Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1880-05-26
The House.

WASHINGTON, May 25.-The house met at 10
o'clock in continuation of yesterdays session,
and went into a committee of the whole on the
sundry civil appropriation bill. The amend
ment increasing the appropriation for fencing
and grading the post office building grounds
at Evansville, Ind, from $4,000 to $25. 600
was agreed To. A number of amendments APP
propriating money for the erection of public
buildings at various places were ruled out on
points of order. At IL o'clock yesterdays ses
sion terminated and that of to-day's opened.
The house again went into q committee of the
whole on the sundIy civil bill.
Mr.. Grape moved to strike out the item re-
pealing the law under which collectors of GUS
toms are allowed compensation in connection
with light houses. Adopted.
A motion by Mr.. Morse to increase the .ap-
priation for coast geodetic survey from $275,-
600 to $500, 600, gave rise to long discussion.
1t was resisted by Mr. Blount, who has charge
of the sill, and who argued that the geodetlc
part of the work was of no practical benefit to
the masses of people. 1t was advocated by
Hawley, Garfield and Hooker, whe insisted
upon the high importance and great accuracy of
the work. Finally the amendment was adopt
ed In like motion the item for the survey
Of the Pacific coast (the other being for the
Atlantic and Gulf coasts) was increased from
$16l, 600 to $l80,000.
Mr.. Warner moved to reduce the item for
furniture for public buildings under control of
the treasury department from $4,000 to
$1,000 and Cannon moved to increase it to
$3.50 600, The latter motion was agreed to-
yeas, 80; nays, 70.
The question being on adopting the amend
ment amended, speeches were made against
the extravagant appropriations by Finley and
Sparks and Blount. The latter appealing to
the ten or twelve Democrats whom he de-
scribed as rating on these questions with the
solid Republican votes not to continue to do
So as they were furnishing ammunition to Re-
publican politicians to arralgn the Democratic
majority in Congress for its extravaganza.
Mr.. Calkins expressed the hope that the
Democratic whippers could not control the Iu-
dependents on that side of the House. After
considerable debate the amendment was re-
jected, IS to 80.
The paragraph appropriating 100000 for
suitable accommodations for the storage of
coin was met by the point of order made by
Buckner that there was no law authorizing it.
In connection with the subject Blount sent to
the clerks desk and had read communication
from the secretary of the treasury stating the
fact as to the want of storage room for silver.
statement was made by Garfield, showing
that the government owned sixty-four million
dollars of silver coin and four millions of sill
yer bullion, besides all its gold coin and bull
lion, and argued that the necessity of the pro-
posed appropriation was inst as manifest as
the necessity for providing desks and sta
tionery.
The view expressed by Mr.. Wright was that
instead of erecting buildings to store coin, the
money should be used to pay the public debt,
and the same view was expressed by Mr. Black
burn. who regerded the proposition as an alb
surdIty aud anomalous.
Finally the point of order was overfuled,
Rr,ol hon fo rod he
to $50, 900. and to add q proviso prohibiting the
increase of one dollar and two dollar United
States notes. Also, directing the secretary of
the treasury to purchase bonds of 1881 with
any surplus coin over $100,000,000.
Mr.. Wright moved to amend the smendment
by directing the secretary of the treasury to
apply to the payment of the public debt all
coin in the treasury for the storage of which
there is not sufficient accommodation.
point of order was made on Buckner and
Wright's amendments and the point was sus-
tanned and the amendments ruled out
Mr.. Atkins, chairman of the committee on
appropriations, moved to strike out the item,
and argued that the surplus coin should be
used in payment OF current expenses and of
the funded debt. Mr.. Cannon sustained the
item. MI. Finley argued against Mr.. Bland and
asserted that the object of the secretary of the
treasury was to discredt standard silver dollars.
1t was the beginning of q war against silver
that was to enter into the coming campaigns.
The secretary of the treasury should withdrew
from his infamous agreement with the New
York clearing house, which Disseminated
against silver
Finally vote was taken and the item was
struck out, nays 1O7, yeas &c. amid applause on
| the Democratic side.
Mr.. King moved to increase the appropria-
tion for the national board of health from
| $75,000 to S125, 1000.
Mr.. Young (Tenn.) moved to increase it to
| $3.50, 600. A long discussion ensued but with
out coming to vote, and after disposing of
twenty of the twenty-five pages of the bill the
committee rose and the House took q recess,
the evening session to be for the confederation
of the steamboat bill.