The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1886-03-10

what the Presidents reasons were in exer-
cising an official act Those reasons must be
tremendously sacred" if the facts were
never to be revealed lest the reasons also
1'he Jurisdiction of Congress was infinitely
broader than that of the President. This
was executive power. Congress made the
laws, and when the Constitution commands
him to give Congress information on The
state of the Union" 1t says ne s1aIl 40 ":
knowledge of the two Houses OF congress
in respect to every operation Of the govern
ment and every one of It's officers.
There was no one thing, and no one SUP
ject that represented the state OF tne
Union" 1t was the constitution of the gov
ernment aud every part of it, not only its leg
islatiye parts about which the President
could communicate no information without
impertinence, for the Constitution had de-
clared the two Houses were to regulate them
selves, but he was to give to Congress, and
was positively commanded to do so, from
time to time information on the state of the
Union, and that is because Congress was en-
titled to have it every time they called for it,
and he violated positive command of the
Constitution when on constitutional call in
a regular way he omitted to comply with 1t.
Mr.. Edmunds said that the improvement in
public methods as far as we had yet gone,
would seem to be chiefly and most conspicu-
ously the suppression of public papers. He
referred to the appropriations to cover defic-
iencies for expenses in the department of
justice and asked if Congress had not a
right to ask for information as to how that
money would be expended. Mr.. Dustin, he
said, was one of the men who handled this
money, and was Congress not to know any
thing about it, merely because such informa-
ton might disclose the Presidents reasons
for making suspenSions2 The speaker sta
ted that the President with courage very
unique, had interjected his supplementary
report to the report of the minority commit
tee before the Senate had even considered
it, Mr.. EdmundS did not think it possible
to carry on the government in this way. He
thought that if the Senators were to act by
faith instead of knowledge they had no busi-
ness here.
Mr.. Edmunds cited the case between Presi-
dent jackson and the Senate in 1885, similar
to the present one between President Cleve-
land and the Senate, in which the Senate
asked President Jacks0ns reasons for max
ing a removal. The President replies "busi-
ness" The Senate thereupon refused to
confirm the successor nominated by the Presi-
dent and that ended the contest. From that
time to the present all species of information
had been given to the Senate when 1t called
for information in regard to suspensions or
removals.
President Jackson like all his predeces-
sors and all his successors until to-day felt
bound 10 give this information to Congress.
Mr.. Edmunds, cited an instance where in 1879
when the Senate was Democratic the chair
man of the judiciary committee had by a
resolution called on the Attorney General
for information as to the removal of terri
torlal officer and appointment Of his success
sor and got it. On other occasions such in
formation had been called for and obtained.
The President himself had sent to the Senate
643 instances of obedience to that law, 643
nominations under it, and Mr.. Edmunds
therefore took it that that law was still In
force.
Mr. Pugh rose to reply to Mr.. Edmunds
but gave way for motion to go into execu-
tive session.
At APT the Senate went into executive ses-
sion and half an hour later the doors were
reOpened and the Senate adjourned.
HOUSE.
The Speaker laid before the House the
response of the Secretary of the Navy to the
Boutelle resolution calling for information
in regard to the Norfolk navy yard.
Mr.. Boutelle of Maine asked unanimous
consent that the document be ordered print
ed and laid upon the table in order that he
might at some future time submit some re-
marks on it. He believed that the substan-
tial allegations made in his resolution were
sustained by the document.
Messrs. Beach of New York and Eden OF
Illinois objected to the request and the COM
munication was referred to the committee
on naval affairs.
Mr.. Collins of Massachusetts, from the
committee on judiciary, reported a bill to
provide for closing up business and paying
the expenses of the court of commissioners of
Alabama claims. House calendar.
In the morning hour the House resum ed
consideration of the bill requiring Pacific
railroads to pay the cost of surveying theil
lands and to take out patents therefor. II
the companies do not within 60 days from
the date of notification pay that money into
the Treasury, the attorney general shall in
stitute q suit in order to compel payment
The bill was passed without opposition.
On behalf of the committee ON labor Mr.
James of New York called up the bill to
prohibit any officer, servant or agent of the
government to hire or contract out the labor
of prisoners incarcerated for violating the
laws of the United States government.
Mr. James addressed the House on the bill
and at the conclusion of his remarks the bill
was passed, yeas 249, nays 8.
The House then went into committee OF
the whole on the Indian appropriation bill.
Mr.. Welborn of Texas briefly ran over the
appropriations made by the bill and com
pared them with those for the current year.
summing up with the statement that the
pending bill carried S., ,503, ,562 as against So
777.451 appropriated for the current year.
Mr.. Nelson of Minnesota advocated the
civilization of the Indians by establishment
of schools and granting of lands in several
ty.
Mr.. Throckmorton of Texas criticized the
present method followed by the government
in relation to the Indians. He advocated
the transfer of the Indian bureau to the War
Department and organization of the five
civilized nations into territory.
Pending further discussion the committee
rose and the House adjourned.