Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1888-10-25
THE WORK OF CONGRESS.


The Longest Session In the History OF the
Country - Work Completed and Stih
Pending.
WASHINGTON. Oct 20.-To-day at one
O'Clock the first session OF the Fiftieen
Congress ended-the longest continuous
session in the history OF nearly century
of Congresses, having lasted 81 days.
The longest previous session ran 3O2 days,
ending September 80
Apart from the protracted 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 3641 bills and 62l
joint resolutions were presented, and ia
the House the record ran up to the un-
equaled figures of II, ,59S bills and $50 joint
resolutions, making the grand total of
15,5S5 measures introduced in one session.
In the Senate 2 394 measures were re-
ported back from committees and placed
on the calendar-a much larger proper
ton than in the House, where S.3O0 meas
ures of the total number of II, ,S2S intro
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-Gen-
eral Sheridan General of the army; to es-
tablish 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 mportance-repealing the Pre-
emption and Timber Culture law and pro-
viding a general homestead law and de-
claring forfeiture of unearned railroad
land grants.
Pending before the Senate is the House
Tariff bill and the Senate substitute. The
Senate passed bills to divide Dakota anO
to admit the southern half as State and
to aid the common schools (the Blair bilD,
but they never reached the House for
action. In the Senate the same thing can
lie said of the following bills which passed
the House: The Fisheries Retaliation bill,
the passage of which was recommended
by the President; authorizing the issue of
fractional silver certificates; allowing the
regulation by States of railways chartered
by the United States.
The following are the most important
bills unacted upon in the Senate calendar:
For the admission of Montana and Wash
ington Territories; to prohibit the alco-
holic liquor traffic; to declare trusts un-
lawful. The following measures. of inn
portance were reported from House COM
mittees and are still on the House calen-
dar: To refund the direct tax Ia 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 Interstate 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-
OeC tn ho INIT OF
the free coinage of silver; to repeal the
Oleomargarine act; to provide naval re-
serve; the Hennepin canal bill; to reduce
letter postage to l 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 ad-
vertisements; to lay a graduated income
tax; for 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
ica; to break up trusts, and various meas
ures proposing changes in the pension.
tariff and financial laws.
The most important private bills of this
session were 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 were never acted upon by
the House.