The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1879-12-12
Last Nights Dispatches.
WASHINGTON.

/. " "ASEINGTON, Dec. l1.-Ihefe Will no
be any further testimony taken by tn
Senate Committee on Elections, in tn,
Spoford-Kellogg investigation. No addi
tional witnesses have yet been subpeDaC
and several members OF the committee ar,
OF the opinion that none will be asked for
A report will be submitted probably il
January.
At a meeting of the United State
Board of Trade to-day, two papers wer,
read. one by Mr.. Osborne, of Toledo, re
gardiDg the Importance of statistical duty
of the government, and another by Mr.. A
Ii. Bissel, on postal reform. Several res
olutions relative to commercial matter,
were adopted, and after trausacting some
routine business, the board adjourned
subject to the call of the Chairman. The
members then called on the President.
The House sub committee on Agricul
culture reported favorably to the full
committee. a bill which provides for the
repeal of so much of the statute as pro.
hibits farmers and planters from selling
leaf tobacco at retail directly to con
sumers, without paying special tax, aud
to allow farmers and planters to sell Leaf
tobacco of their own production to other
persons than manufacturers, without pay
ing special tax.
At the session of the National Board of
Trade to-day the following resolutions
were adopted:
| ResOtUed, That in the opinion of this
board, it is desirable to secure national
| legislation upon Interstate commerce by
railroad and that said legislation should
embody the following provisions:
l. 10 raise special commission or
| tribunal, to secure uniformity and pub
| IIclty IN railway accounts and publicity of
railway contractions.
2. 70 enforce provisions securing uni
formity Of rates and classifcatlons under
like circumstances and relative equality
where circumstances and relative equality
differ
3. The publicity of rates and prohibi-
ton OF sudden and arbitrary charges.
4 Ihe prevention of extortionate char
| ges and >of personal or local favorites.
| The next proposition considered was the
expedlency OF renewing the efforts of the
| National Board of Trade to procure the
enactment by Congress of a national
bankrupt law. After considerable debate
| the matter was referred to special COM
mlttee with instructions to report at the
meeting of the Board 10 morrow.
The proposition submitted By the PhiIa-
delphia Board of Trade, advocating the
adoption of central system was then CON
sidered, resulting in the adoption of the
following resolution, which was offered by
Mr.. Randolph, of Chicago:
ResOtUed, That il he recommended to
Congress TO provide by law for the adop-
tl0n Of a central system IN the purchase OF
supplies by the government, the levying
and collecting Of dnties and compiling of
statistics IN those com modities, to which it
may be applicable The Beard then
m sad l.
taken, in faver OF the establish
ment of department Of commerce
as branch OF the general government un-
der minister or secretary who shall be
mem Der of the Cabinet, and adopted re-
solution calling the attention Of the gov
ernment to the light duties collected by
Great Britain on shipping, with view to
the opening of dipl0ma attic correspondence
looking to their discontiuuance. After
very general debate on the subject Of ex-
tending the trade relations of the United
States with the Dominion Of Canada, the
to!!OWing was agreed to:
ReS0lUed, That a committee OF five be
appointed to urge upon Congress the i'm
porta1ce OF authorizing the President to
appoint a commission, whose duty it shall
bo to meet a like commission whenever it
shall be appointed, by the government Of
reciprocal trade, and report on what basis
the treaty Of reciprocal trade can be nego-
tiated and concluded for the mutual bene-
| fl Of the United States and the Dominion
| of Canada.
| ReSOlUed, That the committee is here
| by instructed to report its doings at the
next meeting of the Board.
| The proposition embodying the resou-
ton regarding the ocean mail service by
American built steamships. which was sub
mitted by the Philadelphia Board of
Trade, was then taken up and without de-
i bate indefinitely postponed. The text of
the resolution is as follows:
| ResoJued. That the National Board of
| Trade hereby indorses the project which
has been presented to Congress for giving
authority to the Postmaster General to
contract fer carrying United States mail
on the Atlantic and Pacific oceans in
steamships of American construction.
The question of jurisdiction of the gen
eral government over all navigable water
within the limits Of the United States was
discussed at considerable length, resulting
| iB the adoption of resolution by the
Philadelphia Board, the text of which is
as follows:
Resolved, That the general government
| shall assert and define its Jurisdiction over
the navigable waters of the country. its
lakes, rivers. bays and harbors:
| The following committee. of which the
| President of the Board is Chairman. was
appointed to confer with the committee on
commerce Of the House of Representa-
tives, tomorrow, on matters relating to
the commerce of the country, viz: Messrs,
Fraley, Philadelphia; Thurber and Stran-
ahan, New York; Rope, Bates and Hill,
Boston; Egan, Chicago; MeLaren, Mil
waukee; Middleton, Baltimore; Erson.
Portland, and Dorr. Buffalo. A perma
nent committee on reciprocity was ap-
pointed. consisting of the following gentle
men: Messrs. Ken BILE. Boston: Me-
Laren, Milwaukee,; Hersey, Portland;
Hodges. Baltimore, and Thurston, Buffalo.
| Adjourned
| There will be no union of the National
and United States Boards of Trade.
MAINE.
ArrcTcrA Mo Dao II The hearing