Morning journal and courier., 1882-12-14
THE NATIONAL CAPITAL.

Law Against olyssmy-senator Ed-
 munas Anxious to Make 1t More Strin-
 gent-Defe ladant's Wife to be Made n Competent Witness-A Good Prospect fur Tsyo-Cemt PostaSe-Other Matters. WASHINGTON, Dec. 13.-The bill intro
 duced by Senator Edmunds to day amen
 datory to his Utah bill of last session makes
 the lawful wife of the defendant competent witness in cases of bigamy, polygamy or un- lawful cohabitation, and provides that such witnesses may be called and compelled to tes- tify without the consent of the husband being first obtained The United States commis- sioner or District attorney is empowered to subpoena witnesses of this class and the Pres ident is authorized to grant amnesty to any offender guilty of bigamy or polygamy on
 such conditions and on such limitations as he
 may think proper, but no such amnesty shall
 have effect unless the provisions thereof shall be compiled with.
 The President to-day transmitted report from the State department giving compara- tive statement of rates cha7 ed by the United States and other consular o14ees. It shows that the compulsory consular fees for a ves- sel of five hundred tons are as follows: : l United States SS5, Great Britain free, France BIO 4G, Italy S20, Denmark $15, Norway and Sweden $7.5O, Germany B5, Brazil free Spain e2e, Holland $25. Other consular rates are given, those of the United States ranging somewhat below the average rates of other nations,
 The Secretary of the Interior was not in formed of the coming of the band of Chippe- l was who arrived here to-day. They are to see him concerning their lands at Table 1 Mountain, but he says any conference will be ! ba 1o1 is 1 expected the Indian commission will appro- ! priate SS7, ,OOO to pay the Chippewas, 25O in all.
 1 The indications are to night that the civil service reform bill will give way in the House ] tomorrow to the psstoffics appropriation bill and that bill will be pushed through to- l raorrow. The friends of the two cent postage say that section of the bill will pass re- l markable change seems to have come over l the House in it's views of this question and l there seems to be few Ii any opponents to I this measure.
 l The select joint committee on shipping to ] day completed the main features of the bill to be reported The committee is divided 1 on some of the points and a minority report 1 will be made when the bill is submitted. The } following sections were agreed to to day and l are of the most interest to shipbuilders and owners: Section IS. Whenever any vessel, l whether steamer or sail, shall be construct 1 ed or equipped in the United States for the foreign trade, including the trade between the Atlantic nnc
 Pacific ports of the United States, 1T
 whole or iu part of materials of the produc
 ton of the United States, the owner or own
 CTS of such vessel shall be entitled to receive
 and collect from the United States a sun
 equal in amount to the duty which would
 have been collected upon imported material
 of like description and of equality witl
 the American materials used in the construc
 tion, equipment, engines, boilers and othe
 appurtenances of such steam or sail vessel
 Section 20, which sets forth the condition
 upon which certificates of registry are to b