The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-02-13
PROCEEDINGS OF CONGRESS.
THE SENATE.
Consideration and Passage of the Army
Appropriation Bill.


viding for a joint committee of three members
of the House of Representatives and two
tors, to notify Grover Cleveland of his election
as the President of the United States from the
4th of March next and to notify Thomas A.
Hendricks of his election as Vice-president, from
the same date.
On motion of Mr. Garland it was referred to
the committee on privileges and elections. Mr.
Garland said the phraseology of the resolution
needed looking at.
The Senate passed an original joint resolution
authorizing the President to return to the gov
eminent of Great Britain the steamer Alert,
with the thanks of the United States
The resolutions offered yesterday by Messrs.
ingalls, and Hoar relating to the electoral count,
were, on motion of Mr.. Hoar referred without
comment, to the committee on privileges and
elections.
A resolution offered by Mr.. Sherman was
agreed to. 1t authorizing the President of the
Senate to appoint committee of three senators
to make necessary arrangements for the inaug-
uration of the Presdentelect
Mr. VanWyck inquired of the chairman why
the bill to forfeit the Texas Pacific land grant
had been displaced from the heau of the special
orders He said the bill had not been considered
by the Senate, but, whether by mistake OF
clerk or for some other reason, the bill had
within few days disappeared from the special
orders
The Chair (AIr Edmunds) said it was owing to
no mistake of the clerk. The bill had been
placed before the Senate as special order in
technical form, and the Senate by vote, re-
fused to consider it and proceeded to consider
another bill. This was the silver coinage bill
That refusal, the Chair said, under the constant
rulings of the presiding officers of the Senate,
sent the bill back to the general calendar and it
ceased to be special order.
Mr. Van Wyck asked unanimous consent that
the bill be restored to it's place among the special
orders He doubted very much whether
ators, when they decided to take up the silver
bill, thought they were displacing the Texas for
fixture bill
The Chair said it was in order for any senator,
at any time after the morning business, to move
to proceed to consideration OF any bill on the
calendar
Mr. Ingalls, did not think the Senate had been
properly advised as to the Interpretation of the
rule when it displaced the bill, Mr.. Ingalls, had
supposed that the bill. once placed among the
special ORDERS remained there till disposed OF.
He did not speak complaningy, but felt satisfied
that it had not been the purpose of the Senate
to dispace the forfeiture bill
Mr.. Van Wycks request for unanimous consent
acceded, to and the hill ordered restored to
its place among the special orders.
The bill to quiet the titles of the Des Moines
river settlers was then taken up.
The Chair announced the committee to
make necessary arrangements for the coming in
auguraton, Messrs Sherman, Hawley and
Ransom.
At o'clock the Dcs Moines river titles bill
was displaced by the bill repeating the pre-
emption and limber-culture laws
Mr.. Vest read letter from gentleman re-
siding in Michigan, whom he said he did not
know. but whose responsibility had been vouched
for by a Senator from Michigan. The letter
stated that the bill introduced by Senator
Palmer apparently for benefit Of bona fide pur
chasers of public lands. was not in reality
in their interest. but III the interest of persons
who, through collision with government land
agents. had been enabled to buy great tracts of
public lands at private sale, contrary to Law,
thus getting for 81 % an acre land worth $50 and
$lG0 an acre. With the letter were newspaper
clippings stating that Barnhardt, Hill and Free
man, of Grand Rapids; Case and Mckinney, of
Marquette and others, now III Washington,
owned 100 900 acres of these lands. "Who ever
heard" Mr.. Vest asked ''of people buying 100.
900 acres of public land without knowing what
they were buyingW With no personal knowl-
edge of the facts, Mr. Vest felt warranted in de-
claring that this had been stupendous specu-
lation in public lands on the part of men who
ers' on the passage Of bill like That now before
the Senate.
Mr.. Palmer said no doubt SPECTATORS and
lumbermen had invested in lands. but these
we're not the men that he was seeking to relieve.
The men he wanted to help were poor farmers
who had put their sweat and toll into their
lands.
After further debate, Mr.. Pamer's amendment
was agreed to--yeas, %; nays, %.
Mr.. Morgan offered an amendment providing
for settlement of all questions of conflicting
claims by the Department of the Interior, and Civ
ing bona fde settlers under homestead and
pre- .emption laws preference over previous
entries made at l25 An acre.
Pending debate on Mr.. Morgan's amendment,
the following joint resolution was submitted by
Mr. Van Wyck, for reference to the committee
on public lands.
Resolved That it shall be unlawful for any railroad
company claiming interest in any grant of land
from the United States fo1 any person acting under
its aut horty to sell offer to sell mortgage
pledge any such lands while bill for forfeiture of
the is pending in either house of Congress,
beforea patent, in conformity with law, shall have
issued for the same; and person persons selling
Offering to sell, mortgage pledge, such land,
shall be guilty of msdemeanor, and conviction
shall be tined not exceeding 500 or imprisoned
than one year..
Referred.
The timber culture bill was then. on motion of
Mr. Allison. temporarily laid aside, and the
army appropriation bill taken up.
The bill was read by sections, and the Senate
committees amendments adopted without de-
bate except the last one, which strikes out the
following from the House bill:
Section 2. That article o. section 1912, be and
the same is hereby repealed, and amended so to
read as follows: ARTICLE "a. Proceedings in trials
shall be carried on during such hours the court
martial shall determine"
Mr. Sherman read the statute relating to courts
martial, and said the recent court martial had
been prolonged two or three weeks unnecessarily
in consequence of this statute. He understood
the article had its origin in the fact that in
oden times, in Great Britain, gentlemen were
not expected to be sober enough after dinner to
transact business. The habits of our people
were not such as required longer existence of
this article.
Mr. Allison. chairman Of the committee on
appropriations, said the article which it was
proposed to repeal was not designed alone for
the convenience of officers of courts martial but
was also operative in behalf of those accused of