Evening star., 1895-03-04
DISTRICT LEGISLATION
Bills Made Into Laws by the Fifty Third
Congress
Some Things the District Obtained
and Some That Failed-NO NUM-.
cipal Building Yet.

The District got about its usual share Of
legislation from the third session Of the
Fffty-third Congress. but, as usual, the
calendars Of both houses are still filled
with measures of local interest, some of
them of a trifling nature, others Of i'm
portance. Congress had excellent oppor-
tunities to pass a bill providing for the
erection of a new municipal building for
the city, but neglected this chance, and
the District is today as badly off as ever
in the matter for home for its executive
offices. The recently announced lease Of
another private building is an instance in
point. Among the other bills that failed
to become laws through the lack Of con-
current action on the part Of the two
houses was the measure Intended to reduce
the. price of gas to 81 thousand feet.
This bill, after having passed the House,
and after long and interesting discussion
in the committee, excited numerous hear
ings on the subject. Last week it was
finally reported to the Senate adversely,
with three Of the eleven members of the
committee strongly protesting against this
report
Most of the other bills that are now on
the calendars are relics of former sessions
Of the expired Congress and include great
variety of topics, which have been fre-
quently enumerated in The Star. They in
clude about twenty-seven measures of all
kinds, some of them having been passed by
one or the other of the houses, and others
standing for the first time upon the calen-
dar.
The President has signed quite number of
local measures during the sessions, and has
vetoed none. In fact, he has approved all
that have reached him, except some that
were passed in the last hours of the ses-
sion, which are elsewhere noted. Those
that he signed earlier in the session are
here named: Amending the act creating the
Court Of Appeals for the District; appro-
priating $4,000 for the relief of the suffer-
ing poor: abolishing Georgetown as a sep
arate title; amending the act OF June 16.
1850. relating to claims against the District
growing out of the operations of the old
board of public works; appropriating 5000
to clear the Potomac of ice; extending the
Jurisdiction of justices of the peace; amend
ing the charter of the Metropolitan railway
by altering the southern and western ter
minals OF that road; for the promotion of
anatomical science and to prevent the
dissertation of graves in the District; to au-
thorize the adoption Of children in the Dis
trict to fill vacancies in the board of
regents of the Smithsonian Institution: to
permit the erection within the District Of
a bronze statue of DR.. Samuel Gross: to
of Columbia; to make regulations providing
for the removal Of snow and ice from side
walks and cutters.
To this last named bill was added in the
last hours of Congress a new section.
which amends the law relating to the
erection of fire escapes, and SO forth, on
amended has, as has been stated, been
signed by the President.
Other Bills.
In addition to these bills, which were
approved before Sunday, the House and
Senate have passed the following bills,
which were presented to the President for
his signature: Reorganizing the office of
surveyor of the District; regulating the
sale Of milk in the District; bills amending
the charters Of the Maryland and Wash
ington, Rock Creek, District of Columbia,
Suburban and Brightwood Railway Com
panies; the bill Incorporating the Capitol
Railway Company, and the bill authorizing
the Washington and Marlboro Company
to extend its line into the District.
Among the bills that failed Of passage
was that incorporating the East Washing
ton Belt Line Company. In all Of these
District railroad bills care was taken by
the District committee to prevent the en-
croachments of the overhead trolley. An
attempt was made by the managers OF the
lexington road to extend for one year the
time for removing the overhead line on
New York avenue, from Ith street to the
as was also bill amending the charter of
the lexington road by extending its line
in the suburbs.
Temporary provision was made in the
sundry civil bill for an additional building
for the government printing office on the
site OF the present stables This building
will be erected at once and will cost about
$4,000. An attempt was made at the last
moment by Gen. William Malone of Vir-
ginia to force the government to buy his
square of ground at the corner of North
Capitol and NJ streets as a site for the
printing Office and an amendment to this
effect was inserted by the Senate in the
general deficiency bill. 1t was stricken out
in conference and the proposition failed.
The effort to cause the government to buy
the property on which the old Blaine house
OF on ofo 70 oil fol f1a6 onI
the erection of the theater projected for
that lot will be proceeded with. good
many other propositions relating to the
District were made during the last hours
of the session, but none of Importance sue
ceeded.
Local Appropriations.
There has been a depreciable increase in
the amount of the District appropriations
this year over former years Of late. The
total amount of the budget as it became
law today, providing for the expenses of
the District for the fiscal year ending June
so. 1896. is s5,916. $500. This more than
any one year of the four just passed.
The bill passed in the first session of the
Fifty-second Congress aggregated s5,317,-
97327, and for the second session of that
Congress SAB, ,223.91. making a total for
the Fifty-second Congress of $40, T31, ,197.1S.
The bill passed in the first regular session
Of the Fifty-third Congress, known off,
cially as the second session, owing to the
Intervention of the extraordinary session
for the repeal Of the Sherman law amount
ed to $5,545, ,67S.57. This made a total for
the Fifty-third Congress, just ended, of
$11. .462. .21l.57. Thus the Fifty-third Con-
gress exceeded the Fifty-second in its To-
cal appropriations by $I31, 1,O14.39.
The average appropriation for the four
years was $5.5fS.34I.19. Thus the bill that
has just been approved carries a total ap-
preparation s3GS, 1851 higher than the av-
erage of the past four years.