New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-12-07

usual a wholly perfunctory performances io
printed copies always furnished to the aud'
tors In advance. and those who submit 10 hea'
the Presidents views acclaimed from the oesf
may be put down either as slaves TO iegisia''.
runct,l,o or as victims to some insdous and
mysterious form Of hypnotism cine fuii 'eN'
of the Message will be found in another part OF
this paper) - p,.,.
After the reading of the Message MT "a'
,halI announced the death Of his colleague oe""
tan lanes z. George. Of Mississippi ana oneie
the usual resolution Of coincidence Win INC "e"
Senator's family. This was adopted. anu do .
further mark of respect the Senate aoJoui"eN
until tomorrow
SCENES IN THE HOUSE.
..rho tJouse will come to order" commanded
Sneaker Reed. as he brought his new ana peau-
,if,,l pded gavel down on the desk before MN DIT
mon to-day: and then. after pause ne saiu 40
,ba r,onbers with one accord arose ana s'oou
with bowed heads THE chaplain VIII 0'.
praver." Prayer having been oHereo INC ,o'
Of members was called by States. ai'ef "iO o.
the Speaker announced: THE Clerk Reports ooi
members prcsent-a quorum A messaee we"
then received from the Senate hVe nie
elected to fill vacancies were sworn III. comm
..as varo Amounted to inform the president
.rd sens,c that the House Of Representatives
was ready for business, and report from the
Committee on Rules providing that the oaiiy e''
,,rgs should begin at noon was received anu
adopted. In such simple ana melhooi'"A 90
ION was the second session OF the House Vi i'ep
resentatives OF the LVth Congress pesuh'
Down TO this point when the House took
recess to hear from the PRESIDENT 'he o'Ao'"'
proceedings had been enlivened by one amusing
oh on M
Hurley of Brooklyn. was responsible. MI
Hurley as his name might denote. is OF irish
extraction. and to-day's was his maiden speech
II WAS a short one; but 1t brought down the
house" and, what was more to the purpose
was successful one. The credentials or all
the new members except Mr. briggs. who mad
been elected to succeed Mr. Wilson. Of the llAd
New-York District. had been read. and they
were about to be sworn in. when Mr.. Hurley
arose and said:
Mr.. Speaker, ask unanimous consent that
Mr. briggs who has been elected to fill va
cancy in the lid District. be allowed to swear
IN. 49,, -
Mr.. Hurley was asked what reason there was
why this should be done, and he explained
that the canvass of the official vote OF Brooklyn
had not yet been completed and certified TO the
Secretary OF State at Albany. and, therefore,
Mr.. briggs had not received his official creden-
tials.
asked the Speaker.
MR. HURLEY CAUSES MERRIMENT.
None whatever" replied Mr. Hurley. who,
as he began to draw a paper from his pocket
continued Il have here letter Of congratua-
ton but he got no further. The House
roared with merrment. and Mr.. Bailey. the
alert leader Of the Democratic minority. arose
and solemnly remarked:
understand that Mr. briggs q Democrat,
and. as this request is made by Republican. l
have no doubt whatever that Mr.. briggs was
elected and therefore will not object
Mr.. briggs then took his place in the line, and
the oath Of office was administered to him with
the rest
AS soon as the order for a recess made
the vast and brilliant audience that had crowd
ed the galleries. and the larger crowd which,
usual, had failed to gain admission. gradu-
ally melted away: and the Moor OF the HOUSE Was
The crowd Of onlookers Is such as one always
sees on the first day of a session On the morn
good many of the residents, go to the Capitol ar
rayed in their best. to witness a spectacle which
seldom offers any new or startling feature, but
which seemed to draw as we'll to-day as 1t ever
did. The last session ended less than four
months and half ago. and this morning. when
members began to gather. they greeted one an
other in matter of-fact way. as though they
were meeting after weeks separation. One
of those general elections which always affords
food for congratuation to some and for sorrow
boastings Of increased pluralities or explana-
lions Of the causes Of defeat or course. the
men who had served together through several
Congresses had picked up some new stories and
anecdotes, which they related to their chums
with gusto.
The one member of the House who was kept
busy blushing and receiving congratulations
from the time he appeared until the Speakers
gavel fell Mr.. Belknap OF Illinois. who
after the adjournment of the last session. be-
came the son-in-law OF Representative Steele.
nP TpIi is q
that the father-in-law was also heartily con-
graduated on having acquired 80 promising q
son-in-law
ASSEMBLING OF THE MEMBERS.
1t was II o'clock before the shoals Of states
men" Of which one sometimes reads were visi-
BILE. and even then the leaders were conspicuous
by their absence. most Of them preferrng the
eeclusion Of their committee rooma A half
hour later the floor was thronged with Congress
men, office seekers. curious visitors and others.
and desks began to blossom with the usual
floral tributes" few Of the latter were ex-
ceedingly comprehension much so for the re-
cipients. who caused them to be quickly re-
moved. One stood on General Grosvenor's desk
AN elaborate creation Of red roses and yellow
chrysanthemums. beneath the branches Of which
reposed a lamb. which. on being properly ma,
nipulated cried "baa! baa" In plaintive and
painfully realistic tone. This tribute was from
the Ohio Wool Growers Association. but why
they should have chosen the Spanish colors TO
convey their admiration was not explained
Some OF the other flower pieces were exceedingly
elaborate and must have cost q pretty penny
II bought at private establishments.
One veteran member who was IN his seat
sariv was ex-Speaker Grow, OF Pennsylvania,
who first sat In Congress nearly half century
ago having been chosen TO succeed David VII
mot, author Of the famous anti-slavery Pro
yiso" and who is still hale and hearty. Near
Mr. Grow sat one of his colleagues. Marriatt
Brosius. chairman Of the Civil Service Reform
Committee and a doughty champion or the
msrit system. Among the early corners on the
Democratic side were Cox. OF Tennessee the
champon Of state banks. who Is always ready
for bout with the chairman OF his committee
Mr. Walker OF Massachusetts. and Terry or
Arkansas. a rather picturesque figure. clad In a
shade OF Confederate gray" He mt into" the
Rrooks-Baxter twenty years ago and more
"a when he addresses the House. 1t Is In a
..niaa which suggests that he must have spent