Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1872-04-18
HOUSE.

The House OF Representatives passed
the steamboat bill substantially as it left
the committee. The bill reported from
the Committee on Public Lands, re3erv-
ing the public lands for actual settlers
only, went over. The House took up the
report on the Alabama contested election
case, declaring Hadley, the sitting mem
Der, entitled to his seat, and allowing the
contestant his expenses. A long debate
ensued OF the bill for the appointment
OF shipping commissioners in The interest
of sailors and of commerce.
The Committee on Post-ofoes and
Postroads submitted to tho House their
report on "straw bids in mail contracts.
The committee admit that the POst-mas-
ter-General might in mot cases have
made contracts at lower rates, and thus
have reduced the expenditure of the gov
ernment, but conclHde that he was JUST
fed by circums 'ances and by law.
In the House a resolution declaring
Dr.. Howard an American citizen and
in8tructlng the President to demand OF
Spain the immediate release and restora-
tion Of his conhscated estate was refer
red to the Foreign Committee, and an
other adopted instructing the Committee
on Banking and Currency to investigate
the recent conspiracy in Wall street,
New York, to lock up currency. Thirty
three of the Senate's amendments to the
Legislative, Executive, and Judicial Ap-
preparation bill were disposed OF. Mr..
Cox introduced bill providing for the
expenses of laying cable to a point
three hundred miles from Nantucket to
relief ship, whence timely warning Of
disastrous easterly gales might be tele-
graphed
An interesting discussion took place
in the House on the One Cent Postal
cards bill reported from the Post-olice
Committee. With a view to prevent
such cards being made the vehicle for
slanderous communications 1t was pro-
posed that flap or cover should be at
tached to the card, and although it was
suggested that the adoption OF such o
plan would be equivalent to q general
reduction OF letter postage 10 one cent
the proposal was carried. An amend
ment requiring the Postmaster General
to advertise for proposals for furnishing
the cards and to contract with the lowest
bidder was also adopted, and the bill
then passed. The House went through
seven sections of the bill revising and
amending the laws relative to the coin
age. Sixty-two sections Of the bill re-
main to he considered,
Mr.. Peters, of Maine, proposed pre-
amble and resolution declaring it to be
the desire of the House that the claims
against Great Britain for consequential
damages be waived The subject was
referred to the Committee on Foreign
Affairs.
In the House there was discussion of
the bill abolisbing the Thanking privile-
ges. Mr. Carroll opposed it as anti-repub-
lican. Mr.. Potter regarded the present
bill as a buncombe measure. Mr.. Butler
also opposed it, and explained his former
vote III favor of such bill by stating
that he knew the Senate would kill it.
The bill was re-committed.
In the House the bills passed appoint
ing shipping commissioners, and the bill
reported by the Naval Committee paying
the officers and crew of the Kearsarge.
Also bill awarding to Mr.. r. NJ. Green
S10,O 900 for the governments use of his
patent machine for bending chain cable
links, &c. The House then went into
committee OF the whole on the Army Ar-
preparation bill, which elected strong
debate. The bill passed without diyis-
ion.