Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1886-01-19
DAILY Post. INTeLLIGENcER
ras uaeuyur Of essssEss.

TEE IsAenvfrY sF eesssEss'
Six weeks have passed since the 10
ginning Of the session Of Congress- ano
in farming over the leaves Of ins C0A
grssssonaI R,e0rd ops esanot help WOO
dsring hov on earth Congress has n'ao-
ssed 10 do % little 10 20 long tine
The sbsoIsts blindness Of Congress to
the interests Of the eouoify and TOE
people almost eempeis the belief thai
there 10 something wrong IN car system
Of government So that some rsdissi
change could be made 70 tbs advantage
Of the people.
So far a. the COED Of the general
Sable 10 concerned, the SIX ~eek- tha'
have passed have been a. nearly wasted
a. IL 10 p.s.ibie fer siX weeks 70 Dc
The bill granting sension 70 the Sidos
Of 0spsrai Grant 10 the oolJ bill shsen
has become a law. lbs bill regulating
the Presidential succession has passed
the Senate and IL nov before the House
With q probability Of its passage before
many days The Edmunds polyRamy
bill has also passed the senate bat has
not We, come up 10 the Hue With
these exceptions the pablo business has
been slmos, npIsiely neglected, and
there Is every indication that IL .iIl
continue 10 be 20 neglected during the
greater part Of the session.
Thus far. the time Of the senate, ex-
csps that oscu pied in the discussion OF
the bills alluded TO. has been taken up
BY tys discussions, both OF shieh wiil
have 10 be repestsd later In she session.
The discussion on Bsek's silver resoiu-
ton will be gone over again when 9 bill
dealing With the question of silver coin
age has been reported from toe Com
mitsse on Finance. and that on Buffers
Dskota resolution will be IN order once
more when the bill fof the admission OF
that Territory IL reported by the Com
nit.se on Territories sBd the saestioD
Of admission Is sqaarely before the
Senate. TAs time Of the House has
been occupied largely in the discussion
Of the rules and the introdustion OF
bills and memorials. Il can scarcely
be said that either house has got 50 aarsS
" down 10 solid work.
The outlook for The remainder Of the
session IL not very encouraging. The
question of sdaitIing Dakota will
probably be discussed at great length.
IL would be rash TO predict how many
weeks IL may OCCUPY before It IL finally
settled. Then uill come silver discus
sion, WHICH will be almost intermiaable,
There is not the sliRhtes: probability
that the present Congress will make any
change 10 the coinaee laws. bat the dis
sassion will take place iast the same.
Tbes Morrison meditates the preciPita
tioa of another disou .sion, which will
be longer, and, II possible. less useful
than the silver discussion. His tariff
bill will be theme for eloqueuce which
will probably occupy all of the session
that 10 left after the financial me .sures
have been disposed Of. There IL no
popular demand for q change In the
revenue laws. and there is no possibility
that Congress will make any change.
bat that will not interfere With the dis
enssion at all. The bill will be intro
duced, argued and fought over, and
finally defeated. The session would
scarcely be complete without ii. Thsn,
too. IL will be Surprising IL Fi'z john
Porter does not come ambling along
with little bill which will occupy any
time that may DO left after the tarif IL
disposed Of.
In the meantime the questions that
really demand a solution. the questions
In which the people are vitality inter
ested. are untouched and almost unoon
sidered. The Chinese question. the
forfeiture question, the inter. oceanic
canal question, are forced to give way
10 long and useless disoussions Of bills
that cannot under any circumstances
become laws. No provision Is made fol
tho boildipe Of q navy and mons for sh.
erection OF coast defenses, although II
oil the time becomes more and NOR,
evident that the day when we shall
sand 10 sore need Of ships and fortifi
cations may not be a. many years In
the future ~ optimistic dreamer.
would have Us believe. There are M
meroas other measures which the people
demand. but Congress seems to think
nothing Of them.
I, 10 nnsccountable aud distressing
that Congress aud public sentiment
Should drift 30 far apart. The ques
lions that agitate the people are scarcely
felt BY Congress, and the questions tha,
snaross the attention Of Congress are
rarely those which excite the creates,
interest among the people. Thus ses
siens are wasted, thoaah the people pay