The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1885-12-30
SUMMARY OF CONGRESS-,
Senate Sessions.

FIFTH DAY.-The chair laid before the
Senate a joint resolution of the legislature OF
Connecticut urging Congress to pass. with
out unnecessary delay, a bill to provide FOR
the Presidential count. go Mr.. Hoar, from the
committee on privileges and elections. re-
ported ~favorably an original bill providing
for the performance Of the duties
or inability OF both the President and Vice.
President. He said it was substantially the
same bill that had been acted or last year by
the Senate. TIL only addition Of import
ance is a provision for the repeal of sections
numbered from AT to $50, inclusive, OF the
revised statutes. These provide for special
elections in case Of vacancies in the office
Of President and Vice. President. The effect
Of their repeal is to continue the
the next general election. The bill was
placed on the calendar for early action. MIR.
Mcpherson introduced a bill to suspend the
coinage of the silver dollar. After an ex-
ecutive session the Senate received a message
from the President transmitting all the cor
r~espondence relating to the appointment OF
A. M. Kelley as minister to Italy and his
subsequent appointment as minister to Aus
tria.
SIXTH DAY.-Mr. Edmunds introduced a
bill granting a pension to Mrs. Julia D.
Grant, and another bill granting her the
Thanking privilege. Mr.. Edmunds also IA
vorably reported the bill to relieve General
Alexander R. Lawton, Of Georgia, Of his po
litical disabilities. At Mr.. Edmunds' request
the bill was Immediately considered and
passed. =. . Mr.. Hoar discussed his bill provid-
ing for the presidential success on. dis
cussion took place on Mr.. Frye's report pro-
viding for q code of joint rules for both
houses Of Congress. Among the rules adopted,
after considerable debate, was one prohibit
ing the sale Of intoxicating liquor in the cap
itol.
SEVENTH DAY.-Discussion Of MIR. Hears
pres idential succession bill was continued.
Mr.. Maxey favored. and Mr.. Edmunds oppos-
ed tho bill. ... Bills introduced: BY MIR.
Teller-Providing for the free and unlimited
coinage of the silver dollar. BY Mr.. Plumb
Extending the provisions of the bounty act
to soldiers discharged within two years
from the date Of their enlistment or account
Of disability incurred in the line Of duty.
Bv Mr.. Ingalls-Froviding that on the rep
resentation Of two heads of departments to
the chief justice Of the supreme court Of
the United States, that the President is un-
able to discharge the duties Of his office, the
chief justice shall convene the court, and it
shall determine the question Of such alleged
inability. By Mr.. Manderson-Providing Tor
tho pensioning OF all persons who served at
least one year during the war and were either
discharged after such term Of service, upon
surgeons certificates of disability as no
longer fit for military duty, or who, after
like term of service, were discharged with
re-enlistment clause stricken from their GER
tificate OF discharge.
EIGHTH DAY.-The feature c; ~ Senate
on the eighth was the debate between
Messrs. Evarss and Edmunds UPON the amend.
nlent of the latter to the Hoar presidential
succession bill. Mr.. Edmunds desired to
have the law left standing as it is now. Mr..
Evarts made an elaborate argument to
show that no member of either branch
of Congress was an official Of the govern
ment in the sense Of the word as en-
ployed in the Constitution and that, there
fore, neither the president Of tie Senate nor
the speaker of the House would be eligible in
his opinion to succeed to the presidency
through the death or resignation OF the
President and Vice President. 1t was Mr..
Evarts' first address in the Senate, and he
was listened to, attentively by all the Sena'
tors. At the conclusion of the debate a vote
was taken upon Mr.. Edmunds' amend.
ment, and it was lost by 81 yeas
to 81 nays not a party vote,
The bill was then put on final passage and
passed, without division, i'll the form reported
from committee 800. Other business transacted
during the day was the swearing in Of Mr..
Mitchell as Senator from Oregon, and debate
upon Mr.. Buffers resolution, Mr.. Butler call
ing for a committee to inquire as to the alleged
organization Of the Territory Of Dakota into
a State and the alleged election OF United
States Senators.