New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-03-26
ERRORS IN ENROLLED ACTS.
BIrNpERs AND OMISSIONS DUE TO THE
. DELAY OF CONGRESS.
THE HASTE AND CONFUSION OF THE hA9i
HOURS LEAD TO SERIOUS RESULTS
MORE MISTAKES THAN WERE
EVER KNOWN before.
,ny ryIyCRArn TO THE TRIBUNAL

Washington March cj.-It Is TO be hoped 'na' m'e"'
bers OF the House OF Representatives, rs 10,
Senator's who will have charge OF appropr'a"o' '',''
in the LID Congress. will read and proht o' wv
discussions provoked In the Senate last Moho"' y!
the discovery OF a very large number OF gross ""'
ine,cusa,ae errors In the enrolment OF the "ppro
printion acts which were rushed through ~ tnc eN'
prsng hours OF the Lid Congress- one OF '"'"' "
late according 10 senator German. tha' VI" NV
reach President Harrison until a'ter the nun VI
noon on March 4. when that Congress 'AP"'" "
constitutional limitation The act to when he re-
,orrod wos tho ono making appropriations for the
NAVY IN which he had discovered errors upon hea'S
every page OF the BILL
senator Hale declared that he found more than
ninety errors In the same act. onc % 'n' c,'"'
whether discovered ty either OF the senators i HUI
known-is an important omission when VIII pi'''"'
or postpone for q year the purchase OF hiy "o's
power dynamo and TIE extension OF 'he cT'"'.
plant for the Naval War College md Torpedo SCHOOL
"A Coasters Harbor Island. Congress? ihteho'o W
appropriate the sum OF $500 Tor this PURPOSE '"'
the enrolling clerks Of the House OF Repres'h'aN''
dropped the word dollars from the paragraph "'
omission OF the word thousand IN the ehroi'e, "
the Deficiency act reduced appropriation OF 10 ~
for the Bureau OF Engraving and Printing 70 s"' NV"
the necessary operations OF that branch OF the serV
will tc seriously crippled during the next three oh'hs
in consequence OF the bunder OF a cierK wh'ch ""s
no. detected by the House Committee OH r''"N
Bills Another grave error In the enrolment VI wv
sundrv Civil act wa. discovered by the vgllnnt cerhs
Of fbe House and senate Committees on Apploi'"
lions after It had passed the scrutiny oil the 'o"s'
Committee on Enrolled Ellis. but happily IN time 10
allow a TO be corrected before the act was ss"'u'
II the error had been allowed to s'ahd IL WON" nav
clouded the land titles OF thousands OF scuers III
the Northwestern states.
In the discussion fore mentioned. Mr. Gorman' VINO
hos been a memb the Senate during the last weN"
vears sad Seldom In the history of the G0Vcrhme''
certainly not within my time. have the Appropriation
bills been so delayed they were ut the recent ses
SON. The Senator from Iowa. the chairman OF 'i'
Committee on Appropriations. pressed these p''S "
the best OF his ability Int he was antaeon'7'd as NJ
always is with other matters of minor Importance
md more or less delay occurred. 10 1t was 'hh III
tho last three days OF the session. when two or tr''
great APPROXIMATIONS bills absolutely necessary LOT
the Government had to he passed or else we S""",'
have had an extra session OF Congress. 'h">' o''''
were delayed here By useless discussion oi o'h'r
matters. The result was that when They Went ei''
where be enrolled there was not sufficient time ~
which to do 1t. There great carelessness'
admit.
IL rcpat now In the presence Of This body tlat
but for the determination OF tho gentlemen IN charge
OF these great Appropriation bills ana the hA''"o'''
whose duty II Is under the Constitution 10 hppr"'"
Them We should probably have had an extra session
OF Congress. The clerks wer" worn ON "orh'"s
day after day ana fnGHI hl''r "'h" '""'"'" w
cluded and II Is no wonder that these errors "'
Cured with men less experienced than thos" We have
on this side.
"Those are the facts. Tie responsibility ong'a
No, % he MI, alone upon the faithful men who hav"
DISCHARGED their duty to the best Of their ah'y' DIV
II IS with both bodies Well n II IL with The CLERKS
The Senator from Iowa. III" senator from Maine "'"
the senator from Missouri know too well tha' "V'ry
moment Of that long last night 81 the session we Were
In IN a
sort two great Appropriation bills and there was DAT
nm hour or two left In which tlr clerks c"lih Uih'
scribe the result u oar work.
Mr. German also declared TINT "tlcrc were moro
mis,nkes made ut tho recent session than II" hnh
over known before that the delay In The phsS"s"
Of the bills made II necessary to call IN h'ATrhh'e'
men 10 assis, the regular enrolling force" "ti' Nv
the recent session IT was necessary IN the i'o"Sc
N emuIov SIX extra men "to help 10 get ms
work into shape 80 that the biiis eo"'" u" s's'" ;"
dup season. and he added ,., -,
say again ihni the great fault has been WIN We
members 81 the two lpgisatlN" bodies ln hlhShE NV
appropriation bills at The last hours o, il ccrt
anal expecting the impossible % the er4lini cicfs,
Tr,er words senator German never ,pok,. lie might
have added with equal Truth that hearty h"Il ,,'
general appropriation DIE ~ , ,n mie vIihout
d. cnsson opportunity f'r mir c"n'n'"Io,, III,
With uinc.trnths Of the members Of That b'nN III
~ Tho senate ne rule voted MP or N"''-I GOWN
by conference committees composed "f 'ir"" Sh,,"rN
and three Representatives; ana mn ~ r rra nS
who kncv what provisions had been hiinIIy einloo'n
in The several bills. Everything Was IN sla's :"
desperate confusion NJ me ihs'' n,," ;, III ,,h,,
had hccn done and what had been Ieit under ihh'
more and worse errors have not been discovered may
bc regarded extremely fortunate l%r any,nr T"
probable IN III. way ol m'''''"'S ""''"b wv N'e
hours Of the LID Congress.