The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-08-06
The Final List of Nominees Who We're Re-
lieved from Anxiety by Receiving the
Favorable Action of the Senate.
Explanation of the Reason Why Senator
Payne'S Case Was Not Investigated.
Tribute to Speaker Carlisle from His Repub-
lican Friends-The River and Harbor Bill
Approved General WashingtonNe News.
THE WORK OF CONGRESS.
Summary of Some of the More Important
Bills That Became Laws.

|
Bills That Became Laws.
| WASHINGTON, Aug 5-The first session of
the Forty ninth Congress, which ended to-day,
began on Monday, Dec. T. 1885, and covered a
period of seven months and twenty-eighs days.
or 241 days, exclusive of Sundays OF this time
| the Senate was in session 164 days, and the
House l85 days. During that time there were
introduced into the House 13202 measures, Of
which l0014 were House bills, and 214 House
joint resolutions, and 2 S91 bills aud SO joint res
olutions of the Senate. The measures proposed
4 for enactment into lawsexceeded in number by
2,949 those introduced at the first session Of the
Forty eighth Congress-, which sat for seven
months and four days, or 165 days of actual
working time. They covered all sorts of subjects,
| from the payment of laborer at the Capitol
| for extra services to the complex questions of
tariff legislation and legislation with respect to
the national finances. OF the entire number.
comparatively few were of what may be termed
| national Importance. The greater number were
| measures of private nature or of merely local
Importance. such as relief and pension bills; bills
for the erection of public buildings for bridging
rivers; for granting richtofway to railroads
through military or Indian reservations; for the
removal of political disabilities; for changing
judicial districts; for establishing new land
Offices for changing the names or location, or in
creasing the capital stock of national banks; for
printing public documents etc. very
small percentage of the whole number of bills
introduced. of either general or private nature
became laws a comparatively small
number succeeded in getting through
&aa
referred and reaching the calendars OF their re-
spective houses; some secured passage in the
House in which they originated but failed of nc
ton in the other branch and very large num-
ber still remain uncopsidered by the committees
to which they were referred. The total num-
Der of measures that passed both houses was
1,l0l, being 241 Senate bills and $50 bills which
originated in the House. OF this total 8O6 be-
came laws with the Presidents approval, aud
l8l became laws by limitation, the President fall
ing either to approve or disapprove them within
ten days after their presentation to him. lib were
vetoed and one failed by reason of adjournment
without action by the President OF the new
laws TAG were House measures and 24l Senate
measures. The laws that became such by limi-
tation were, with two exceptions, private pen
bill to authorize the Kansas City, Fort Scott &
Gulf railway to construct railway through the
Indian Territory and that to retire Lieutenant
Randall
or the measures vetoed by the President,
thirty-six were Senate bills and seventy seven
House bills Twenty. eight of the Senate bills
vetoed were private pension bills; throe were for
the erection of public buildings lat Dayton, O..
Sioux City. Ia. and GAINESVILLE, O. J: one was to
grant to railroads the right of way through the
Indian reservation in northern Montana; one to
make Springfield Mass, q port of delivery; one
to provide that the bodies of paupers, criminals.
and strangers dying within the District of Co
lumbia, unclaimed within specifei time after
DEATH shall be turned over to the medical col.
ege, and to quiet title to settlers OH the Des
Moines river lands. and one to provide for the
construction of bridge over Lake Champlan
OF the House bills disapproved by the President
seyenty-four were private pension bills and three
were for the erection of public buildings The
proposed public buildings were for Asheyil:e. N
c., Duluth, Minn. and Springfield, Mo-
The number of measures vetoed during the
session was four more than have been vetoed
from the foundation of the government to the
beginning of the session just closed. While
nearly all OF the vetoed bills of the Senate were
reported back from committees with the recon-
mendation that they pass notwithstanding the
Presidents objection, and while similar action
was taken on some of the House bills, only one
THAT granting pension to Jacob Romiser) was
passed by the two houses over the veto. The
Des Moines river bill passed the Senate over the
h,,t 20; al -
thirds vote in the House Motions to pass the
bills tolgrant a pension to Mary Anderson and
Andrew j. Wilson over the Presidents veto were
defeated in the House. The consideration of the
other veto messages has been postponed until
the next session.
The measures of general Importance that have
been enacted into laws during the session in ad-
diton to the regular appropriation bills are rs
follows: The presidential succession bill; to
provide for the study of the nature and effect
of alcoholic drinks and narcotics; to remove the
charge of desertion against soldiers who re-en-
listed without having received a discharge from
the regiments in which they had previously
served; to legalize the incorporation of national
trades-unions; to give the receiver of national
bank the power to buy in any property OF the
bank sold under foreclosure when necessary to
protect his trust; to regulate the promotion of
graduates of the United States Military Acad-
amy; to permit the owners of United States mer-
chant vessels and of any property on board there
of to sue the United States for damages by col
lision arising from mismanagement of any gov
ernment vessel; accepting the Grant
medals and trophies; to provide
that surveyed lands granted TO
railroads coterminous with completed portions of
such roads and in organized counties. shall not
be exempt from local taxation on account Of the
lien OF the United States upon them for the costs
Of surveying, selecting or conveying them. III