The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-06-04
Passage of the Bill Providing for Taxa
tion of Railway Land Grants.
The House at Last Fixes the Tax on Oleomar-
garine at Five Cents Per Pound, and Passes
the Bill-The Final Vote in Detail.
THE SENATE.

laid before the Senate several messages from the
President vetoing private pension bills. They
have been already published.
Mr.. Dawes presented petition from the City
Council of Gloucester, Mass, which was appro-
priatoly referred, praying for retaliation on the
Canadian government for the seizure of the
American fishing vessels. In presenting the pc
tition Mr.. Dawes said there seemed to be dis
position on the part of the Canadian government
to harass and embarrass citizens of the United
States engaged in what could not be but consid-
cred lawful commerce. Simple commercial
transactions, such ss the purchase of provisions,
merely, had been cause of seizure of vessels of
the United States. 1t seemed to many persons.
Mr.. Dawes said, that there was some dilatori-
ness the part of those clothed with the duty
of protecting our commerce He had no doubt
the committee foreign relations were giving
the subject proper consideration, but Mr.. Dawes
inquired whether the committee could give some
assurance that might so to the public that meas
ures would be taken which would protect our
citizens in their rights.
MIR. Edmunds said the committee on foreign
relations had no power to protect American COM
merce or American citizens. That belonged to
the executive department of the government, and
States and the laws of nations In the absence
of definite Information we must presume that
the executive department of the government
was doing everything it could to protect the citi-
zens Of the United States, whose vessels had
been seized or unkindly dealt with by the Do
minion of Canada. OF course it might have
happened that some of these vessels, it might
possibly have happened that all of them, had
been guilty of violation of existing laws of Can
ada. AS they had been seized by the public au-
tfAon Of Hurn rs ha
public pretension on the part of those officers
that such was the case Mr. Edmunds hoped it
would turn out that the vessels were innocent of
any violation of Dominion law, or Of public law,
and that they had been engaged in doing what
was allowed by the intercourse of nations, by the
laws of their own country and OF the
country to which they had gone; and that
the seizures would therefore be dismissed
without even the semblance of probable causes
but that depends, of course, upon judicial in
quiry In the first instance He did not mean to
say that we would be bound to acquesce in the
results of Canadian judicial inquiry if we
thought those results unjust and improper II
any of the vessels should be condemned and the
United States were of opinion that the con-
demnation was unjust. we should not be bound
by any principle of public justice to acquiesce in
it. If we had any spirit left, as he thought We
had. and any strength left, as he thought we
had. though, for some reason, we had not been
very successful in getting navy or arming our
of the United States would be vindicated, if
they had been violated. Continuing Mr. Ed
munds said the President, if he had signed the
recent act of Congress on this subject. now had
the power to retaliate for any injustice done our
vessels in Canada or elsewhere. If that act had
become a law, and if our British brethren were
straining point in order to force us into con
vention OF reciprocity, or free fish," or any
thing else, 10 was now within the power of the
President to take such measures as would tend
IN 40 oh Sn far thA - IAN
foreign relations was concerned however
the subject was too immature to enable Mr. Ed
munds to mako any public declaration as to how
the matter stood, or what ought to be done
about it.
Mr.. Dawes remarked that it could not have
escaped the observation of the committee that
armed cruisers of the Canadian government
were about the waters of the borders of the
three mile limit, in search of American vessels,
in order that they might, under some pretense
or other, seize them. In the entire absence of
any armed vessel of the United States in these
waters to protect our fishermen in the exercise
Of lawful rights, the question arose whether that
lack was owing to want of power to protect
our citizens.
Mr.. Edmunds said that no legislation was
necessary unless it might be by appropriation
of money, and hardly that to enable the Presi-
dent OF the United States. who is Commander
ln-chief of our army and navy, to send out any
vessel Of the United States IL we happened TO
have one that could swim. He Mr.. Edmundsl
believed we had one that could swim-one that
had been trying for several months to swim
and had succeeded every time in swimming but
had not yet. he believed, succeeded in getting
into the service of the United States. Mr. Ed
munds presumed it would not be considered
discourteous to express the hope that a ship Of
the United States would In due time appear in
the northern seas, at proper distance from the
shores of her Majesty's dominion, to give some
little encouragement to American citizens en-
gagged in lawful pursuits.
Mr.. Hale stated the circumstances that gave
rise to the dispatch received from Eastport, Me-,
relating to an order said to have been issued by
the Canadian authorities affecting the herring
fisheries of the Canadian people themselves and
their business in herrings with the people of
Maine This matter seemed to Mr. Hale to be
the gravest that had appeared on the fisheries
question. If the rumor was correct that the
Canadian authorities had given directions to
break up that industry of their own people, In
more profound mischief than had been hereto
fore evinced. Whatever could be done by the
State Department to bring to the knowledge, not
only of tho fishermen of Maine and Massachu-
aetts, but of the people of the United States.
just what the fundamental purpose of the OF
tawa government was would be q benefit to
people. No question had been before the State
Department for some time that was more grave
and of more moment than this question. Con-.
gress had already acted, and had put into the
nanuS OF the TfeSluent the power oI Ht anu Ju-
dicous retaliation which must be exercised as
an administrative and not rs legislative power
Mr. Hale was bound to say that the people he
represented and the people of the United States
generally. were looking with anxiety to see the
administration come up to what had been the in
tention of Congress.
On the suggestion Of Mr. Doph who desires
to be absent for a few days. the Northern Pa
cfc forfeiture bill was postponed till Monday
next.
On motion Of Mr.. Edmunds. the bill indemni-
flying the Chinese for losses sustained in the
Rock Springs. Wy. IT,. riot was taken up. and
Mr. Mitchell addressed the Senate on it. arguing
at length against the legal or moral obligation to