Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-12-21
D0DGlNG THE DEAD LOCK,
BOTH BRANCHES OF CONGRESS
STAND THEIR GROUND.

1dayss but christmas Turkeys to De
Eaten at HOme-The Senate to Meet
Monday and the House Thursday, but
Quorum not Expected in Either
Case.
WASHINGTON, Dec. % In the Sen ate to-
day at the conclusion Of The morning business.
Mr.. Vest called up his resolution objectDg to
sending the proposed surveying expedition to
Nicaragua. Mr. Morgan moved that the
matter be considered in secret legislative
session. The motion was seconded by Mr..
Cameron, of Wisconsin, and the doors were
ordered closed. While the order was being
executed MIR. COnger said Il call for the
other side" to which Mr.. Cameron, of Wis
cOnsin. replied: 'EThere is no other side to
it, which raised a laugh at Mr.. COnger's eX-
pense, as the rnles provide that on a demand
being at any time made by two Senators, the
doors of the Senate shall be closed. The SEN
ate then, at 1920 O'Clock, went into secret
legislative session.
During the secret session the doors were for
a few minutes considered opened for the pur-
pose of receiving q request from the House
Tor a further conference on the naval bill,
which request was granted. When the secret
legislative session closed the Senate went into
executive session. At 3:45 O'Clock the doors
were reopened and Mr.. Hoar moved to take
up Tor consideration the House resolution,
providing Tor adjournment from to-day until
Jan. :. The resolution was taken up. Mr..
HOar asked Mr.. Allison, Chairman of the APP
proprlatiOns Committee, as to the condition of
things in case the Senate should agree to the
resolution in question.
Mr.. Allison said that if the Senate passed
this resolution, and the two houses should
adjourn to the date Uamed there would on
Jan. be no money from which the navy
could be paid. Every Senator could, there
fore, judge for himself whether it was the
duty of the Senate to adjourn.
Mr.. Hale said that the Senate had yester-
day. by unanimous vote, supported the
position of Its avn committee, and Insisted on
its amendments. The House was advised of
this fact II appointed cOnferees and sent the
bill back 20 he Senate, where it arrived at
O'Clock to-day. In the Senate further con-
ference was ordered. and cOnferees were
appointed. He Mr.. Hale had sent word to
the House cOnferees thaS the Senate con-
ferees were ready at any time to meet them,
but the House conterees had not appeared.
The Chairman Of the House committee had
assured him MIR. Hale that the conference
was useless unlees the Senate would recede
from its position. The House determined
that the senate should follow the ruie adopted
by the House of taking the appropriation bill
of last year and giving One-half its amount
for the coming half year. The statement was
made that the House would never back down.
MR.. MCPHERSON DEFENDS THE HOUSE.
Mr.. Mcpherson said that he had heard too
much criticism of the House of Repres enta-
tlves. The true dliliculty was that the Senate
had insisted on attaching TO an appropriation
bill provision for a steel cruiser Il clause
that had no place there. After twelve or
thirteen months the Senate was still insisting
on that provision Improper in that place.,
when II knew tndJ the House would not weld.
MIR. Hale said that the House did not even
give the Senate an opportunity Of receding
from that or any other amendment.
Mr.. Mcpherson thought the House quite
right in its position as long as the Senate in
sisted on that amendment.
Alr. B, ok saId that the position of the House
/ conference committee was that it would not
take up or consider the bill prepared at the
last session by the House Itself ana amended
by the Senate.
At o'clock a message was received from
the House of Representa- ives making pro-
vision for the naval service fer 81 days from
Dec. 81.
Mr.. Butler called for its immediate con-
sideratiOn. The bill was read and after some
debate, in which it met with opposition on the
same ground as did the SIN months bill, Mr..
Butler withdrew his call for It's immediate
consideration.
Mr.. Logan, from the Committee on Military
Affairs, reported the military academy Lii,
and it was passed without debate. 1t apprO-
PIRATES in all $309,995 for the support of the
academy for the next fiscal year.
The House concurrent resolution. providing
for an adjournment from to-day to Jan. 5,
was then taken up and voted on by yeas and
nays. and was not agreed to by yeas to %
nays. The vote in detail was as follows:
IeaS-Messrs. BaYard, COlquitt, Jackson,
Jones of Florida, George, Gibson, Hampton
Ndys-Messrs. Aldrich, BLAIR, Call. Came
ron of Wisconsin. COnger, CullOm, Dolph,
Edmunds, Frye. Hale, Harrison, Hoar, Lap
ham. Logan, Mcpherson, MandersOn, Maxey,
Miller of New York, Morgan, Platt, Pugh,
Sawyer, Sheffield, Walker and Wilson-25.
