Connecticut western news., 1884-03-05
UNITED STATES CONGRESS-
SENATE.

The Fitz John Porter Relief bill was favor ably reported from the Committee on Military Affairs. The bill has been amended so as to provide for the restoration of Gen. Porter sim ply to the position Of Colonel of the same grade and rank as was held by him at the time of his dismissal. This makes the bill identical in it's provisions with the bill which pass ed the Sen ate in the last Congress.
 The bill prohibiting the mailing of news papers containing lottery advertisements was favorably reported.
 The Senate had long debate on the bill authorizing the construction of additional steel vessels for the navy. Mir. Beck said that since 1866 1885, 900, 900 had been spent upon the navy. Whole ships had been broken uI and sold as old scrap. There were 92 vessels all told belonging to the navy, of which only 31 were in commission Mir. Butler pictured the defenceless condition of our coasts. New York, Brooklyn, Boston, New Haven New London, Newport, Charleston and other cities could be bombarded by hostile fleet with modern guns from a position outside all ob- structions to channels, and beyond the reach of our present harbor forts.
 Mr. Ransom CDem., N. O. offered joint resolution to appropriate $100 900 for the relief of the sufferers by the recent tornado in the Southern States He said that over 800 people were killed, and many thousands wounded. Several Southern Democrats opposed the ap- propriation, as following dangerous policy. It was referred.
 After long debate the Currency bill, as modified by Mr. Morrilts amendment, was passed
 The Senate passed the McPherson National Bank bill which provides that the banks shall issue circulating notes to the amount of the par valuesof government bonds deposited by them.
 The House bill repeating the test oath was taken up and passed after being modified by an amendment preposed by the Senate Judiciary Committee, providing that no person who held & commission in the United States army or navy before the war and was afterward engaged in the military, naval or civil service of the so- called Confederate States, shall be appointed to any position in the army or navy of the United States.
 Mir. Ingalls, introduced bill to relieve the members of the original Fltz John Porter court martial of the obligation of secrecy as to the votes of members.
 MT. Pendleton, by request, introduced bill to facilitate the settlement and development Of Alaska, and appropriating S100,0O0 to open overland communications with that Territory.
 MT. Hale introduced an amendment to the pending bill for the construction ot cru sers, which would throw the protection of the acts of 1852 and 1883 around the ships now pro- posed, and that amendment was itself sug- gested by the Secretary of the Navy. Adopted.
 Senator Ransom reported adversely from the Committee on Appropriations his joint resolu- lion providing for an approprlatlon 10 alo the sufferers by the recent great storm in the South. He explained that on investigation it appeared that the sufferering caused by the storm was not of such character as to batie local and State relief.
 The bill to construct seven more steel cruis- CTS was passed-38 to 13. It authoriz:s the President to direct the construction of seven steel vessels for the navy, consisting of one cruiser of 4,500 tons displacement, one cruiser of 5000 tons, one dispatch vessel of 1,500 tons, two heavily armed gunboats of ], 800 tons each, one light gunboat of 750 tons, and one gum boat not to exceed 900 tons. The work is to be done by contract and American shipbuilders.
 The ship railway scheme of Captain Eads across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec has been 1 revived by the introduction of bill in the Senate by Mr. Vest.