Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1882-12-20
YESTERDAY IN CONGRESS-.
REPUBLICANS REPENTING OF
REPENTANCE.

the House-The Bonded Spirits Bill
me Indian Appropriation Bill-Guard-
ing the Secrets of the Wires-French-
American Claims Decided.
NAsHINGTON, Dec. 19.-The Republi-
cans in the House to-day stultified them
selves. Yesterday they refused to vote
for a holiday recess, and made a great
parade Of their industry. They were ''too
awfully' good to live. To-day they
showed how false were their pretences.
Instead of doing as some of their leaders
adYised-maintaining their dignity and
standing by their action of yesterday
they ''hunked," and a holiday adjourn
ment from next Friday to January I'd was
voted. Nothing could have been more
transparent than their dress parade of
attention to duty yesterday, nor anything
more laughable than their backdown to-
day.
SENATE PROCEEDINGS.
In the Senate, bill was introduced bv
Mr.. Harris to repeal the 10th section of
the act to prevent the introduction of con-
tagiOus diseases into the United States.
which was referred to the Committee on
Epidemic Diseases.
NIL the vacancy on the Committee on
Claims, and Mr.. Harris to fill the one on
the Committee on Rules.
AT the close of the morning hour the In
dian appropriation bill was laid before the
Senate
The amendment offered yesterday by
Mr.. Edmunds was adopted, recurring that
the Secretary of the Interior shall have
the approval of the President on setting
aside bids containing conditions detri-
mental to the interests of the government.
n section was added requiring that all bids
proposals and awards shall be preserved
and filed, and that detailed and tabular
statement of them shall be embodied in
the annual report of the Commissioner of
Indian Affairs.
Mr.. Plumb offered an amendment
providing that the appropriation for the
education OF Indians at Carlisle shall
cover the cost of their transportation.
Agreed to.
The following amendments were agreed
to:
By Mr.. Dawes-ApprOpriating $1,000
to enable the Secretary of the Interior to
complete the negotiations with the Sioux
BY Mr.. Beck-Directing the removal of
the Crow agency to some point east of the
Big Horn river i'll the vicinity of Fort
Custer.
BY Mr.. Call-Providing that the Semi
noles still remaining in Florida shall re-
ceive their share of the money approprI-
ated to pay the interest due that tribe un-
der the treaty stipulatiOns.
BY MIR. Logan-PrOviding that any dis
bursting officer or other person who shall
present any voucher, account or claim to
any United States officer for approval or
payment containing any material misrep-
resentation of fact, shall not receive pay
ment or credit for any part of such claims:
hafr 4 4
vided by the existing law.
The bill was then passed, and the unfin-
ished business, the civil service bill, came
up.
Mr.. sherman obtained unanimous con-
sent to lay it aside and take up the bill
reported by him yesterday from the FL
nance Committee for the Withdrawal of
spirits in bonded warehouses.
Mr.. Ingalls, moved an amendment to
the bill, adding provision, that from and
after the expiration of three years from
the entry of any distilled spirits now in
the warehouses D per cent. interest shall
be collected on such spirits, to be COM
puted down to the time of withdrawal.
Agreed tO-yeas SO; nays II.
Other amendments were offered and re-
jected.
Mr.. Cameron moved TO adjourn. Lost
Mr.. sherman moved to postpone the
regular order so as to proceed with the
consideration of the pending bill Upon
vote being taken the motion was lost
yeas l6, nays 80.
Then, with the civil service bill before
it, the Senate at 5:45 O'Clock, on motion of
Mr.. MaXey, adjourned.
HOUSE PROCEEDINGS.
In the House the following bills were in
trOduced and referred:
BY Mr.. Nolan, of New YOrk-TO abolish
the internal revenue tax on termented
liquors.
BY Mr.. Joyce, of VermOnt-For the reg
ulation of telegraph and cable companies,
Mr.. ButterwOrth, of Ohio, from the
Committee on Appropriations, reported
the army appropriation bill. Mr.. Butter
worth stated he would ask its cOnsidera-
ton as soon as the post office apprOpria-
tiOn bill was disposed of.
The Speaker laid before the House the
request of Mr.. Davidson, of Florida, for
leave of absence. There was objection,
but by vote of the House leave was
granted after an explanation by Mr..
Davidson as to the cause of the request.
After Il number of leaves of absence
had been granted, in reply to a question
by Mr.. RObesOn, of New jersey. the
Speaker stated that there We're fifteen adj
ditiOnal requests for leaves, and thereupOn
Mr.. RobesOn offered resolution for re-
cess from the 22d of December until the 2d
of January, which, after discussion, was
adOpted-yeas 127, nays 10,
Mr., Williams, of Wisconsin, Chairman
of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, re-
ported joint resolution reciting that the
government of France proposes to estab-
lish at Tunis the judicial system common
among Christian nations, so that the
courts in that country shall be fully opened
for the protection of citizens of the United
States in their persons, properties and
rights. and authorizing the President to
declare by proclamation that the right on
the part of the United States and their
citizens to claim extra territorial jurisdic-
tion within said territory of Tunis has
ceased. and will not longer be claimed or
exercised. Passed.
Mr.. Scales, of North Carolina, intro
duced a resolution directing the Commit
tee Of WAYS and Means to inquire into the
eXpediency of so amending the internal
revenues laws as not only to abolish the
tax on tobacco, but also on all brandies
made of apples, peaches and grapes, and
to reduce the tax on whisky to 30 cents
gallon: and further. to inquire into the
propriety of abOlishing the present COM
plicated expensive and OdiOus system of
collecting said tax. Referred
The House at 300 went into committee
of the whole Mr. Calkins, of Indiana, in
the chair on the post office appropriation
bill, the pending amendment being that
OHeItU "a MI IAODcSOU. Ol new JERSEY.
providing that railroad companies, which
have received bond subsidies in addition
to grants of public lands, shall receive as
compensation for carrying the mails 30
per cent. of the amount now allowed to
them by law for that service. Without
reaching a vote on the amount the House,
at O'Clock, adjourned.
GUARDING THE SECRETS OF THE WIRES.
The bill introduced in the House to-day
by Representative Joyce, of Vermont, for
the regulation of telegraph and cable
companies, provides that every such COM
pany shall receive any message from any
other telegraph company, and shall trans
nit and deliver the same in good
whether it shall relate to the
business of the company offering it
or shall have been received or collected
from other persons for transmission. Any
company violating this provision shall be
liable to a fine of $500 for every such viO-
latiOn. 1t also declares that any employe
Of any company who shall read, inspect
or examine any message, except such en-
plOyes as must read it for the purpose of
transmission or delivery, shall be deemed
guilty of misdemeanOr, and shall be
liable to a fine of not mors than $500 or be
imprisoned for not more than six months,
provided that this section shall not apply
to any act done in obedience to any sub
pGna or other legal process.
FRENCH-AMERICAN CLAIMS DECIDED.
The French and American Claims
Commission made an award yester-
daV in thp case of Pierre