Los Angeles daily herald., 1888-01-27
THE COUNCIL CHAMBER
Pension Allowances Grant
ed by the Senate.
A NUMBER OF BILLS PASSED.
SpOOner's Proposition Regarding
the Regulation Of. Tele-
graph Commerce.
| Associated Press Dispatches to the HERALD |


WASHINGTON, January 26. - The
Senate to-day took from the calendar
and passed the bill increasing the
pension for total deafness to $50 a
month, from $13, and allowing pro-
portionate rating for partial deafness.
The entire increased expense to the
Treasury under the bill will not ex-
ceed $100, 900 year.
MRS. LoGAN's PENSION.
The bill to grant a pension of $4,000
a year to the widow of General Logan
then came up for discussion.
Berry opposed the bill on the ground
that it was wrong in principle.
Stewart advocated the bill. He
said that General Logan had been the
idol of the volunteer soldiers on all
occasions when he had fought their
battles. He believed that the widows
of all private soldiers would rejoice in
the passage of the bill. 1t was neces-
sary for the country to have some
conspicuous examples, something for
the young men of the hereafter to
emulate.
Senators Hoar and Davis spoke in
favor of the bill.
Reagan stated his reason for voting
against the bill. The founders of the
government had prohibited Congress
and States from comforting patents OF
nobility, proceeding on the idea that
there was to be no privileged class in
the United States. For three-quarters
of a century that went, but within
the last quarter of a century the prin-
ciple had been disregarded, and Fed
eral Judges and military and naval
officers had been retired with pen
sions. All Of this. tended in the di-
rection of privileged class to be sup
ported by taxes levied on the other
people.
Berry called for yeas and nays and
the bill passed, yeas 55, nays 7. The
negative votes were given by Messrs.
Berry, Cole, Colquitt, Harris, Reagan,
Salisbury and Vance. The name was
corrected so as to read Mary S. Lo-
gan, not Mary A.
On motion Of Vest, a like bill, in
creasing to $4,000 a year the pension
of the widow of General Frank P.
Blair. was passed by vote Of 81 to 6,
Mr.. Salisbury not voting.
BILLS PASSED.
The calender was taken up and the
bills thereon taken up in their regular
order, those objected to being laid
aside without action. The following
were passed:
Bill to extend limits to the port of
Portland, Or, as port of entry.
Senate bill to amend act Of 10th
June, 1880, as to immediate trans
portation of dutiable goods, extending
the act to Seattle and Tacoma, w. 7.
Also, to create port of delivery at
Port Angeles in the district of Puget
Sound, w. 7.
Also, granting to the State of Cali
fornia 5 per cent. of the proceeds of
the cash sale of public lands in that
State.
sPooNER'S PROPOSITION.
A bill was introduced by Senator
Spooner to regulate the commerce
carried on by telegraph. 1t defines
the term telegraph company" as
used in the bill to mean persons or
corporations engaged in interstate
telegraphy for hire. In telegraphy
between foreign countries and the
United States it declares that
the charges shall be reasonable
and Just, and that it shall be
unlawful for any Company to give
unreasonable preference or advantage
to any persons, company, corpo alton,
locality or class of business, or SUBJ
jet or any unreasonable discrimi.
nation; that each company shall
afford reasonable and equal facil-
tiles to the connecting line,
and shall not discriminate in rates
and charges between the connecting
lines. Section six requires the
telegraph companies to publish their
rates with the Interstate Commerce
Commission and notify the COM
mission ten days beforehand Of any
proposed changes. The sections OF
the bill give the Interstate Commerce
Commission jurisdiction over the
Interstate telegraph business.