The Brookhaven leader. [volume] (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1883-1891, 1891-03-12

number of important measures that be-
came laws. Wyoming and Idaho were
admitted to statehood, making the num-
Der of states forty-four. A general
land-grant forfeiture bilL providing for
the forfeiture to the government of all
unearned lands granted to aid in con-
struction of railroads opposite portions
OF roads uncompleted at the time of the
passage of the law, opened new lands to
settlement.
The prohibition of American meat
from certain foreign markets brought
about the passage of the law to provide
for the inspection of meats intended for
export The bills to prohibit the expor.
tation of adulterated articles of food
and drink and to enable the president
to prevent the importation of impure
and adulterated articles of food and
drink are worthy of special mention,
while among the less important, but
generally interesting laws enacted were
the following:
Providing for an additional assistant Sec
rotary of the navy and an assistant secretary
of war.
Providing for the expectation Of fermented
liquor in bond without payment of internal
revenue tax.
Extending the criminal jurisdiction of the
federal courts to the great lakes.
Increasing to SO per month the pensions OF
those permanently disabled.
Directing the superintendent OF the census
TO collect statistics of farms and mortgaged
indebtedness
For the PRONUNCIATION by the president of
regulations to prevent the spread of conta-
gious diseases from one state to another
Granting certificates of discharge to those
who enlisted under assumed names in the
war of the rebellion.
To prevent the importation from one state
into another of goods prohibited by the lat
ter state, except in original packages.
To prevent collisions at sea-
To apply a portion of the proceeds of the
sale of public lands to the endowment and
support of agricultural colleges.
Transferring the weather bureau from the
signal corps to the agricultural department.
Providing for naval armament experiments
with nickel ore and matte.
Authorizing the postmaster general to test
the free. delivery system in small towns.
Frequent complaints concerning the
inefficiency of our federal immigration
laws brought about the enactment in
the second session of a measure aimed
to correct the alleged abuses. This bill
was prepared by a joint committee of
the senate and house after a thorough
investigation. 1t makes the contract
labor law more binding in some partic-
ulars and less obnoxious in others, and
extends and strengthens the law con-
corning the exclusion from the United
States of improper persons from foreign
countries.
The enactment of a measure to extend
the jurisdiction of federal courts will
undoubtedly relieve the overcrOwded
docket of the United States supreme
court. The act provides for additional
circuit judges, who will call, in conjunc-
ton with justices of the federal supreme
court, an intermediary appellate circuit
court, in certain cases between the lower
courts and the highest judicial tribunal
in the country.
Another measure of Importance that
became law in the second session was
the direct-tax bill, which provides for
refunding the amounts levied in certain
states under the direct war tax of 1861.
This bill became famous in the Fifty
first congress through the long and
weary deadlock in the house of repre-
sentatives caused by the efforts to pass
it. 1t was disposed of quietly and
without any great show of resistance in
the congress just closed.