The Monitor. [volume] (Woodstown, N.J.) 1884-1892, 1886-07-16
wasninSton I.eiter,
ftront chr regular correspondent.l
WASHINGTON, July u, 1886.

WAsHISGTOH, July II, 1886.
1t looks now as if Congress viii net fin
ish work and go home before August. ~
least the contest over the vetoed pension
bills and the situation ofthe Appropriation
bills in the Senate have caused our law
makers in both ends of the Capitol to settle
down to the idea Of such a fate. The pros
pect of sitting three weeks yet, and posi-
bly, longer, has a rather depressing effect
upon most of them. The obvious impro
priety of rcsorting to their shirt sleeves OF
of taking off their collars and cuffs when
they find it necessary to make a speech,
makes a long slmmer session very trying
to many who are in the habit OF taking
their ease in their W way when ut home.
A summer session generally melts away,
the melting beginning with the collar.
The Speaker sees collars dropping down
one after another. and knows that the mem.
bers will o disappear. Two or three
weeks of hot weather, and more than half
the House has dissolved 50 that there is not
a quorum present. The Forty-Fourth
Congress remained in session. | remember,
until the 10th of August. The Democrats
had gotten the asccndency for the first
time after the war,and the impeachment OF
Belknap and other matters kept them here,
but they had a hard time getting a quorum.
The members had to be sent for and com
PEELED to attend the sessions.
Death has been busy in Congress since
the present Administration came into
power. He has not respected parties, and
both sides and both branches of Congress
have suffered. Nice-PreSidcnt Hendricks
and Senator Miller, of California, have
passed away from the Senate Chamber,
while from the House were called Repre-
scntatives Evans, Rankin, Elwood, Dun
can. Hahn, and Cole. This is probably as
long a death roll as any previous session
can show.
There has been much exciting discussion
in Congress over the vetoed pension bills.
During one of the StormieSt sessions of The
House. after one Republican Member after
another had arraigncd the President in
language more positive than parliamentary,
Gov Curtin of pcnnsvlvania no,,rcd oil
nnon tbe tronblod waters by onotino AN
ancient rhyme. He first bespoke for the
President decent respect and decent speech,
said he did not know what the pending bill
wos ,hort hnt the Uousc had raolyed il
sa,f info nolitieaI mcetintr ..Sunn,sc that
Momhers aui1 ouarrolino and tnrn thcir
a++o,tia, =, n,hiie hn.inoss Lat i1,nn re.
momhor that t1eir mothers tanobt Them
Let dogs delight 10 bark ana bite
For God has made nhcm So.
Let bears and ions sfewl and heht
:" w. ~ ,,n, 81,
mad
To >tratch each others eyes out, etc.
When the laughter had subsidized, MI.
Alien, Of Mississippi. spoke. lie said he
Thought he ought to apologize for discuss
ing pension matters, as he had been 4
Confederate private. 1t was said that
Coniederates ought to have thought of this
matter Of pensions twenty-five years ago.
He ackuow lodged that. at The beginning If
the war, he had not given the matter that
due consideration 10 which it had probably
been entitled Laughter. lie had been
quite a young hey thcn, but along about
the third year Of the war be began to think
seriously about il, and SO much had he
been impressed with the fact that the
course he was pursuing would bankrupt
the United States Government in pension
ing tile widows ct the soldiers he Was kill
ing, that finally gun in hand he rctrcatcd
across five or six States With the enemy in
has front rather than STAY q whole army.
The summer social season has closed
with Mrs. Clcyeland's last midday rcccp-
ton. which was held ON Friday She held
six of these in all, and some regret was
expressed that they Werc to be discontin-
ucd. Dnring her brief s%ojourn at the