Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1897-12-20


Excepting the reporting of the legis-
lative, executive and judicial appro-
priation bin the house did no public
business. In both houses the chaplains
referred in their invocations to the
death of Mrs. Mckinley.
Washington, Dec. 1.-THE house
after a session of two hours adjourned
out of sympathy for the president
whose mother was buried in Canton.
The time of the session was devoted to
consideration of the legislative, execu-
tive and judicial appropriation bill. It
was decided to postpone consideration
OF the item providing for the mainte-
rance of the civil service commission
uEtil after the other features of the
Gill have been considered. It was ap-
parent from the remarks made thet
the entire subject will be exhaustiyelv
debated
Washington, Dec. 15.-The senate
enjoyed an interesting debate upon
the bill presented by the foreign re-
latlons committee providing for pro-
hlb1tion of pelagic sealing by Amer.
leans. The provisions of the measure
We're explained by Mr.. Davis. chair-
man OF the committee, who said it
was IN aid OF the negotiations now
pending among representatives of the
governments of the United States
Great Britain, Russia and japan. Mr..
Pettlgrew (rep., S. d. sharply an
tagonlzed the measure, saying that
this country had already suffered
more than enough humiliation on ac.
count of the seal business and that he
Favored a settlement of the question
by killing all seals, as they appeared
at the rookeries of the Pribylon
islands, if by the first of June next
Great Britain also had not agreed to
a prohibition of pefagic sealing. He
then ordered an amendment to that
erect. After further debate this
amendment was defeated and the bill
passed, 81 to IA.
Mr.. Mcbride (rep., Ore.) endeavored
to secure the adoption of his resolution
directing the secretary of war to sup
ply relief to the suffering miners in
the Klondike region and appropriating
S25O,OOO for that purpose. The resoll-
ton was amended so that supplies
might be transported by means OF
reindeer. MIR. Mcbride consented fin
ally that the resolution should be re-
committed to the military affairs com
mlttee with the understanding that it
would be promptly reported.
Washington, Dec. l5.-The house
spent the day in consideration of the
legislative, executive and judicial ap-
preparation bill Eighty-nine of the
112 pages of the bill were covered and
only one amendment of Importance
was adopted. That reduced the cler-
ical force at the pension office 95,
involving a reduction of $150,OOO in
salaries. The civil service question
was the chief topic OF discussion and
the proposition of assistant secretary
of the treasury, Vanderlip, to- retire
clerks for age was ma6e the text OF a
denunciation by Mr.. Moody (rep.,
Mass.) Mr. Moody who is one of the
defenders of the civil service law
called attention to what he termed
the extraordinary proposition adj
vocated by the assistant secretary OF
the treasury in an interview published
Wednesday morning. In the inter
n
posed to establish in the treasury de-
partment what in effect would be
civil pension list. AS one OF those
who believed in the merit system, he
thought that congress ought to meet
this proposition at the threshold. " Il
this system which we support is to
lead to the establishment of civil
list said he impressively,
"then the people ought to wipe it out
of existence" general applause). las
a friend of civil service reform, said
he, ''I say it's worst enemies are not
those who are fighting it in the open
like Mr.. Grosvenor, but men like the
author of this proposition who sits in
the cabinet by the side of President
Mckinley" (applause) Mr.. johnson
(rep., Ind) thought that Vanderlip's
violated the spirit and
that the government was not con-
Quoted for the purpose of providing
for men in their old age. They
should do as others did-provide for
a rainy day Finally the debate sub
sided. Mr.. Dearmond (dem., Mo- re
preached y majority for not voting
upon the Cuban belligerency reso-
tuition passed by the senate at the last
season. His remarks we're given added
in view of the action
of the democratic caucus declaring
for an aggressive support of recog-
milton of Cuban belligerency.