The National tribune., 1885-12-17
TIE 18TH CONGRESS.
An EpitOme of its Proceedings the
Past Week.

| long to get the machinery fabricated and in
| condition to move without friction. A few
| days before Christmas the members want to go
| home to hang up their stockings, so that De-
| cember rarely sees anything accomplished worth
| mentioning, except to get ready to take hold of
the crank after the holiday recess of fort
night The Senate shows some symptoms of
business activity, but in the House, as yet, all
| is chaos. Last week little in the way of gen.
| eral business was attempted.
REVISING THE RULES
| A committee, consisting of Speaker Carlisle
| and Messrs. Randall, Morrison, Reed, and His
| cock, was appointed to consider the proposed
| revision of the rules, and the House took re-
cess for two or three days to enable this COM
mittee to prepare its report.
1t was deemed desirable to fix the rules at
| the outset as to change them after the business
of the session had fairly begun would throw
| everything into confusion again.
After several sessions the committee reported
| to the House on Monday, having agreed upon
| the plan proposed by Mr.. Morrison, with few
| notifications. The most sweeping and i'm
| portant change is in taking seven of the great
appropriation bills from the Appropriations
| Committee, and giving their control respectively
to the Committees on Foreign Affairs, Military
| Affairs, Naval Affairs, Post-Ofces and Post
| Roads, Indian Affairs, Invalid Pensions, and
| Rivers and Harbors This change if ratified by
| the House, will leave the Appropriations Com
| mittee in charge of the legislative, executive,
and judicial, sundry civil, Notifications District
of Columbia, and deficiencies appropriation bills.
Mr. Randall very naturally opposed this pro-
| posed reduction of the powers of the Appropri-
ations Committee, as he also did the PROPOSE ton
to abolish the rule allowing riders " to general
| appropriation bills, and will renew on the floor
OF the House the oppositson that proved un-
| avaling III the consultations of the Committee
| on Rules. Mr.. Randall argued that such dis
| tribution of the appropriation bills would open
| the door to jobs and schemes to get money out
| under such system the expenditures would be
| increased $1O,000000 year. 1t is likely that
most of the week will be consumed by the
| House in debate on the committees report.
IN THE SENATE.
| Between 400 and 500 bills have been intro
| duced and referred, but only one or two have
| yet been reported back. The Senate has re-
| ceived from the President long list of nomi-
nations, which he asks may be confirmed.
There are nearly 500 of them, embracing all
| the Presidential appointments made during the
| recess. Last week the Republican Senators
held a caucus, the principal feature of which
was very spirited and protracted debate upon
| the attitude they should assume toward the
nominations. The general sentiment of the
| Senators was in favor of confirming without
| opposition all appointees to whom there were
no objections, either personally or as to the cir
| cumstanceS under which the appointments
were made. In such cases there was no desire
shown to antagOnize the Administration. There
will be opposition, however, to the confirmation
| of those appointed in place of soldiers and
others who were removed on fiimsy charges, or
| with none at all, simply to make room for
others who wanted the positions. If the Ad
ministratiOn had started out on the "spoils ]"
plan, according to the traditions of the past,
holiness o.
body would have found fault. But having fully
committed itself to Civil Service Reform, in
spirit as well as letter, the Republican Senators
seem disposed to hold its nose to the grindstone
OF INTEREST TO SOLDIERS.
Bills appertaining to pensions and other
claims of soldiers were introduced in the Senate
as follows
By Mr.. Miller, of NY. rs. 1907: Torevse Sec.
1154 of the Statutes, so that it will read as fol-
lows: Persons honorabiy discharged from the
military naval service shall be preferred for
appointment tocivll offices: PrOUided, That they
are found to possess the business capacity neces-
sary for the proper discharge of the duties of
such Offices"
BY Mr. Ingalls,, of Kan. (S 35): To remove
the limitation in the payment of arrears of
pensions, which was referred to the Committee
on Pensions. Senator Voorhees,, of Ind, in
troduced similar bill (S 429), and also to regu-
late proof in pension cases.
By Mr.. Wilson, of Iowa IS. 1871: Granting
pensions to soldiers and sailors who served in
the United States army and navy during the
war Of the rebellion, and also to those of the
Mexican war. A similar bill Is. 1881 was intro
duced by Senator Mitchell, of Pennsylvania.
BY Mr.. Dolph, of Ore. Is. 78): To extend the
time for filing certain claims for compensation
for horses and other property lost in the mill
tary service of the United States; also IS. 427)
to repeal an act entitled, "An act to provide for
4E .ln Of
listed men of the army for the loss Of property
destroyed ia the military service of the United
States"
BY Mr.. Call, of Fla Is. 445): To repeal all
laws and parts of laws prohibiting pensions
to wounded soldiers of the United States with
out proof of loyalty; (S 435l, granting land war
rants to soldiers and sailors in the United
States service in the Seminole Indian war of
1856, their widows and orphans; and Is. 436)
for the relief of persons whose property has
been confiscated under the act of Congress en-
titled, can act to suppress instruction, to
punish treason and rebellion, to seize and con-
fiscate the property of rebels and for other pur-
poses" Approved July II, 1862
Senator Vest presented a joint resolution
from both houses of the Legislature of Mis-
souri,, asking Congress to grant pensions to sur
viving soldiers of the Mexican war, and to the
widows of those who are deceased.
THE SUCCESSION BILL.
The first bill introduced in the Senate was
by Mr.. Hoar, of Massachusetts,, "To provide
for the performance of the duties of the office
of President in case of the removal, death,
resignation or inability of both tho President
and Vice President" ItprOvides that in case
of removal, DEATH resignation or inability of
both the President and Vice e-President of the
United States, then the Secretary of State, or if
there be none, or the above disqualifying con-
ditions exist, then the Secretary of the Treas
ury, and SO on, successively, the Secretary of
War, the Attorney General, the Postmaster
General, the Secretary of the Navy or the
Secretary of the Interior, shall act as President
until the disability of the President or Vice
President is removed or President shall be
elected, such officer being eligible to the office
of President under the Constitution, and not
under articles of impeachment by the House of
Representatives of the United States, at the
time the powers and duties of the office shall
deyolve upon him: Ir0uided, That whenever
the powers and duties of the Office of President
of the United States shall devolve upon any of
the persons named herein, if Congress be not
then in session, or if it would not meet in ac-
cordance with law within 20 days thereafter,
it shall be the duty of the person upon whom
said powers and duties shall devolve to issue a
proclamation cOnvening Congress in extraordi-
nary session, giving 20 days notice of the time
Of meeting"
This bill, with slight notifications, but re-
timing all its important features, was reported
to the Senate on Monday from the Committee
,1.ts