The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1896-03-11
A Slow Dissolution.
The Story of the Last day of
the Long Session.

lima general assembly has at last
come to an end. The session died a
death, however, and the ex-
perience Of those who were forced to
spend the last two days in the hall
was one to tax physical endurance
to it's utmost. The two houses had
decided to adjourn at ii O'Clock yes
terday and one of the assistants to
the sergeant-atarms was kept fight
ing against time all day-that is to
say was engaged in the work of run
ming back the hands of the clocks.
It was recess after recess as the
hours sr d by. and long waits came
in to try the souls of the patient ones.
After session of 16 hours duration
Friday and Friday night, with only
four and half hours rest, the house
reassmbled at I o'clock yesterday
morning, but only Speaker Gary and
eight faithful members were on hand.
The consequence was that recess
had 10 be taken till 9 O'Clock. From
that time until shortly before p
m., when the adjournment sine die
was reached, with only seven men,
bers on the foor, there were recesses
after recesses. visits after visits to
the senate chamber, and long waits
one after another waits that were
painful in the extreme TO all con.
cerned, already exhausted by the
long seige The appropriation bill
was the cause of the long delay in
reaching the final adjournment 1t
only came from the hands of the con.
ference committee during the morn
ing and it took several hours to have
it enrolled. Then the committee on
enrolled acts had to read it all over,
taking an hour and a half's time.
When it was finally ratified there
were only % persons, all told. in the
senate chamber, including the mem-
bers of the senate and house in the
city, the officers of both houses, the
press representatives and the spec
tators. Then the governor had to
have about an hour to glance over
the bill before approving it.
The closing hours of the general
assembly were the strapgest ever
known. The members hadbeen leav
ing, one By one. all day, and it was
several times feared that there would
be no one to make the motion to ad.
iourn sine die. When the end came
only II members Of the two houses
were on hand, exclusive of the off
GERS. The flags were flying iii the
breeze on the capitol, but below in
the halls everything was quiet, dreary
ar.i lonesome There was not even
a song or an attempt at a mock ses.
sion. Yet the traditional ceremonies
were carried through to the end The
decorum of the dwindled bodies was
preserved to the end, when the
sergeant at arms came in and took
down the historic mace and returned
it to its place of safe keeping
So far as any changes in the legis-
la,ion aleady referred to are concern
ed the work of the conference com
mittees amounted to practically moth
ing. The cigarette bill, which
threatened to demorallze the tobacco
industry in this State, was killed and
so was Mr.. Thomas joint resolution
to allow the trustees Of the South
Carolina college to lease certain
piece of land to the city school trus-
tees of Columbia. The committee of
free conference sliced $1,000 off Of
the South Carolina college appropria-
tion anG allowed the State printer an
extra $4,000 making the total for
public printing s2S.000.-The State.
March 9Th.