3.50, 365, or nearly mil
lion less.
Mr. NibIack asked Mr. Sargent to give the
House an idea of the present policy and
views of the administration in regar. to
the Indians.
Mir. Sargent replied that he was not au-
thorized to speak for the administration in
that matter. His own opinion would be in
favor OF doing away with the old Indian
treaties.
Mr.. Shanks, Chairman of the Indian
Committee, stated that as far as bis Com
mittee was concerned it would rigidly ad-
here to the conditions and spirit of the
treaties made between the United States
and the several Indian tribes until some
other mode should be established with the
consent Of the Indians themselves Until
then the contract between the United States
and the Indians should be, so far as the
Indian Committee was concerned, most
sacreOly maintained.
MIR. Sargent went on to speak in COM
mendabion Of the Indian peace policy. He
read table Of statistics, showing remark
able increase Of prosperity among Indians
within the last two years, the value of in
diVidu2l property increasing in one year
from 3,942, 900 to $9,441, 900.
All general debate being closed, the House
proceeded to consider the bill by paragraphs.
After getting through about half the bill the
Committee rose and the House adjourned.