The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1888-10-26
THE WORK OF CONGRESS.
The Longest Session In the History OF the
Country - Work Completed and Still
Pending.


The Longest Sesaion In the History Of tho
Country - Work Completed and Still
Pending.
WASHINGTON. Oct. 20.-To-day at one
O'Clock the first session of the Fiftieth
Congress ended-the longest continuous
session in the history Of nearly a century
Of Congresses, having lasted 321 days.
The longest previous session ran 800 days,
ending September 80.
Apart from the proyacted but interest
ing discussion of the tariff question in
both houses and the unparalleled dead
lock in the consideration of the bill to re-
fund the direct tax, the session has been
remarkable in several ways, but in none
more than in the enormous number Of
measures introduced in both branches.
In the Senate 3,64l bills and CT
joint resolutions were presented, and in
the House the record ran up to the I'M
equaled figures of II, 5as bills and go joint
resolutions, making the grand total Of
| Is ,5S5 measures introduced in one session.
In the Senate 2, 1894 measures were re-
ported back from committees and placed
on the calendar-a much larger proper
ton than in the House, where S.305 meas
duced still slumber in the committee rooms.
Among the measures of public interest
that have become laws are the fol.
lowing: Relating to the permissi-
BILE marks on mail matter; for the
division of the Sioux reservation; for
| a conference with the South and Central
| American nations, limiting the hours of
letter carriers: making Lieutenant-G Gen.
/ lnft To
tablish a department Of labor; for an in
ternational maritime conference; requir-
| ing the Pacific railroad companies to
maintain telegraph lines; to prohibit the
coming of Chinese laborers to the United
States; to create boards of arbitration to
settle controversies between common car
riers and their employees; to prevent the
return Of Chinese laborers to this country;
to aid State homes for disabled soldiers,
and changing the date of meeting Of the
Electoral College.
In the next stage-that is, in conference
| between the two houses-are two bills of
the first MISUNDERSTANDING the Pre-
emption and Timber Culture law and pro-
viding a general homestead law and de-
| claring forfeiture Of unearned railroad
land grants.
|
Tariff bill and the Senate substitute. The
, Senate passed bills to divide Dakota and
| to admit the southern half as State and
| to aid the common schools (the Blair bill),
but they never reached the House for
action. In the Senate the same thing can
be said of the following bills which passed
the House: The Fisheries Retaliation bill,
| the passage of which was recommended
.,,;,x <hat ~
| fractional silver certificates; allowing the
regulation by States of railways chartered
| by the United States.
The following are the most important
bills Enacted upon in the Senate calendar:
For the admission of Montana and WASH
| ington Territories; to prohibit the alco-
holic liquor traffic; to declare trusts I'M
lawful. The following measures of i'm
portance were reported from House COM
mittees and are still ON the House calen-
dar: To refund the direct tax "a vote on
which will be taken early in December
next under an agreement by which the
memorable deadlock over this bill was
broken); for the payment OF arrears OF
pensions; requiring the investment Of the
National bank redemption fund in circu-
lating notes; the Pacific Railroad Funding
bill debated but never reached the point
of action) to include telegraph companies
in the Inter State Commerce act; to pro-
mote commercial union with Canada; to
incorporate the Nicaragua Canal Com
pany; and for the organization Of the Ter
ritory of Oklahoma debated but never
finally voted on.)
The following are important Senate bills
which slumber in committees: Request
ing the President to open negotiations
with Great Britain looking to the annexa-
ton of Canada to the United States; for
the free coinage of silver; to repeal the
Oleomargarine act; to provide a naval re-
serve; the Hennepin canal bill; to reduce
letter postage to / cent; to grant woman
suffrage, and measures proposing radical
changes in the Governments financial
policy.
The following are original House bills
which likewise never got out of commit
tees: To repeal the internal revenue laws
and the tobacco tax; to prohibit the mail
ing of newspapers containing lottery adj
vertisements; to lay a graduated income
tax; for q bounty on sugar; to repeal the
civil-service laws; for full reciprocity be-
tween the United States and Canada; to
restrain judicial proceedings to be
brought against the Pacific railroads; to
provide more efficient mail service be-
tween the United States and South Amer
lea; to break up trusts, and vario US meas
ures proposing changes in the pension.
tariff and financial laws.
The most important private bills of this
session We're those pensioning Mrs. Logan
and Mrs. Frank p. Blair, both of which be-
came laws, and the bills to pension Mrs.
Waite and Mrs. Sheridan, which passed
the Senate but We're never acted upon by
the House.