St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1884-04-24
OUR LAWGlVERS.
A Warm Discussion in the Senate on
the Pneumonia Bill.
The Naval Appropriation Bill Returned to
the House from the Senate.
randall and Dorsheimer Have Lively
Tilt Overtime Allowed.
The Senate.

tran shifting the report of the secretary OF
state, giving information concerning the aY-
erage production, consumption, expectation
and importation of wheat, rye, and cotton
in foreign countries.
The following petitions and memorials
were presented and referred:
BY Senators Farley and Miller, California,
a joint resolution of the legislature of Cali
fornia, recommending the passage of the
pending bill, providing for the establish
ment of national experimental stations, in
connection with agricultural colleges. - 9
By Senator Pendleton, resolutions of the
legislature of Ohio, recommending the
passage of the pending bill relating to the
pensioning of ex-prisoners of the late war
Senator Conger, from the committee Of
commerce, reported favorably, and asked
unanimous consent to put at once upon pass
age the bill providing for government con
troll of the Sault Sainte Marie Falls canal,
Mich. Senator ingalls, said, the bill was too
important to be considered without debate,
and he would object. The bill was therefore
placed on the calendar. Immediately on the
disposal of the mornings business, however,
Conger called the bill up again and it passed.
Senator Vest reported favorably, bill for
a bridge over the Mississippi near Sibley,
Mo. Placed on the calendar.
Senator Hill reported favorab,y, bill
granting thirty days annual leave of absence
to letter carriers. Placed on the calendar
The senate then proceeded to consultation
of bills on the calendar. The bill amending
the revised statutes relating to timber depre-
dations passed, 1t protects Indian reserya-
tons from unlawful cutting of timber.
The bill defining the title and duties of
certain officers of the medical department of
the army, passed. 1t prescribes that six
officers Of that department, having the rank
of colonel, be styled assistant surgeons
general, and officers with the rank of lieu
tenant colonel be styled deputy surgeons
general. The rank and pay of all remains
as at present
A bill was reported adversely from the
committee on finance, to authorize the pay
ment of customs duties in legal tender notes
and went over, Senator Beck calling the
yeas and nays upon the motion to take it up
Yeas %, nays 26.
The chair laid before the senate the special
order, being the bill to establish bureau on
animal industry, to prevent the expectation
of diseased cattle, and provide for the extir-
patton of pleuro-pneumonia and other con-
tageous diseases among domestic animals
The house bill was substituted for the senate
bill.
Senator Plumb said the cattle interests of
the country were unanimously in favor Of the
legislation of the proposed bill.
Senator Coke severely criticised the depart
ment of agriculture for spreading false re-
ports of the nature of the disease among
American cattle. He had carefully read con-
sular reports, and found no pretense that
any animal having foot-and-mouth disease
or pleuro-pn eumonia had ever been landed
in England or any other European coun-
try. If the bill passed, with the over
shadowing powers which it gives
the commissioner of agriculture, Coke would
recommend that his people get rid of their
cattle as soon as possible. There was but
one reason, he thought, why the agricultural
department had given such wide publicity to
the absurdly exaggerated reports about cattle
diseases, and that was, that the department
was determined to aggrandize itself at the
expense of the cattle INTEREST," of the country.
This bill has been twice already kicked out of
the senate and should be kicked out again.
The states separately, were quite able to deal
with their own cattle, and should not be in
terferred with. If the agricultural depart
ment would stop libelling the cattle of the
United States no more trouble would be found
with the cattle business. Our government
was not paternal one, and the people could
take care of their own cattle, without the
agricultural department. He, Coke, would
favor bill to prohibit the importation or ex-
portation of diseased cattle, but would not
vote for bill appointing inspectors to go
smelling around mems stables to hunt up
cases of imaginary disease.
Senator Williams regretted that the sena-
tor from Texas, Coke, had been carried so
far by the warmth of his feelings in denun-
citation of those who desired the passage of
the bill. He for one favored the bill, and
after hearing all the senator from Texas had
said, he, Williams. was happy to say he still
found himself in the open air, standing on
his feet and in no wise worse for having eX-
perienced such a s!Texas shorter" Laugh
ter. 1t was amazing how senators could
fear the results of bills of this character.
Should state permit itself to become hot
bed of contagious cattle disease without the
other states being protected, he wanted
to know if the Texas bulls belonged
to any royal race like the sacred
bulls of India. The Texas steers were tall,
thin, sabsided bruits, with horns sometimes
extending seven feet in width but for all
that they were entitled to no more privileges
in this democratic country than common
cattle Laughter Williams said he was
himself stock raiser, and knew nineteen
twentieths of all the stock raisers of the coun-
try favored this measure, 'and," calculated
Williams, 'sto say that there is no pleuro-
pneumonia in this country, my God, it was
in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania,
Maryland and the District of Columbia. -
Williams had himself seen it,
Senator Mcpherson said he had not been
able to find any in New Jersey.
Senator Williams acknowledged the emf
nence of DR.. Mcpherson as an authority on
constitutional law and matters affecting the
navy, but he did not think the gentleman
could recognize pleuro pneumonia if he saw
it. If that disease should once spread upon
the plains it would be ineradicable, and our
duty was imperative to stamp it out.
Williams had no doubt of the entire consti-
nationality of action by the national govern
ment, and it was no use for the constitutional
lawyers to hang the question up ''between
the devil and high water" Laughter. ]
The evil had to be met.
Senator Brown representing the minority
of the committee on woman suffrage, sub
mitted the views of that minority, in opposi-
ton to the measure recently reported by a
majority of the committee, which proposed
constitutional amendment granting the
right of suffrage to women. Pending de-
bate ON the pleuro pneumonia bill, the SEN
ate went into executive session and soon adj
journed.