The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1897-07-29
ACCOMPL|SHEDBY CONGRESS
BILLS PASSED BY THE EXTRA SEES
SION OF THE FIFTY-FIFTH
CONGRESS-.
TARIFF MEASURE Stands FOREMOST
The Four Appropriation Bills
which Failed in the Last Con-
gress Were Passed With Sew
eraI Important Amendments.

nary session of congress which has Just
closed was called by President Mchln.
ley two days after he took the oath OIL
| office, and it met at noon, March II. Inc
special message transmitted by MN 10
both houses on the opening day was brief.
1t explained the deficiencies in the rev
enues, reviewed the bond issues of the
| last administration and urged congress
| promptly to correct the then existing con-
| dition by passing tariff bill that would
supply ample revenues for the support
| of the government and the liquidation OF
| the public debt. No other subject of leg
islation was mentioned in the message,
and the tariff bill has been the allah
| sorbng feature of the session. The re-
publican members of the ways and means
committee of the preceding house had
been at work throughout the short ses-
sion, which ended March 4, giving hear
| ings and preparing the bill which was to
be submitted. Three days after the ses-
sion opened the tariff bill was reported
to the house by the ways and means COM
mittee, and thirteen days later, March 81,
| 1897, it passed the house.
1t went to the senate, was referred to
the committee on finance, and the republi-
| can members of that committee spent a
month and three days in it's considera-
| ton and in preparing amendments which
| were submitted to the senate, and exact
ly two months later it passed the senate
with S27 amendments. The bill then
went to conference, where. after a ten
days struggle, on July II, complete
agreement was reached by which the SEN
ate receded from 11S amendments and
the house from 81. The others, 243 in
number, were compromised. The con-
ference report was adopted by the house
on July 10. at the conclusion of twelve
hours continuous debate. The report
was taken up in the senate on July 20.
and adopted July a. The tariff bill
was signed by the president the same
day.
Congress did not devote its attention
entirely to the tariff, though it did sub
ordinate everything else to this one meas
ure. The four appropriation bills which
failed on March 4 last in themselves
would have compelled President Mcl<in-
if the necessity for revision of the tar
if had not existed. Those appropriation
bills were the sundry civil, the agricul-
tural. the Indian and the general de-
ficiency. These bills were introduced
and passed by the house in the identical
form in which they existed at the time
of their failure of enactment.
The general deficiency carried a pro-
vision accepting the invitation to take
appropriated $780, 900 to defray preimi-
nary expenses and $1500OO for Il new
immigrant station at New York to re-
place the one destroyed by fire.
BY far the most important piece of new
| legislation in the bill, however. was that
| limiting the cost of armor plate for the
three new battleships to $500 per ton. In
| case the secretary of the navy should lind
| it impossible to make contracts for ar
ftfN hn inf nIs
| lied by this provision to take steps to eS-
| tablish government armor factory of
| sufficient capacity to make the armor.
| In executing this authority he must pre-
pare description and plans and speci-
| fications of the land, buildings and ma
| chinery suitable for the factory; adver-
| tise for proposals and report to congress
| at its next session.
In the Indian bill after a severe strug-
gle in both houses, the question of sec
| tartan schools was settled by the follow
| ing declaration of the policy of the gov
eminent.
That the secretary of the interior may
make contracts with schools apportioning
| as near as may be. the amount so con-
tracted among schools of various denomi-
| nations for the education of Indian pupils
during the fiscal year 1898, but shall only
make. such contracts at places where
nOn-SectdTldn SCuO0lS Gull Hot ne piONlutu
| for such Indian children.
The question of opening to entry the
rich gilsonite deposits in the UncOm-
paghre reservation in Utah was also
compromised by opening such agricul-
tural lands as have not been allotted to
| the Uncompaghre Indians on April l.
| 1898. to entry. but reserving to the United
States title in all lands containing gil
sonte. asphalt or other like substances.
In the sundry civil bill the most i'm
pOrtant new provisions was that suspend
| ing the order of President Cleveland set
| ting aside about 121 600 acres as forest
| reservation. The law also includes Il
general scheme of legislation for the gov
eminent and the protection of forest res
ervations of the country.
| The republican leaders of the house
decided at the opening of the session to
pursue a policy of inaction in order to
throw the responsibility for delaying the
tariff bill upon the senate. and there
fore the committees were not announced
until the close of the session. and only
| urgent matters were considered.
| Fifty thousand dollars was appropri-
ated for the relief of American citizens
| in Cuba at the solicitation of the presi-
dent: 100000 was appropriated for the
relief of the Mississippi flood sufferers
a resolution was passed authorizing the
| SttIttuly VI lut navy W sup
plies contributed for the relief of the
poor and furnishing in India, and $4,000
was appropriated for the entertainment
and expenses of the delegates to the
universal postal congress, which met in
| this city.
| The only extensive piece of general leg
islation enacted by this congress, except
| the tariff bill, was the law to prevent
| collisions at sea and to place i'll force
regulations to prevent collisions upon
certain harbors, rivers and inland waters
of the United States. and the bill au-
thorizing the president to suspend dis
eliminating duties on foreign vessels and
| commerce.
The senate not being confined as to the
scope of its legislation, dealt with 4
number of important subjects, both il
and out of executive session.
One of these, which attracted world
wide attention, was the general arbitra.
ton treaty negotiated by President Cleve
land with Great Britain. After eXhaus,
tive consideration, despite the great
pressure brought to bear upon the senate
by religious and commercial bodies
throughout the country, the senate re-
jected the treaty.
The Hawaiian treaty of annexation
negotiated by President Mckinley. was
still Enacted upon when congress ad
journed
In open session. after much debate
the senate passed the Cuban belligerency