The vote developed the fact that there was
no quorum present, whereupOn at 5 :45 O'Clock
the senate adjourned till Monday next.
IN THE HOUSE.
Immediately after the reading of the jour
] nal the House resumed consideration of the
1 interstate commerce bill. Mr.. Henderson,
/ of Iowa, moved to strike out the section pro-
/ hibiting railroad companies from charging
! greater compensation for transporting freight
shorter than reater distance. He be-
| lleVed that the section was deadly to the
| interest of the part of the country which he
! represented-a great agricultural interest.
Mr.. Reagan, of Texas, supposed the section
! not to prohibit greater rate for q shorter
/ than a longer haul was to submit to the rail
/ roads the regulation Of the commerce of the
entire 1untry.
| to MIR. Randa ], of Pennsylvania, to permit
him to report the conference disagreement on
/ the temporary naval appropriation bill.
Mr.. Randall said that there should be
! ill-feelIng between the two houses on account
| of the disagreement. He did not think that
/ the position OF the House cOnferees had been
stated fairly in the Senate yesterday, and,
! therefore, he would express the unanimous
| voice of those cOnferees as to what they had
! maintained. 1t was well known that the Navy
| Department had been administered during
/ the past SIX months under atempOrary apprO-
| priauOn. The continuance of the provisions
! of this proper bill was objected to by the Sem
| ate. The senate cOnferees desired that the
| bill which should be made the basis of confer
| ence should be bill that was passed last
| session by the House and amended by the
! Senate. but which was laid aside and never
! became a law. That bill was based on in
/ crease of appropriation approaching S5,000,000
| and would bring into the conference new sub
| jects not legislated upon at all.
| What the House cOnferees wanted was to
! take the existing law, anC, I'll necessary, re-
| peal it by items. They did not want to use
| the drag net and bring IN other matters OF
| legislation and appropriation. The question
/ of appropriations for the new vessels formed
| the burden of the debate which followed.
rnnNN Traera tad ffa
| disagreement to the senate amendments, and
| further conference was ordered.
Mr.. Randall moved that when the House
/ adjourn to-day 1t be to meet on W wednesday,
/ Dec. u. The constitution, he said, prohibited
| adjournment for more than three days with
/ out the concurrence of the Senate. He asked
/ unanimous consent that it should be agreed
/ that on Dec. "a a further adjournment should
| be had until Dec. y, then to Dec. 81, and then
until Jan. 5, and that on those days no busi-
I ness whatever shall be transacted. rms
/ would accomplish the judgment Of the House
/ on the question of the holiday recess. There
/ was barely a quorum in the House to-day,
/ ana it would be impossible TO get one next
week. Mr.. Randalfs motion was agreedfto,
but unanimous consent was not given to the
I agreement for further adjournment.
R-sTATE COMMERCE.
/ Consideration of the Interstate commerce
/ bill was then resumed. The amendment Of
/ Mr.. Henderson, of Iowa, was rejected by %
yeas to us nays.
! Mr.. Peters, Of Kar sas offered an amend
Q
/ ion by adding the words 1.-The longer distance
/ to be limited to the nearest competing point
/ at which two or more railroads compete for
I business" ON this amendment no quorum
voted, and a call of the House was ordered.
! The call showed 1876 members present.
| Mr.. Peters withdrew his amendment, and
/ consideration Of the bill was postponed
Mr.. Randall introduced bill making tenn
4 pOrary provision for the support of the navy
/ for the month of January, 1885, on the basis OF
/ the six months appropriation. The bill was
J passed without division.
On motion of Mr.. Hopkins, of Pennsylvania,
| the Senate joint resolution was passed, declar-
/ ing Christmas and New Year Gays holidays
/ for all, with per diem for government en-
ployes. The House then adjourned until
Wednesday. Dec "A.
Though there is no definite agreement that
no business shall be transacted on Wednes-
day, there is a tacit understanding to that
effect and il Is also understood that cOnsecu-
tive adjournment shall be taken for three
business DAYS at a time until Jan. 3.
The Military Appropriations.
WAsHINGToN. Dec. 20.-The Senate Com