The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-03-17
SUSPENSION DAY.
SEVERAL, IMPORTANT BILLS PASS
ED BY THE HOUSE.
Resolutions Censuring Ambassador
Bayard VIII Be Taken Up Tomor-
row at 1:3O-The Mutilation OF
Coins.

WASHINGTON, March 1b.--1niS WdS
suspension day in the house and sew
EeraI bills were passed. The most i'm
portant was the Oklahoma homestead
hill which relieves homesteaders IN
Oklahoma of the payment of the pur-
chase price of their homesteads. The
house also decided, at the request OF
Mr.. Hit. chairman of the committee
on foreign affairs, to consider the reso-
lutions consuming Ambassador Bayard
on Wednesday.
A bill was passed granting to the
Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad
company right of way through the Sac
and Fox Indian reservation.
Unanimous consent was granted at
the request OF Mr.. Hit, chairman OF
the committee on foreign AFFAIRS, 10
take up the resolutions
CF]NSURING AMBASSADOR BAY
ARD
for his speech at Boston. England, and
Edinburgh, Scotland, On Wednesday
at | 80 d. m. In answer to queSuon
from Mr.. McCrea.ry, Mr.. Hit gave as
surance that ample time would be al
lowed for debate.
The rules were then suspended on
motion of MIR. Flynn, of Oklahoma,
and a resolution was adopted for the
Immediate consideration of the Okla
homa homestead bill. The bill pro-
vided that all actual and bona fide set
tiers on the public lands in Oklahoma,
should ACQUIRE patent after five years
residence, upon the payment of the
customary fees, without the payment
of the price per acre required by exist
ing law The secretary of the interior
reported adversely against the bill and
stated that if settlers were relieved
from the payment of the purchase
price the loss to the United States
would
EXCEED s15,OOO,OOO.
The government paid or agreed to
pay the Indians, according to Com
missioner .Lamoreaux S report, $18,O0O,-
000 Both Mr.. Flynn and Mr.. McRae,
Of Arkansas, advocated the passage of
the bill.
Mr.. Culberson Oem). of Texas, Of
fered the following amendment: THAT
the public land laws of the United
States are hereby suspended until
far as they may affect the territory
hitherto known as Greer county,
Texas"
This amendment was the outcome of
the decision of the supreme court to-
day that Greer county, Texas, be-
longed to the public domain, and
therefore to Oklahoma, and not to
Texas, and it's design was to prevent
squatters from rushing into that
county and entering lands under regu-
lar land laws to the injury of the
bona fide residents who had purchased
their lands on the supposition that
until congress should have an oppor-
tunity to consider legislation to meet
the
UNEXPECTED CONDITION
resulting from this decision. Mr..
Flynn, realizing the urgency of the
case, accepted the amendment. The
bill was then passed without division.
Mr.. C. w. Stone Rep.), of Pennsyl-
vania, chairman of the committee on
coinage, weights and measures, moved
to suspend the rules and pass a bill
prescribing punishment for mutilating
coins and for altering or passing mutt
lated or lightened coin. The bill was
passed.
A bill, the passage of which was
urged by Mr.. Baker, of New Hamp-
shire, to withdraw from the United
States supreme court jurisdiction of
criminal cases not capital. and con-
forming jurisdiction to circuit court of
appeals, met the opposition of Mr. Gull
berson. The bill was defeated
Two other bills were passed.. To
divide the southern judicial district of
California and to provide for the dis
posal of abandoned townsites jim Okla
homa.
AT 4:15 the house adjourned.