The herald., 1896-02-26

The vanhorne- -Tarsney contested cleo
ton cases from the Fifth Missouri district
occupied the remainder of the afternoon.
Dingley, chairman OF the ways and
means COMMITTEES. called up the bill re-
ported yesterday authorizing the president
to conclude negotiations with Russia, Eng
land and Japan, or either, for commits
sion to inquire into the habits of Alaskan
fur seals and the best method of preserv-
ing the seal herds, pending which the
president was authorized by bill to con-
clude he modus vivendi to conclude Janu-
ary l, 1898. for the protection OF seals,
and in case such modus vivendi could not
be concluded before the opening of the
present season, the secretary or the treas
ury was authorized to kill all scala on their
feeding grounds on PriDyloff is ands.
Dingley read the report of the committee,
already published, stating the necessity
for immediate action aroee from the fact
that Canadian pelagic seaiers, whose rava-
ges the bill sought to prevent, were already
fit,ine out vessels, and would be ready to
sail in the course of a week. The bill
passed without debate.
After several bills of local importance
had been passed MIR. johnson. chairman of
elections committee No. Q, called up the
contested election case of Vanhorne VS..
Tarsney, from the Fifth Missouri district.
There were three reports on the cese. The
majority, signed by all the Republicans on
Ohio-was in favor of the contestant On
the face of the returns Tarsney had a ma
jority of 745, but allegations Of fraud. bal
lot box stuf11ng, etc., were made against
the returns in several precincts in the Ninth
and Second wards of kansas City, which
the majority regarded as so completely
proven that they favored the throwing out
of these precincts, which gave Tarsney a
plurality of 1l2O votes, thereby giving
Vanhorne. the Republican. a plurality in
the district of 375 votes. The majority,
considering the circumstances, oppo. ed
the reopening of the testimony. The three
Democrats on the committee admitted the
existence of fraud, but claimed that the
vital question involved was whether the
returns from the fraudulent precincts
should be purged or thrown out. Under
the election laws of Missouri each ballot is
marked with the voting number Of the
voter, so that the investigation of the bal
lots and the voters would determine abso-
lutely the fictitious names upon the poll
books. The minority. therefore. reported
resolution to recommt the case with in
structions to the committee to seRregate
the illegal from The legal ballots and re-
count the latter. Mr.. Taylor, Republican,
of Ohio, in the third report concurred in
the conclusions of the majority if the
fraudulent precincts were thrown out, but
he favored reopening the case because of
the ease with which, under the Missouri
election laws, the legal could be separated
from the illegal votes. If this was done,
he argued, the title to the seat would not
rest on conjecture and inference.
MIR. Strobe (Republican of Nebraska)
opened the debate in favor of The adoption
Of the majority report. Mr.. Strobe spoke
for over two hours. He was followed by
MIR. Taylor, the dissenting Republican on
the committee who. in a somewhat sensa-
tional speech, urged that nothing could
justify the house in throwing out entire
precincts at q congressional election and
disfranchising honest voters. The Repub-
licans of the house owed it to themselves
from their own partsanship.
The returns could be and should be
purged of fraud and the honest ballots
counted.
AT 5 o'clock the house adjourned.
IN COMMITTEE
The coast defense committee today de-
cided to amend the bill for system of
Notifications SO as to eXpend $1O,OOO,O00
by June 80, 1897, but making any part of
that sum at once available. The bill was
also amended to allow contracts for COM
pletion of all projects, and appropriations
to be made annually of $l0,O0O,000 for
the work.