Morning journal and courier., 1884-05-20
Fo1ty-Eighth Consress---First Session.
WASHINGTON, May 19

WASHINGTON, May 19.
 SENArR.-The chair laid before the Senate the resolution offered on Thursday by MT. Morgan, directing the Committee on Finance to examine the causes of the recent failures of national banks and whether such failures are due to violations and evasion of law on the part of the officers or directors of the banks.
 MT. Merrill (9ep., Vt., moved to amend by substituting for the purposes of the i'm vestigation the Comptroller of the Currency for the Finance committee.
 MT. Morgan said that the very reason why he had moved to devolve the duty on 8 com- mittee was because the officers who had been appointed to see that the banks com piled with the law had not performed their duty. There was, for instance, law against over-certifcation of checks, which it has the occasion of the passage of the law on the subject in July, 1882 the New York newspapers had broken out into spasms of merriment, and told Con- gress that the banks laughed at the acts of Congress and were beyond congressional con- trol The failure of the Marine bank had been due to the fact that the bank was connected with 8 firm of brokers. That bank had supported the firm of Grant & Ward in all the wild schemes in which a young speculator saw proper to engage. spectacle had been presented to the world that argued a painful condition of conner cial honor in the city of New York.
 Mr. Sherman said the Senate ought to be extremely careful in dealing with questions affecting private fortunes. In every case of trouble that occurred among the banks of New York the failure was brought about by the speculative operations of their officers Certification of checks had nothing to do with it, in some cases perhaps the want of certification brought trouble. If there had been generalization there were government officers to prosecute the offenders, but there was no necessity for cong eessional inquiry There was no panic The commercial credit of the country was on 8 safer foundation than before these transactions occurred The resolution was referred to the Committee on Finance.
 MT. Van Wyck offered resolution, which went over under the rules, directing the Committee on Public Lands to investigate charges against the New Orleans, Baton
 Rouge and Vicksburg railroad with reference to the transfer of it's land grants. etc. Consideration of the House bill to create and maintain bureau of labor statistics was resumed, the pending question being the amendment of Mir. Garland to include the statistics of marriage and divorce and place the whole subject in charge of the present
 bureau of statistics. MT. Morgan supported the amendment.
 MT. Van WSck spoke in favor of the bill as step in the right direction. MT. Call said the bill was drawn in the in terest of labor and demanded favorable con- slderation.
 NIT. Blair had read a letter from MT. Nim- mo to MT. Manton Marble in which he oppos- ed the proposition to attach the proposed bureau to the bureau of statistics. At 4:45 p. m. the Senate went into exeeu- tive session and adjourned shortly after ward.
 Messrs. Dawes, Plumb and Cockrill were ap
 pointed the Senate committee on the Indian appropriation bill.
 HoUsE.-At the close of the call of States for bills MT. Holman from the Committee on Appropriations reported the legislative, judicial and executive appropriation bill, and it was placed on the calendar. The bill ap- propristes $20, 736, 876. Last year the bill appropriated $2O,648,6 ,680. The estimates this year are $21, ,675, sos. The bill provides for second assistant Secretary of the h. terlor at $3, 800 per annum principal exam iners in the pension office, $2, ,O5O each; 150 special examiners in the pension office at Sl, 600 each; thirty-seven in the sixth aud itors and ten additional clerks | in the second auditors office. It also reduces the clerical and ! copying force of the pension office 27O, abol- ishes the assay office at St. Louis, reduces the number of internal districts from 83 to 63 and contains clause which prohibits the payment of salaries to private secretaries of Senators.
 Mir. Hurd, of Ohio, from the Committee on Ways and Means, moved to suspend the rules and pass bill to abolish the discrimi- hating duty on works of art which are the production of foreign American artists. | The bill proposes reducing the rate of duty | from 30 to 10 per cent. The House, by a vote of yeas 52, nays 179. refused to suspend | the rules and pass the bill.
 MT. Turner, of Georgia, gave notice that ! he had decided to postpone calling up the | Wallace Mckinley election until Monday. MT. Randall moved to suspend the rules | for the purpose of taking up and putting | upon their passage the three pending ap- ! propriation bills; agreed to with put dissent. The first bill taken up was the consular ! and diplomatic bill. Mr Cannon, of Illinois, ! moved to reconamit with instructions to re- \ port in substance the bill of the current year | excepting some special appropriations in that bili rejected, yeas 88, nays 126. The bill was then passed; yeas 129, nays S5. The amendments to the army bill were \ agreed to and the bill passed.
 The District of Columbia appropriation bill was next taken up and passed. Mir. Collins, of Massachusetts, from the Committee on the Judiciary, moved to sus- pend the rules and pass resolution making | the bankrupt bill the special order for June 10th, and from day to day until disposed of, not to interfere with the revenue or appro- priation bills or previous special orders. The
 motion was disagreed to and at 4:50 the House adiourned