The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1885-02-20

WASHINGTON, Special Telegram, Feb. IL
The senate. after spending two long execu-
tive sessions and the entire afternoon In q
chaotic debate, passed the house bill to re-
peal the presumption and timber culture laws
BY 28 to 20 It is safe to say that no bill has
ocen passed this session which is in q worse
middle and is less understood. The discus
zion to-day was on Palmer's amendment This
was simply the old and much described On
;onagon land grant bill, which was SUCCESS
fully tackedon the repeal The original bill
3 virtually the bill which Gen. Washburn got
through the house two years ago It was
passed by the house last June. The amend
ment provides:
Whenever public lands haye been withdrawn
of railroads. and such Withdrawals have been
terminated by act Of congress, executive order,
or order by the land department, or where lands
20 81 .25 per acre and purchased in good faith OF
entered with warrants or scrip, and the officers
II the land department. have issued certificates
stthout such lands having first been proclaimed
oy the president and offered At public auction:
md where on the 25th of January, 1885. there
ments thereon, all such entries, ETC., are CON-
armed and declared valid and legal
Morgan amended Palmer's amendment 90 as
20 except two hundred or more settlers who
have gone on the disputed lands in Northern
Michigan and entered homesteadA The Pal
mer amendment passed by . close party
vota Senator Vest produced sensation by
reading q letter from Michigan citizen,
charging that the proposition covered big
teal, in which few capitalists were inter-
ested Senator Palmer, in very temperate
speech, denied tho aspersion, but the letter
produced . hub-bub for some time after
ward Commissioner Mcfarland says there
are between 1OO, 600 and 200, 600 acres of
land embraced I'm the Ontanagon amend
ment The original entry men, having paid
81. rs for them, and having paid taxes in
many cases for fifteen years, will now have
their patents endorsed as regular. The SEN
ate amendments to the original house bill
are numerous and sweeping-so much 90
that there Is no expectation that they will
be concurred in. The iinal vote was almost .
strict party one, Edmunds being the only
Republican to vote against the repeal, and
Brown the only Democrat to vote in the
Affirmative
WASHINGTON. Feb 12-The resolutions offered
yesterday by Nessrs. Ingalls, and Hoar. relating
10 the electoral count, were. on motion Of Mr..
Hoar, referred without comment to the COM
mittee ON privileges and elections.
AfeSOlutlOn OnefeO Dy mi. 6nelInhn was o&ree0
70. authorizng the president Of the senate to APP
point . committee OF three senators to make the
necessary arrangements for tho Inauguration Of
the president.elect.
The chair laid before the senate the house con-
current resolution providing for joint COM
nittee Of three members Of the house OF repre-
lentatives and two senator's to notify Grover
Gisyelsnd Of his election e president Of the
Thomas A. Hendricks Of his election - vice
president from the same date.
On motion OF MI. Garland, IL was referred TO
the committee ON privileges and elections: Mr..
Garland said the phraseology OF tho resolution
needed looking ct. The senate passed tho orig
inal joint resolution authorixtng the president
steamer Alert, with the thanks OF the United
States. Tho bill! to quiet titles Of the Des
Nuines river settlers was then taken mp.
In his opening prayer the chaplain Of the house
invoked divine protection upon him who had
been elected president. It was ordered that on
| and after Monday next, the house will meet Of
IL o'clock. The senate amendments to the con-
| sular and diplomatic appropriation bills were
non.concurred In and conference committee
| appointed Several bills for the construction Of
| public buildings passed.
! Mr. Thompson called mp the bill amending the
Pacific railroad act. SO - to authorize the con-
| struction of road from Sioux City, Iowa, to 9
| point ON the Northern Pacific railroad west Of
| the Tooth meridian. Pending consideration the
| hour allowed under the special rule expired
Nathan A Dixon q Rhode Island vas sworn o II
the committee on judiciary. reported bill pro.
vidipR for the payment Of tudgment rendered BY
the supreme court Of the District Of Columbia 10
| the case of Hallett Kilbourne against J. q
| Thompson. Committee of the whole.
-. - a. a.