Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-03-15
S u ND RY CIVIL BILL
Its Consideration Occupied Nearly the Eli
tire Time of the House.
Reading of the Measure Completed
and a Return TO Paragraphs
Passed Over.

At the opening of the session of the House
Mr.. Stone QSy) asked unanimous consent
for the consiicra ton Of a bill to pay Miss
Jane Lynn OF Galway county, Kentucky,
$3.50, the value of horse cOnliscated b. the
Union army during the war. Mr. Kilgore
CTeXas) objected. Mr. Caruth KyD asked
unanimous consent to consider a bill to
amend the act to organize the life saving
service so as to have the stations on the
Atlantic and gulf coasts manned from
August until June and lakes during the
season of navigation" Mr.. Sayers tTeXas)
objected.
Mr.. Flynn (Oklahoma) sought unanimous
consent for a bill to ratify the reservation
of certain lands for the agricultural col
lege in Oklahoma Mr.. Savers CreXas) OBJ
jectei.
Mr.. Black Qll) asked unanimous con-
sent to consider bill to authorize the man
ayers of the national soldiers homes 10
employ medical officers other than soldiers
disabled in the service as now required 10y
law.
Mr.. Black explained that the bill was
recommended by the managers OF the
homes to increase the efficiency of the
surgical service. The soldiers upon whom
these surge, ms were in attendance wee
all isabed, and the surgeons should be
men in the front rank of their profession.
Surgeons disabled thirty years ago were
lCl tile llleli now 10 wait upon Il CAMP VI
invalids. They now needed attendance
themselves.
The bill was opposed by Messrs. w. A.
Stone Pa.), Dngley CMe.) and Cannon
Qll), who insisted if this change were TO
be made that the statute should be re-
stricted to soldiers. Mr.. Black contended
that the best interests of the inmates of
the homes would be subserved if the man.
ayers We're allowed to employ young me,
Of energy, trained in the most modern
methods of Mr. Stone Objected a
the considera ton of the bill.
The objection to NJ Flynn's bill was
then withdrawn and it was passed.
The Sundry Civil Dill.
Mr. Montgomery CKyD made the point OF
no quorum on a resolution authorizing the
appointment of an assistant clerk for the
committee on commerce, whereupon Mr..
Paynter U<yD, who Offered the resolution,
withdrew it, and the House went into COM
mittee of the whole and the consideration
of the sundry civil bill was resumed
DisburSing Officers of Soldiers Homes
Mr.. Black QlI) raised a poiat of order
against the following paragraph on the
ground that it was new legislation and did
not reduce expenditures:
That all disbursing officers of the Ma
tional Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers
shall. before entering upon their duties
give good and sufficient bonds to the United
States, in such sums the Secretary of
War may direct, faithfully to account for
all public moneys and properly which they
may receive. They shall render their ac-
counts monthly. direct to such bureau of
the War Department the Secretary of
War may designate, and, after eNan.ina-
ton there, the fiscal accounts shall he pass
ed to the proper accounting officer of the
treasury for settlement.
THAT section 4S:i4 of the Revised Stat
utes of the United States be. and the same
is hereby, amended to read rs follows:
That the board Of managers shall make
an annual report of the condition of the
National Home for Disabled Volunteer Sol
ders to the Secretary of War, TO he sub
mitted by him with his annual report 10
Congress at the commencement of each
regular session thereof, and all laws or
parts of laws that require the board to
audit and examine or authenticate the &C
counts of the treasurer and visit the home
quarterly are hereby repealed.
Mr. Sickles On. " argued in favor of
sustaining the point of order. The man
ner in which the disbursing officers Of SOL
diers' homes should render their accounts
was now covered by existing law, ana he
was unwilling that the soldiers homes
should be placed under any bureau OF the
War Department, high was mis- conf
dence in that department.
Mr.. Cannon Ull) maintained that the
homes should in no wise be interferad with.
but that the disbursing officers of the home
should be placed under bond to the United
States and their accounts should so Tegu-
larly through the Treasury Department,
all other accounts did.
Passed Over Temporarily.
Mr. Cogswell (Iass) also sustained the
clauses in the bill against which Mr.. Elack
made the point of order. These officers, he
said, dispensed 100000 of the peoples
money annually and every safeguard
should be used to protect that disburse-
ment. Without ruling on the point Of order,
an agreement was finally reached to rass
over these two paragraphs temporarily and
return to them later.
An amendment appropriating $500 for
printing the decisions of the United States
district court of Alaska was agreed to. The
chairman of the committee then offered an
amendment, the purpose of which was to
permit the Secretary Of The Treasury to
settle the accounts of United States super
visor of elections of New York for expenses
incurred in the special congressional eiec-
tons in January, previous to the passage
of the bill to repeal the federal election
law, and it was agreed to without debate
The items relating to the expenses CT
United States courts were passed over tenn
porarily to permit the judiciary committee
to formulate certain contemplated amend
mentS.
Some Criticism.
Mr.. Black (Ga) criticised in a general
way some of the appropriations in the2bill.
That for public printing he considered reck-
lessly extravaganza Hundreds of thousands
of dollars. in his opinion, were wasted in
the publication OF useless documents. He
referred humorously to some of the bull
letinS and pamphlets issued by the Agricul-
tural Department ostensibly in the inter-
est Of the farmer, and read extracts from
them replete with technical terms and
adorned with Greek and Latin root lomen-
clature. he read the descriptions Of some
of the experiments made by field operate
for the benefit of the farmers and for ten
minutes kept the House convulsed with
laughter. He characterized the expendi-
ture of money for such purposes as utterly
indefensibe and outrageous.
Mr.. Richardson, chairman of the printing
committee, said in reply to Mr. Black thar
bill reported by the committee was de-
signed to correct the abuses of which he
complained, especially by limiting the dis
erection at present lodged in the Secretary
of Agriculture and other heads of dena ri
ments in the publication of such special
reports.
Mr.. Bowers defended the experiments
and publications. The determination of
the gopher was a great problem in the
southwest some years ago, and by means
of these experiments in the orange
orchards of California millions were saved
The Coast Survey.
The reading of the bill was completed at
2:15 and the committee then returned to
geodetic survey.
Mr.. Enloe CTennD offered an amendment
to strike out all provisions for the main
tenance OF this bureau and its transfer to
the Navy Department.
Mr. Gov Nnda e,