The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1886-08-18
THE WORK OF CONGRESS.
What Was Done During the Long
Session Just Closed.
Measures introduced and Passed, and
Bills Vetoed.

bills YeJ0oI'
The first session of the forty-ninth Con-
press, VIII ch has just ended, began on MOL
day. Decemcer Z, 1885, and covered perloo
of seven months AMI TWEEN y-eight DAYS, or2'l
days. exclusive O: Sundays o. this time the
Senate was in session 1Gl days and the house
| 1856 days. During that time there were In
troducei in the House 1904 bills ana
GA Joint resolutions, and in the Senate 2,s'l
| hills and S3 Joint resolutions, or total LOT
the two houses of 12,2O2 Th. greater NUM-.
| ber were measures Of a private nature, OF VI
local Importance only. ,-,d
| TIL, total number of measures tnaV pas?;Ia
both Houses was !, TO-, being Al Senate bills
| and $50 bills which originated in the ouse:
| or these |, 1,0J5 were received by the fresldenG
| and of that number Si4 were approved, -
became laws without the Pre5ldent slghas
| ture: Us were vetoed ,and9 faI tor "anC oL
signature nt time OF adlournniene, I'LL Sbn I dbs
not having expired since they reacheq lne
President. or the new laws TAG were House
measures and A1 Senate measures. Inc laws
that became such by Limitation were, WIZ
two exceptions, private pension ana re.leA
| bills. A., p..o.;d.nt
| thirty-si1 were Senate bills and Sc Ienty seven
House bills. Twenty-eight of the senate
hills vetoed were private pension bills; three
,rara for the erection Of public buildings at
DAYTON, Ohio; Sioux City, Iowa, and ZaneS-
Vile, Ohio; enc was to granI 10 ra az
roads the right Of way through ene
Indian reservation in northern mon,
tana: one to maze Springfield, Mass,
ncrt of delivery; one to provide that tue
| bodies Of paupers, crim;nl lis ana strangers
diving within the District of Columbia, un'
claimei within specified time atter nsaCn,
shall be turned over to the mealcai tIa,e1, t 9s,
| and one to quit titls to settlers on Tn; Des
Moines River lands, AMI one to provlde Ior
the constru :tion Of bridge over Aaho
0f The seyenty-seven Hous, bills dlsap.
nrovei by the President, seventy-toar Were
private pension bills and thres were Ior 1ng
erection of public buildings. Inc PROPOSE
oub;c hn ldings were for Asheville, N. C.;
6uluth. Minn., an Springfield, Mo-.
Tine number o; measure; vetoed durlnS
the session was four more than have oeeh
vetoed from the foundation OF the 9oVern.
ment to the beginning OF the session. S;IIS SIIS
closed, While nearly all of the vetoed Dills
of the Senats were reported back from com
njttees with the recommendation tnat tney
mass notwithstanding the Presidents oo|ec-
tion and. while similar action was TAKEN
ON some of the House bills, only one
that granting pension to joseph holnEel' heI
was passed by the two Houses oyer ~. ans natc s",
|
over the veto, but faile1 to receive the requl-
Site two-thirds vote in tn, HOUSE. Motlons
tn nass the bills to grant a pension 70 mary
Anderson and to Andrew j. Wilson over the
Presidents veto were defeated in the hou Q.
The consideration Of the other veto messages
has been postponed until the next session:
The meas Tres of general importance that
have been enacted into laws during the ses-
sion. in addition to the regular ap2roprlation
bills, are as follows: .,;5;,,o
for the succession to the otf1ce OF fresrte 40
moval. death, resignation, or inability OF
both the President and Vice President :,
To provide for the study Of the nature ana
effe,ts of ale oholic drinks and narcotlcS.
To remove thu charge of deSertlon asaaan,e an'e
soldiers who re.enlist without naGlng n'SS i~
received discharge from the regmeh1s III
which they hal previously served. N,.;o,,,
To leyalize the incorporation OF Natlonal
: The OIeomargarine bill providing for tai
of two cents pound on imitation butter arg %
recurring that the packages containing IL
The hill for the in rease of the navy. IL
, nrovides for the construction OF two sea-so
inc double-bottomed armored vessels oi
. about {. 600 tons displacement; one protectso
!, double. bottomed cruiser Of from 3,Ooo TO =
600 tons di ;placenel 1T; one frst'ciass torPe.r
|
double turretei monitors now pe @ NJ con. e,l-
structed 1t appropriate; $500, ,OO TOR @ t5e 1e
construction Of these vessels and Sl,OOJ,oJO
, for armament. ,.,:,
To provide that homestead settlers within
the railway limits restricte1 10 less tnaa l?O
acras Of land shall be entitled ID have their
additional entries patented without any
further proof of settlement and cultivation.
To reduce the fees on dom estic money or
ders for sums not exceeding IS, from cents
To enable national banking associations to
increase their cap tai sto *, ana ID chah5e
, | their naEes and locations. go.
! Authorizing the construction OF a buudlng
, for the accommodation of the Congressional
F Library .r..
To forfeit the lands granted to the Atlantic
aui Pacific Railroad Company, and rts'ore
the same to settlement
To increase to $l2 month the pensions OF
; widows and dependent relatives Of deceased
soldiers and sailors.
. Declaring forfeited certain land giants
! made to the States of Mississippi, Alablna
and louisiana
To direct the Comm; ;ss:oaer Of Labor t?
. make an Investigation as 10 tne con'ic'
labor. ...
! TO establish additional life-saving stations
a. various points on tho Atlantic and Pa
cfic coasts, and on the great lakes.
: II addition to the foregoing, the suoJect
matter of various spec al bills has been en-
, acted into law in the several appropriation
,, bills as follows: go,
In the Agricultural Appropriation bill
directing the Commissioner OF Agriculture
to pur :hase and destroy diseased animal;
whenever, in his Judgment, it is es ential to
prevent the spread of pleurc- pneumonia from
!, one Stats into another. -,
In the Legislative Appropriation bill
Creating the Office of Assistant Commissioner
Of Indian Affairs
. In the Sun;iry Civil Appropriation bill
{ Authorizing the Secretary Of the Treasury
. to issue silver certificates in denominations OF
= one, two, and five dollars: also appropria
. ting S46, ,00o for the establishment of an in
a dustrial home in Utah for wo nen wh> re-
!. nounce polygamy and for their children.
!, The important M asures which, after ds
q bate, were defeated in the Hons, in which
u they originated are: The Senate bill t. in
u crease the etiicien"y of the army; the House
! bill for the free coinage Of silver, and Sena
|. tor Vance's bill to repeal the Civil Service
= act
3 The one important measure that failed, by
U reason of the ad iournment of Congress be