The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1884-04-10
Business in Congress.

WASHINGTON CITY, April 10. - In TIE
senate, Hill, from the committee on post
offices and post-roads, reported favorably on
the original bill to establish the postal tele-
graph system. Hill remarked that the
committee We're unanimous as to the
first ten sections of the bill,
which relate to doing the ri By
contracts with the existing compares bat
that the minority of the committee were oi}-
opposed To the section relating to the con
struct;on or purchase of linss by the gIT-
ernment. The provision relating to the
liability Of the contracting company for
failure to correctly and promptly
transmit messages has bean amended
by limiting such liabiity to 500
times th3 amount paid for transmission.
Two new features have been added to the
bill The first authorizes the contracting
company to employ the postmaster as its
agent and the operator at any postal tele-
graph Office where Geographic receipts are
insufficient to pay the salary of the operator
ard TO pay him a commission not exceeding
80 per cent. OF the charges en- mes
sages transmitted from the office.
The second requires the postmaster
general to secure the provisions of the con-
tract which shall protect the postal telegrams
against discrimination in the order of trans
mission in favor of kilograms received a5
such of the company's Offices as are not oper
ated under the provisions of the bill. The
contract system remains the most prominent
feature of the bill and is not widely
different from the scheme of the
Postal telegraph company, except it emrow-
ers the postmaster general to receive bids
from any telegraph company for tho con-
| tract. The provisions relating to the estab-
ishnent of a government system pure and
simple, in the event that no satisfactory con-
tract with the established companies is Sc
cured, are a combination of the features of
the Hill and Edmunds bills
The senate then resumed the consideration
Of the naval appropriation bill, and Vest
| continued his remarks.
In the house, Hopkins of Pennsylvania,
| offered series of whereases reciting that it
is charged that the present system of trans
! porting live stock is barbarous and destruc-
| tive, resulting in the sale to the people of un-
| healthfuE meats; that thereby great loss in
weight results; that system of fayoritiSm
has been adopted by the railways, by which
| a syndicate known as the Association OF
Eveners is paid grataity of $l5 on each head
Of cattle shipped, and that this gratuity and
| the losses before mentioned increase the
| cost of meat to the consumer, and
that the laws as to the manner OF
transporting stock are habitaally violated
therefore, resolved, tn It the committee he
instructed to inquir. whether those evils do
in fact exist, and to what extent they may
be remedied by law, wi power to send for
per ons and papers, and with instructions to
report at any time, by bill or otherwise, The
resolution was referred to the committee OF
| commerce
A struggle arose as to which of the many
pending special orders should obtain prece
dence of consideration. Dingley essayeI tc
bring up the shipping bill, but the effort wa:
unsuccessful the motion being defeated -
yeas, &c; nays 156. Reagan met with like
fate, his motion to consider the interstate
commerce bill being voted down-yeas, 10l'
nays, 120
The speaker ruled that the unfinished bust
ness was on the Oregon Central land grant
bill.