The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1894-11-24
THE COMING SESSION.
Congress Not Expected to Transact
Much Business.
The approaching session of Cor

L liz approaching oSosaou VI SOA
gress, which will convene on the
fifth of December, is not expected
by those familiar with congressional
methods to be one of great activity
or productive of much legislation.
The fact that it will continue for
only three months; that it will be
the last session of the present Con
gress, and that it so closely follows
general election are all considered
as indications that but comparative
ly little real work will be attempted
and still less accomplished. The
greater part of the session will, in
all probability. be commenced in an
exchange of chatting over the results
of the election and the session will
become memorable more on account
of talk than work 1t is probable
that next to nothing will be done be
fore the Christmas holidays, and
predictions are freely made that 1t
will be difficult to obtain or main
tain a quorum previous to Christ
mas. After the holidays there will
be but two months left for work and
speechmaking II will, of course,
be necessary to pass the usual APP
preparation bills. These bills touch
a variety of interests, and while up
on occasion they can be disposed of
with considerable CELEBRITY, they can
always be SO manipulated as to kill
much time when there is any consid-
cradle element which desires to so
use them.
When the last session adjourned
the measures attracting most atten
ton were the supplemental tariff or
free raw material bills They had
passed the House aud had been ia
vorably reported, with material
amendments, by the Senate commit
tee on finance to the Senate While
a majority of the Democratic Sena
tors appeared friendly to those bills,
there was a considerable element in
that party opposed their considera
tion, as were practically all the Re
publican Senators. This element
was able to prevent the Senates tax
ing up the bills previous to adjourn
ment 1t remains to be seen wheth
er the friends of the bills will persist
in this policy at the forthcoming
session and whether, il they do man
ifest this disposition. they will sue
coed in the face of the opposition of
few Democratic Senators and the
almost solid Republican side of the
Senate, WHO do not desire at this
time further legislation in the di-
reetion Of tariff reduction. Repre-
sentatives of the latter class do not
hesitate to declare that whatever the
policy of the Democratic majority
they will be able to prevent serious
consideration of these bills because
of the short session. They also
claim if vote on them should he
reached there would be majority
against them 1t should be stated,
however, that there is division of
opinion among the opponents Of the
bills on the free sugar bill, and that
some Republicans and some con
servative Democrats have expressed
a willingness to allow this bill to
| become a law, hut the best indica
tions are that the fate of the bill will
be determined by that Of the others
of the same class.
There are also those who predict
that there will be renewal of the
agitation of the financial question
on propositions looking TO the free
coinage of silver and for another
bond issue. The starting of the
bond question would depend upon
the administration, and there APP
pears now no reason for the sugges
ton that it will be revived except in
the Imagination of those who would
oppose the measure if it should be
brought in. There is little doubt
that the silver question will be
raised in some form, but the proba-
bilties are that there will be no ser
ious united effort on the part of any
considerable element to push silver
to the front. The more general opin-
ion is that silver will be reserved for
the long session of the Fifty fourth
Congress so as to make it an issue
| in the nresidential camnaion Of 1896.