Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1878-04-19

Tho Constitution of the United States pro-
yides that the Congress shall meet at least
once year 1t is proposed to amend the
Constitution so that after 1880 the sessions of
Congress shall be biennial If this proposed
amendment shall be adopted by Congress Mt
the present session, there will be ample time
for il to 20 to the States for ratification by the
Legislatures, so that it may be in force and
effect after the date fixed While one Repre-
sentative is trying to invent something which
will keep the House Mt work, dispatch bust
ness, Ind simplify the operations of the Ma
tional Congress, another proposes to ropress
the activity of that body by combining it TO II
single session. 1t is n confession that Con
gress wastes time and energy and delays pub
lie business by having so much time to attend
to the things necessary to be done. The
House now numbers nearly 800 members
This is n large body, and its size necessarily
involves confusion, weakness, and all the bad
results of hasty legislation. The legislation
is hasty because the members begin each ses-
sion with sense of having an almost illimita-
bic period of time before them. They dawdle
away weeks and months in improbable de-
bate, and are finally surprised by the last days
Of the session when their work must be done,
or be left undone forever. The long ses-
sion, which begins in December of the year
following the Congressional election, is term
llltblt ~ Nilt liltuHuit VI llt NbllbIthhlltl
The ''short" session which begins in Decem-
Der Of the second year after the election of
the members sitting, is limited by the term of
those members official existence. which OK
pires March t. of the year following. making
that session about three months i'm duration
The long session is usually extended far in
to the Summer If, when it does end there
is rush of business, Gas there always is, }
what must be the effect when the session is
brought to close by operation of fixed
law?
Annually, therefore, occurs the same wild
rush of bills the same inevitable drift of crude
legislation, and the same unintelligent inter
ference with the material interests of the
country. We do not sympathze with the
vulgar and shallow people who deride all leg
islation as impertinent and all Legislators us
corrupt or ignorant. Yet, it must be confess
ed that Congress has brought upon itself
much Of the odium which is heaped on it by
unthinking and superficial people. Those
who cry out Pass the Appropriation bills
and 20 homc,' do not know what they are
talking about But it is, nevertheless, true
that vast amount of the so-called business
Of Congress is worse than useless The pres
ent Congress met in October last. 1t has
been i'll almost continuous session up to this
day. During that time very few important
laws have been enacted. and even the APP
preparation bills needed for the support of the
Government have not all been passed. But
there have been introduced in the Senate
about 100 bills and about 800 bills have
been introduced in the House. SO that cx-
elusive of joint resolutions and resolutions re-
quiring the action of only one branch of Con
gress, about 400 propositions of law have
been made in Congress during the six months
Just passed. 1t is not possible that one. tenth
Of these bills will ever become laws. The
public acts of the Forty third Congress- First
Session, which were reckonod numerous,
were less than 800 in number.
While Congress is in session, business in
terCsts are in continual jeopardy. Without
intending any harm. legislators are perpet-
ually interfering with things which they know
nothing about, and which shrivel at the touch
of n laundering hand. There is no security
under existing laws so long as Congress is at
work. Last year, after much yeNation and
trouble, law was passed regulating GER
tain industry Of the country. The law is not
what the producer merchant, and consumer
desired, but it is on the statute books. and all
parties in interest have adjusted their business
to its requirements This year Congress laws
its heavy hand on that statute. knocks it from
committee to committee, and from house TO
house, for several months. and upsots q pro-
ductive industry which had Just become set
tied to what was considered final. Is it any
wonder that business men impatiently ex-
claim, Go home, ignoramuscs, and let us
alone :" This moddling is true of innumera-
Bile mercantile. productive, and financial in
terests of the Republic. As long as Congress
is in session the temptation to tinker is ire
sistible. Congressman, for lack of other en-
poyment, divert themselves with unseemy
debates, TO the disgust and disgrace of the
country. And the annual exhibition of vul-
gnrity, pnrtisanship, and meanness which an
nual SESSIONS make possible is fast becoming
apublic nuisance. Not only so, it is fast de
teriorating public manners and morals
Some such considerations as these have
probably influenced the people of twenty-six
States Of the Union to adopt biennial sessions
for their Legislatures. State after State has
declared in favor Of this system. until biennial
sessions are the rule in the following Arkan-
sas, California, Delaware, Florida. Georgia
Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas Kentucky.
Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi Missouri,
Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, North
Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Ten
ncssec, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, and West
Virginia. This is not a new experiment in
State Legislation, and we have not heard that
any State which has tried it proposes to re-
turn to annual sessions. In the Legislature
of this State concurrent resolution to amend
the Constitution SO rs to provide for biennial
sessions has passed the Assembly without Sc
rious opposition. There are few arguments
in favor of this system for State Legislatures
which do not apply with equal force to the
sessions of the National Congress 1t is rot
certain that Congressman will have the cour-
age and manliness to circumscribe their OPP
portunities for display, self-seoking and po-
litical advancement. But there is growing
| conviction that the world is governed too
AY,1
some chance to recover from the nervous
prostration of an annual session, another
Congress will infallbly vouchsafe to us that
boon.