Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1882-08-11
CONGRESS- ADJOURNED.

CONGRESS ADJOURNED.
A SUMMARY OF THE WORK DONE AND LEFT
UNDoNE BY THAT DoDY-THE RECORD NOT
SO BAD ONE AFTER ALL.
Congress reached final adjournment on
Tuesday afternoon at three o'clock The
House had been ready to adjourn for some
days. but the Senate persisted in remaining
in session in the hope of securing the passage
OF the Tax bill, which, however, was not ac-
complshod. The adjournment was very
quiet one. Not oV er a third Of the members
of the House were left in Washington at the
close. No attempt was made to push through
any plundering schemes, and the session a
whole was very clear of private or corporate
attempts to rob the public treasury. Com
plants of the shortcomings of the session are
loud and inevitable; but when its record has
been fairly made up it will DO found that the |
47th Congress, in its long session, was not by |
any means q sinner above all the Congresses |
which have preceded it. The New York Tri- |
bune's Washington correspondent, after TO-
marking that "a comparison of the amount |
of work done in the first session of the 47th |
Congress with that in the long session of each |
of the three preceding Congresses results
greatly to the advantage of the former, pro-
ceeds to give the following summary of the
work of the session:
The session just closed has been unusual
ly prolific in measures of national importance
and interest, as we'll as of such are mainly
of local consequence. A bill making re-
apportionment of representatives has become
"A law; the Chinese question has been taken
nj pf trih al ha al
ton of the remainder Of the Alabama claims
has been created stringent law against po-
| lygamy has been placed on the statute book
| the inability of Congress to deal with the tar
| i'll having been demonstrated by the failures
| of the last six years tariff commission has
| been created and is now dealing with that sub
| ject provision has been made for the contin-
uance and security of the national banking
| system three per cent refunding act has
| been passed a law designed for the comfort
| and protection of immigrants during the voy-
| age to America has been enacted; bill to
| regulate immigration and TO prevent the land
| ing of foreign paupers and convcts has be-
| come law; law TO promote the efficiency
| of the life-savng service has been enacted
a reform in the system of public land surveys
| has been initiated and the future cost of such
surveys reduced one third; provision for a
| reorganization of the navy aud for the build
| ing of ships of war has been made the com
| pulsory retirement system for the army has
been adopted important and necessary
| amendments to the law regulating extradition
| of criminals have been passed more efficient
and liberal provisions for the civilization and
industrial education of Indian youth have
been made; the government has asserted its
| right of eminent domain in the Indian terri
tory; the letter-carrier and railway mail SER
vice have been placed on better basis; a law
relating to the tonnage measurement of Amer
lean vessels, and placing them on the same
footing with the vessels of other countries in
foreign ports, and several other measures look
ing to the revival of American commerce have
been adopted, and Joint select committee
has been appointed TO inquire into and report
upon the condition and wants of American
shipbuilding and shipowning interest. An err
ror in the revised statutes, which threatened
the destruction of the important and growing
knit-goods industry, has been corrected. The
list might be made much longer, but IL al
ready contains the titles of greater number
of important acts of general legislation than
is to be found in the list Of laws passed by
any other Congress during tho last six years.
great many important measures, which
have not become laws, have been wholly or
partially matured in committee, and many of
them have passed one or the other house.
The House committees submitted to that body
| during the session l, 81 written reports. The
amount of work done by all the leading COM
mittees was enormous some Of them held
sessions almost daily during a large part of
the session. To take single example the
| House committee on elections-not the most
lHborious committee of that body, either
held 80 meetings in full session and so meet
ings of subcommittee, and its members were
required to examine Il, 900 pages of printed
evidence and read 300 pages of legal briefs
and cases submitted to them"
| Hon Edmard MoDborsop nm
authority, pronounces this verdict on the SEES
sion: ''This has been as clean a session as 1
have ever seen. do not think the lobby has
succeeded in any act of affirmative legislation
whatever, and if it has exerted any influence
upon legislation it has been of negative sort.
Not single act has passed that consider q
job for even the river and harbor appropria-
tons will be honestly expended for the pur-
poses specified in the law. On the whole l
think the first session of the 47th Congress
has been fruitful and satisfactory one"
Although the session has been of unusual
length (247 days., there have been longer
ones. The longest on record was the first
session of the 31st Congress- which closed
September 80, 1850. About that time long
sessions were fashionable for the Doth Con-
| gross bht I'LL august ~ lofO tne 0Uln 10 Au-
gust 10, 184S; the SD to August 81, 1859 !;
the SD until August 7, 1854, and the 34th to
August 80, 1856. The first session of the 44th
Congress was 254 days long.
Among the important measures which fail
ed to receive proper attention at the session
now ended there may be mentioned the bill
extending national aid to education, for the
purpose of checking the dangerous increase
of illiteracy in the South the bills regulating
the electoral count and providing for vacan-
cies and SUGGESTIONS in the Presidential office ;
the national bankrupt act the bill for the
relief of the Supreme Court, establishing dis
triot courts of appeal the Limitation of the
coinage of silver dollars to the actual demands
of the business of the country the embodi-
ment in law of practical and permanent pol
icy of caring for and ciVilizing the Indians !
the adoption OF safeguards ageinst fraudulent
pension claims; and last, and most fundamen-
D tai of ALL sasure for the reform of the OWL
service
-
l Weak muscles and nerves. sluggishness Of thought
] and inactivity, cured by Browns Iron Bitters.