The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1892-08-09
REVIEW OF THE WORK OF THE
DYING SESSION.
OVER -FOUR HUNDRED new LAWS.
Over Il, 900 Bills Were Introduced In the
Senate and House but Only About
Ono Fourth Of That Number Were
Reported Back From the Com
mittees - Investigations
Were q Feature.

WASHINGTON, Aug. AFTER a ses-
sion of eight months the first ses-
sion of the Flfty-second congress is
about to end, and a review of its work
may prove interesting.
The house devoted the first two
months of its session to the discussion
an adoption of a code of rules, afteI
which the regular business was taken
up Bills to the number of ST.. have
been introduced in the house and re-
ferred to committee. OF this number
2,l15 have been reported and placed
on the calendar, about $50 of which
have passed the house.
The most important measures con-
sidered by the house, excepting the
general appropriation bills. were the
silver bill; the tariff measures report
ed from the ways and means committee;
the Chinese exclusion act; the Inter
mediate and army nurse pension bills;
the bill to enforce reciprocal CONNER
cial relations with Canada; the bill in
:reasing the pay of life saving crews;
to establish lineal promotion in the
army; for better control of
national banks in regard to loaning
money to directors and officers. and to
add the secretary of agriculture to the
cabinet officers who may act as presi-
dent in certain contingencies. The
silver bill failed in the house, as did
also the free coinage bill which passed
the senate; the several tariff bills
passed by the house failed in the SEN
ate, as did also the bills providing for
the admission of New Mexico and
Arizona as states.
OF the 3,492 bills introduced in the
senate 1,1O2 were reported upon by
committees, and 700 of them passed.
Among the most important measures
passed by the senate and not acted
upon by the house were the following:
To facilitate the claims for arrears of
pay and bounty, for the construction
of revenue cutters, two each;
the pure food" bill, to in
crease the rate of pension for GER
tain cases of deafness, to fix the price
of lands entered under the desert
land laws, to authorize the secretary
of war to cause survey to be made
for a ship canal from Philadelphia
across New Jersey to New York bay,
and the bill for the immigration laws
A large number of public buildings
and claim bills passed by the senate
also failed in the house.
Four hundred aud three bills have
passed both louses and have been sent
to the president for his signature.
There are twenty of these bills still
under consideration by the executive;
one has been returned to the house at
its request without signing; two have
been vetoed-the bill to amend the
law organizing the circuit court of APP
peals SO as to give them jurisdiction
In certain Indian cases, and the bill
referring the McGarrahan claim to the
court of private land claims Three
have become laws without the presi-
dents signature.
Among the more important bills
which have become laws are the fol-
lowing: To encourage American ship
building; for the permanent preserva-
ton and custody of the records of the
volunteer armies; to add the name of
the Secretary of agriculture to the cabi-
net officers who may become president
in certain emergencies; to prohibit the
coming ot Chinese into the United
States; the intermediate army nurse
bills; to force reciprocal commercial re-
lations with Canada; increasing the
maximum pay of life saving crews.
investigations Were a feature of this
congress, especially in the house and
committees devoted much time to
them. The pension Off received the
attention of special committee, which
reported mismanagement of the bu-
reau under the administration OF
Raum, and reported to the house that
the president be ordered to dismiss
that official. The report also criticised
Russell Il. Harrison, the presidents
Son, for his connecti ON with securing
leases through the public parks.
The committee on banking and cur
rency was ordered to investigate the
failure of the keystone and Spring
Garden National banks of Philadel-
phia. and of the Maverick National
bank of Boston. The committee took
q mass of testimony but did not con-
clude their inquiry.
The house committee on elections
had six contests to decide, four of
which were acted upon. OF the con-
tests reported two received the action
of the house-the Craig-Stewart, from
the Twentyfourth Pennsylvania dis
trict, and the Noyes-Rockwell, from
the Twenty-eighth New York district.
both being decided in favor of Demo-
Gratis, Craig and Rockwell. The
former died at his home, Clayville, Pa,
Friday. The contests of Reynolds
Shonk, from the Twelfth Pennsyl-
vania district, and of McDufiie- Turpin.
from the Fourth Alabama, have been
passed upon by the committee. but
there is no sign of calling them up as
the reports are in favor of the sitting
members - Shonk, Republican, and
Turpin, Democrat Two contests re-
main to be considered by the COM
mittee; Greevey- Scull. from the
Twenfieth Pennsylvania district. and