New-York tribune., 1879-03-03
PRICE FOUR CENTS
DEMOCRATIC INCAPACITY.

THE RESPONSIBILITY N CONGRESS-
A DrsGgACEpUL INABILITY 70 Transact THE pm
LrC BUSINESS SHOWN BY TIE MAJORITY ~
THE LAST TWO HOUSES OF REPEEsESTATIyEs--
A STRIKING REVIEW.
IRON rHE REGULAR CORRESPONDENT OF THE rRrBUNE.l
WA~gINGToN, March 2.-Thc present critical con-
dition 6s-he necessary business Of the closing ses-
SION Of Congress the alln CHR sessions and the
Sunday work. 10 say nothing Of the dangerous
haste with which the most important appro-
priatlons Of the Winter must be disposed
Of If an extra session il 70 be avoided,
Illustrate very forcby the utter inability Of the
Democrats of the House TO transact the public
business with dspitch even to maintain far de-
gree Of control over It, Previous 20 the ALlNth Con-
grcss. tdiure 10 pass the appropriation bills before
the close Of the fiscal year. or the calling # an extra
scSs on because or more of these measures had
failed to become law at uoon the 1th of March.
was almost unhcard Of. Since the Democrats have
come into power n the House n has been the rule
for the public business 10 be- mcXcusabiy delayed,
and Tor Congress TO resort to temporary makeshfts
in order To prevent the wheels Of Government from
stopping for want of the necessary funds.
The Xiv IN Congress met on The first Monday ot
December 1873. Although the session continued
eight and % halt months, an examination oi the list
OF laws enacted fails to disclose any legislation that
ought not % have been perfected I'm oao-hal' that
time. Besides the appropriation bills there were
lot passed during that session half dozen
acts Of real public importance. ~ the
close Of the fiscal year. june 30, 1870, no
provision bad been made for the expenses of sew
cral of the great departments Of the Government;
and temporary laws had 10 be passed allowing the
Government 10 20 on until the approp-i ''on bills
could 1- passed. This Wa, repeated h', times, and
the last of these measures tId not become law un-
MI the lJfh Of August, SIX weeks after the Begin
ming OF tIe fiscal year. Nothing except the III
teu,cly bot weather and the oDsu.nc Of tnc Pres-
Dental campaign brought that first session Of
Democratic Congress 10 a close il tie middle Ok
August.
In fine second session Of the XLIyjh Congress
little more ability was shown in the manarementof ~
the aonroorlnon bills. Except foT the electoral
controversy. the Democrats might possibly have
made a record in this respect thar would
have been in somo degree crett1ble 10
them As it wa, eight of the twelve necessary
appropriation bills were signed on the LAST day or
the ses, ion aud -tiN another the Army bll failed
becaus, of the mexcusable attempt Of thr Demo-
crat- TO force the Republican Senate to consent TO
| A proposition which would have destroyed the et-
cheney of the Army.
/ The XLNth Congress first met on the 10Th of Oc-
/ to5er. 1877, and adjourned it, second session
there being no recess between the first and secondI
]
! inyton cisht months Five Of the Appropriation
bills were passed on the last day Of the session and
among these were the Army. l. Sisatyc. Post Ofhco
and Sundry Civil bills IN which at LEAST
fve-sxths of the necessary eXpeud OF the Gov-
crnment were provided for. The Surdry Clyl
Service bill approprating S2G0oO,OGO was finally
rushed through in the gray light Of the early
/ morning, when members were incapable OF know
lng what it contained from the fatlgues Of contin-
uous sessions for several days and nights and from
other causes. II hastily enrolled that very
| important section 0f IL omitted.
Five different hours for final adjournment were
fixed during the last day and if Congress had been
obliged to close its session at any given hour one
at least Of the appropriation bills would have
failed.
At the beginning Of the present session there was
an apparent effort on the part Of the Democratic
managers of the House 70 prov" that
they could deal with the public business
promptly and prevent repetition Of
/ the dl-gracefnl scenes of hurry and scramble that
have marked thc closing hours for the last four
wears tx OF the appropriation bIl, were reported
/ 10 the House and passed by that BODY Uc,oTr lhe
honday IS; and tie speaker aHd other' ors dreH
/ that II would be possible 4 tDugrc~- should be
! so dlspo@ed to adjourn finally ey the urn
of February Since the recess be lack ot capacity
on DE part II the Democratic liou-e ana ~ Appro-
/ prIatiOu- Jmmttee has been displayed 10 man
her more tau usually painful. aud Us ,tsou- TO the
public interests.
/ When the House met at 0o'cock thi- Sunday
evening with only 2 day and a half Of the session
! remaining, no less than eight of the appropriation
/ bills were undlspo,ed Of These. the Legislative,
/ Suu,lry Civil Army. Deficiency. River AID Harbor,
For,ihc4tou,. Post Oni'r, and Arrears ot Pensions
/ bills. involved the expenditure oi at least
/ @lo5. 5.oOO.O0o or more than 20 per cent
/ If the cntlrr expenditures OF the Government,
excluding interest, for the mex u'ral t"!f. ln'Ie
statement f thi, condition Of the public hu-.uess
Is sufficient. II need. no comment % ,|"" Ho"
dangerous Il l.. OF 10 prove TIE pay '''d; 'Ml"ssI-
bhy of giving to any of tl">" mra'nir, d"uhs me
few remaining Nuurs Of the session tiih' "l 'ho
/ consideration which just regard tor horr>tl ana
/ economy lu the public expenditure r,oE,trs.
j, the House that is responsible 10! THIS rohdi-
tion Of Ir~. Having spent near farce months
d. the p.aparaton and discussion %. in,s' measures,
/ tae ComuItte, ou Appropriation. found tn"i mere
/ wa. uat siIiccut time remaining 10 get ~ blll5
through Oh. ilOl-a n the h,'I~ vUI. ~rbmltteh
/ IN the u-r,9l way aud debated under tn' rFc-mln-
ute- rule and the operation 80 tu" prrNlous
question and SD IN sheer DESPERATION IN "iHrr 10
save them. several of them were forced through
4 under "A suspension Of the rules. among thr-" Was
. .lc ~uudry Civil Bill, with IL S2oWlobo, "hlch
from the nature of it. PROVISIONS, and Occau>" tho
/ grants # money II make. are not DO acc 'oTuan'e
/ with wel-estab-hcd laws, Ought 10 De- CONSIDERED
/ with the greatest care and CeNnerdtOn.
Tin, Suudry CIVIL bill, as Il passed Tie HouS., was
! not even printed at the time y Vcs passed ana
/ hardly a single member know what ~ contained.
Thus the senate has been Obliged = examine ticse
. bills m committee, discuss aud pas, lh'HI, ln as
/ many days a- Il ought 10 layr AaH weeks iot
. t'Ir npruo,r. Nor l. th., al. Not coat,ut With
forcing : cse bills through with such dangerous
haste the Democrats II the House nave loaded Nouo
of thcr down wIth political legislation which mem
bcr OF teI. own party declare TO hc revolutionary
! on appropriation biilS.
II view of these facts, Z VIII not do 10 accuse mo
! Reoubli,an senate of making an Extra session
/ necessary. whatever may happen between hoN and
/ tuesday noon. L. l. ".
| ARCHBISHOP PURCELL~ IROU BILE.
/ AI-.r..I. lh. II IL. III Al..h