Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1892-08-11
FRUITLESS SESSION.
Very Little Work of an Important
Nature Performed by
Congress.
The Chinese. Exclusion Act 0ne of
the Measures of Greatest
Interest Passed.
Tariff Pr, blem Remains in Statu
Quo-The Record as
Whole.

WASHINGTON, Aug. 3.-The future
compiler Of the official history of the laws
Of the United States will not need much
space in which to inscribe the really i'm
portant laws enacted by the first session of
the fifty second congress, now ready to
close as soon as the worlds fair matter is
out of the way. The sole measure of
those attracting a large share of
public attention, not counting the ap-
preparation bills, which has become a law
is the Chinese exclusion bill, and political
expedienGy had much to do with its rapid
congressional progress. This bill, the
lnman registry bill, the Black Hawk AMI
Seminole Indian wars pension bill, the
eight hour bill, the bill 10 enable the
president to enforce reciprocal canal ar
rangements with Canada, the army nurse
bill, the intermediate pension bill and the
bull TO increase the pay Of life savers are
about the only measures Of much general
interest enacted into law.
Free silver, the tariff, the anti-options
bill, retrenchment of appropriations and
five Inilllon dollar loan to the worlds fair
have been the live topics of the session.
The first three subjects have been killed.
at least until after the election; the last
is still before congress, add the fourth
question, that OF appropriations, entered
largely into the makeup OF the appropria-
tlon bills and prevented single public
building bill from passing the house, the
session being absolutely unique in this
particular. Many other bills providing
for new expenditure, the omnibus light
house bill, fer instance, failed because of
the retrenchm9nt policy sought to be pur-
sued.
The house passed approximately AIS
bills, of which 284 were passed by the
senate and sent to the president. o. the
bills passed by the house 220 were public
bills, including measures relating to the
District of Columbia; ISL private pension
bills; AZ bills to remove charges of deser-
ton, and Al private bills of miscellaneous
character.
The senate passed 691 bills, only 113 of
which succeeded In running the gauntlet
OF the house and reaching the president.
Two OF this latter number the president
vetoed, viz, the bill to send the famous
McGarrahaD claim to the court of claims
tor adjudication and bill to amend the
court of appeals act. Three bills the
president permitted 10 become laws with
out lis signature.
The total number of bills and joint reso
lutions introduced in the house was 9 1886,
and in the senate 1904. In the house
2, l06 reports were made on bills and in
the senate 1,097 written reports were
made, no notice being paid to unwritten
reports. Aside from the passage of the
regul annual appropriation bills the
most interesting feature of the congress
has been what it did not, rather than what
it did. The bill for the free coinage Of
silver over shadowed all other measures in
importance and interest The coinage
committee in the house was made
up largely Of friends of free coinage,
and itreported with promptness a bill fer
free coinage, but when after a stormy
scene it came to test vote In the house,
it was necessary for the speaker to cast his
vote in order to save the silver bill from a
square defeat, and when the large anti
free coinage opposition began to fillibuster
the bill was killed by refusal on the
part of a majority of the democrats in
the house to sign a request for closure
rule, without which request the speaker
announced that he would not report a
rule for closing debate and forcing a
measure on its passage.
The senate, which had been waiting on
the house 50 far as respected silver Iegis-
lation, then took hold of the subject, and
in June, by majority of four votes,
passed the Stewart free coinage bill This
again brought the house face to face with
the issue, and on vote majority of
fourteen was found to be opposed to silver
legislation at this true, so that the spec
tire of free coinage, which had been hang
ing over many members, was at last
banished
The ways and means committee of the
house wrestled with the tariff problem
and after mature elaboration decided to
attack the Mckinley law by means of sep
arate tariff bills dealing with special
items, instead of by a Jill making gen
eral revision of the tariff. Prominence
was given to the Springer bill, placing
wool on the free list and reducing the
duties on wooden manufactures as
the chief exponent Of party policy on the
tariff question, and with this measure as
basis there was long and on the whole
very uninteresting tariff debate. The bill
was passed by the house and was followed
by other bills. one placing cotton bagging,
cotton ties and gins and cotton bagging
machinery and the other binding Irvine
on the free list, the binding Irvine being
passed under suspension o. the rules.
There was then a lull in tariff matters
to see what course the senate would take
The senate's policy was made apparent
by the acton of the finance committee in
pigeon-holing all three bills, and none Ct
them has yet emerged from the secIusion
OF the committee room, though occasion
ally their sIumbers were disturbed by ef
forts Of the democratic senators to have
them reported.
After time other tariff bills were re-
ported from the ways and means commit
Tee and passed as follows: To make silver
lead ores free of duty whenever the silver
IN the Importation exceeds In value the
lead; to limit to S100 the amount of per-
sonal baggage which returning tourists
may bring into the United States, and to
place tin plate, terne plate an3 taggers tin
on the free list after a named date. These
bills met in the senate the fate of their
predecessors.
A bill was passed by the house ard re-
ported from the finance committee to the
senate to correct the clerical error in the
Mckinley bill, by which chocolate was
made dutiable as confe ctIonery, but it has
not been acted on. Various other tariff
bills were considered By the house commit
tee on ways and means, and there was much
time given to the ACCESSIBILITY of reporting
bills placing refined sugar. salt, lumber
and iron ores on the free list and reducing
the duty on barley, but the committee |
failed to embark on the advocacg of these !
measures, there being differences of |
opinion as to its wisdom at this time.
Call to Democratic Clubs
WASHINGTON. Aug. 5-A call was