The west Tennessee star. (Bolivar, Tenn.) 1888-1888, 1888-10-26
THE LONGEST SESSION.


The Session Of Congress just Closed the
Longest on ReeOrd-SOme Idea of the
Work Cut Out and That Accomplished
One Hundred and Twenty Nine Vetoes.
WASHINGTON. Oct. 2a The firs5 session
of the FIfdeth Congress, which closes
this afternoon, viii exceed by nine
teen days the length Of the session of any
previous Congress since the foundation
of the Government When the United
Press, at the close of the first nine
months of the session, on the tenth of
last month, gave a resume Of the work
accomplished, there had been introduced
in the house during the session II, 362, and
in the Senate $500 bills and joint reso-
lutions-in all, 1882.
There had been submitted from the
committees to the House 3, 407 and to the
Senate 2, 172 written reports. The Presi-
dent had sent to the House "a vetoes, and
to the Senate 33-in all 81, during the ses-
sion. Of the total number Of bills intro
dueed in the House 1856 were for private
pensions, while 523 similar bills came
from the Senate. These were referred to
the committee on Invalid pensions in the
House, together with I95 general bills-in
all 1858, and that committee had made
l,O25 favorable and 273 adverse reports,
while the Senate committee on PEN
sions had received /, ,194 Senate and $50
House bills-a total of liza, upon
which favorable reports were made to the
aggregate of 1883 Senate and 545 House
bills. There were also $50 adverse re-
ports made by the Senate committee-a
total Of 1,234 reports upon the whole 1, 744
bills referred to that committee. From
this immense mass Of legislative sugges-
tions, 27S general measures became laws
and 656 pension and other private bills
had gone upon the statute books during
the first nine months of the session. AL
though the time of the Senate has been
apparently almost exclusively confined
to the discussion of the tariff, and the
House has been waiting upon the
pleasure of the upper branch of Congress,
the above figures have been very mate.
rally increased since September 10. The
number of bills introduced in the House
has been increased to II, ,59S, in the SEN
ate to 1859, and the reports from COM
mittees in the House have gone up to
3,552, while the Senate has increased its
reports to 1884. The House has brought
up its total number Of JOINT resolutions
introduced to 230, and the Senate to 115.
The House executive documents have in
creased in number to 455, its miscellaneous
documents to 595, while in the Senate the
executive documents have increased in
number to 281, and the miscellaneous
documents to 20S, making the total num-
Der Of executive and miscellaneous docu-
ments received by both Houses during the
session which will end tomorrow, 1889.
The President has sent TO the Senate 40
VetOes, and to the House SO, during the
session. total of 129.
The public or general acts (laws) aggre-
gate 307, and joint resolutions Al, while
the private acts have been in
creased to 762. and private reso-
lutions number 8, making a total
Of L, ,113 acts during the session. These
are the figures shown on the official rec
ords kept by Mr.. A. Smith, superintend-
ent Of the Senate document room, and this
total number, he informs the United
Press, will be brought up to about l. 175
when the records are complete, there
being probably sixty general and private
laws not yet recorded, but signed by the
President or viii be permitted to become
laws without his sign ature
The bills Of general Importance which
have become laws since the resume of
the session given by the United Press at
the close of the first nine months are as
follows:
Restricting Chinese immigration (two).
Making appropriation for appraisers
warehouse in New York City.
Detailing officers of the army and navy
! for educational purposes in State col
Ieges.
Broadening the scope of the present law
relating to postal crimes.
Making appropriations for numerous
light houses and fog signals on the great
lakes.
Providing for boards of arbitration for
railroads.
Three regular appropriation bills have
become laws since September 10-the
Sundry Civil, which was approved Octo-
Der 2; the regular A rmy Appropriation
bill and the Fertilization Appropriation
| bill. The latter two we're signed by the
President September D. The General De-
6ciency bill is yet in the hands of the
President.
Very vOluminous calenders go over in
each House to the second session of the
Fiftieth Congress, which convenes on
Monday December 3. The House calen-
dar is composed of 102 pages, and gives
the titles to about 1890 bills, while the
Senate calendar has % pages and about
400 bills. These figures are exclusive of
the indexes to the calendars. It is ar
/ venes in its second session, the Senate
| wall go right along with its DIS
cussiOn of the tariff, while the House
| Will Immediately take up the fourteen
regular annual appropriation bills, with
a view to sending them to the Senate by
1 the time the latter body has completed
/ its consideration of the tariff. 1t is also
/ understood that there will not be the reg
/ ular two weeks vacation during the
/ Christmas and New z ear holidays. There
! may be a vacation Of three or four days
/ at Christmas.