New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-03-02
THE SESSION NEARLY ENDED.

Congress will adjourn Wednesday, and is work
ing with an energy which would have been very
much in order earlier in the session. But 1t Is
getting some good work done, and has al
ready passed in both houses several of the i'm
portant measures which were mentioned lew
DAYS ago as especially desirable. The Direct Tax
bill has gone to the President, and it is presumed
that he will approve it. Though scarcely any
other measure has ever caused more prolonged
legislative deadlock than this, the opposition to
it was from the first mainly sectional and the re-
funding of the money placed at the disposal OF
the Government by this tax excited the Ire oil
hose who we're then in rebellion because 1T helped
to defeat them. The bill for the relief OF the
Supreme Court has also gone to the President,
and will doubtless be signed 1t will make I'M
portant oranges in the Federal system OF luns-
prudence and to great number of persons VINO
have unsettled suits pending will give ardy
but greatly needed justice.
The Postal Subsidy bill has passed both
houses. though the rate adopted in the House Is
third lower than that OF the Senate bill, ana there
is possibility that an agreement may not ne
reached The disposition OF some Democratic
parsans TO talk the measure to death IS Voclfer-
ously encouraged by few newspapers, and the
temptation to play the demagogue instead OF
benehting the country is always to be feared IN
the Senate. which has as yet to its disgrace, no
rules to protect its members against tyrannlcal
usurpation of power by one man. But as the
Senate has passed the bill once, excepting the
higher rates, an attempt to talk it to death would
involve a peculiarly fragrant breach OF "cour-
tesy.n The Copyright ill has also gone to
~ ctr Gyn qSIO
by the House against the Senate amendment,
and there is reported better prospect that 1t
may be passed. Another useful measure which
has passed. is the repeal of the Timber Culture
act. and it is to be hoped that the fragrant abuses
which have sprung up under that law may now
be arrested.
The appropriation bills are now SO well ad-
yanced that there seems to be no need whatever
of an extra session. unless bad temper or political
| demagogsm takes the place of commonsense in
one house or the other. The amounts voted are
necessarily larger than heretofore, on account
of the material increase in pensions and the
Direct Tax refundlng but there is also reason 10
| fear that too many public building jobs and other
measures of doubtful prcpriety have been or
| NAV be rushed through when the minds of legis-
| be valuable service to the country, and TO the
Republican party as well, il the leaders OF that
party would give their especial attention during
the closing hours of the session to the prevention
of unwise or excessive appropriations. In spite
of the INSCRIPTIONS criticism OF political oppo-
nents, the work of this Congress has been Oh the
whole highly praiseworthy thus far, not merely
| because it has passed some admirable measures
of the greatest Importance, but because the ef-
forts against jobbery and pilfering have been
unusually earnest, and in most cases effectual.
But especial care will be needed from this time
to the end to keep the record as clean as pos
sible.
The one great error Of the session has been the
defeat of the Election bill, which can no longer
be passed. The great merit Of the session has
been the summary execution of the Silver bill,
which has been hanged until it is dead. The
| fanatics who wanted free coinage might possibly
have carried their point at one time had they
not allied themselves with the election swindlers
and vote stcalers. The consequences would
have been so disastrous that their defeat may yet
prove to have been worth all that 1t cost.