The morning call., 1895-03-04
THE DEATH OF CONGRESS WATCHED
BY THOUSANDS OF WASH
INGTON PEOPLE.
MEMBERS WERE JOSTLED.
THE REPRESENTATIVES FINALLY
DISPOSED OF THE SUNDRY
CIVIL BILL.

w ASHlNGTON, MdTCn O.-1n6 unusual at
traction of Sunday session of Congress at
the time of a pleasant setting in of mild,
spring-like weather, furnished to Washing
ton holiday in the modern acceptation of
the word. Throughout the afternoon the
approaches to the Capitol were filed with
carriages, and the sundry procession
turned its steps from Connecticut avenue
into the swell northwest to the other end
of town. The broad steps of the Capitol
had somewhat the appearance of inaugura-
ton day, the great plaza to the east was
dotted with strolling groups, lines of car
riages were drawn up stretching clear
across the streets, waiting for the business
they would have done had they been
favored with rain or slush.
Within the building the jam was so
great it interfered with business. The
doorkeepers in the galleries were kept
fighting to restrain the people for whom
there was not room, the elevators were
loaded to the limit of their capacity every
trip, two streams of people elbowed their
way from the House to the Senate and
from the Senate to the House, while pages
plowed their way through the jam.
The comparatively small attachments
leries of both the houses kept up babble
of chatter which, combined with the rush.
ing back and forth and clamoring of mem
bers like busy day in the pit of a stock
exchange, almost overwhelmed the routine
proceedings and kept the Speakers gavel
hammering incessantly.
The House was the theater of the popu-
lace which preferred lively scene, while
in the Senate the spectators were more or
derly and fewer, though more of the nota-
bles were to be seen in the reserved CALLER
les, particularly in the diplomatic seats,
where the sky-blue robes of the Chinese
Minister were the center of interest.
After nightfall and until the streetcars
stopped running at midnight the crowds
pushed in and out, hung about the rotunda
looking at the historic paintings when
they could not secure admission to the gal
leries, and not a few spectators were hold
ing their seats into the early hours of Mon
day morning.
After the sharp fight of last night over
the Senate provision in the sundry civil
bill appropriating $5,0oo,000 for the pay
ment of sugar bounties earned up to June
80, 1895, which resulted in the adoption of
session dragged wearily through the silent
watches of the night until the sundry
civil and Indian appropriation bills had
been sent back to conference. As the gray
dawn was breaking the House took a re-
cess until 2 o'clock this afternoon. and the
wornout members hurried home to catch
few hours rest and nerve themselves for
the siege which promises to last until to-
morrow noon.
When the Speaker again took the chair
at o'clock more than half the member
were in their seats. No conference reports
were ready when the House reconvened,
and the Speaker graciously recognized sew
eral of the half hundred members clamor-
ing for an opportunity to secure considera-
ton of measures of local or personal inter-
est to them.
Holman called up the second conference
report on the Indian appropriation bill,
which showed the Senate had abandoned
one item, i. e., to appropriate 500 for
tie Miami Indians of Indiana thus Ieav-
ing two Senate amendments still in dis
pute, one to purchase for $500 from the
Ogden Land Company the title to the
lands within the Cattaragus and Allegheny
Indian reservations in New York, and the
other striking out the House provision to
continue the reduction of appropriation
for contract Indian schools proportionately
so all such payments should cease after five
days.
After some debate the House decided to
further hold to its disagreement to both
amendments in dispute, and the bill was
again sent to conference. Then at 6:1O
lob
There were but few members present
when the House met after recess at 7:3O.
The bill to prohibit the sale of intoxicants
to Indians, which had been objected to
when brought up before, was called up by
Meiklejohn and passed.
AT s O'Clock the conference report on the
sundry civil bill was called up by Savers.
When the proposition for an international
monetary conference Ito which the House
| conferees had acceded) was reached, the
| silver men demanded time. Sibley called
attention to the satisfaction with which
the proposition for a monetary conference
had been received by the monometallic
press of the East, on the ground that it
might lead to some adjustment by which
the silver men could obtain a larger legiti-
mate use of silver.
The friends of silver, Sibley declared,
had held the doctrine that wider use of
| silver was necessary, because they saw the
curses that had followed the falling of
prices the world over. What the United
States should do is to act, not con suit, and
he expressed the opinion that a monetary
conference would simply postpone the day
when silver cou Id to the mints for free
coinage on the same terms as gold.
Simpson said the proposition for confer
ence was the same old game, twice played
on the people, of holding out promise that
would never be realized. 1t would post
pone free coinage at least six years, ana six
more years of gold standard would so COM
plete the financial bondage of the country
as to make it forever impossible to break
the power of the gold kings. He was op-
posed to again entering on the farce of a
monetary conference.
Pence. in a ringing speech, argued that
no good could come from monetary COM
mission. Possibly" he said, "good might
result if the Speaker should name as mem
bers of the committee from the House
three Presidential candidates. thus smok-