Union County courier. [volume] (Elk Point, Union County, D.T. [S.D.]) 187?-1913, 1897-02-04
WORK OF CONGRESS
THE WEEKS DOlNGS IN SENATE
AND HOUSE.
A Comprehensive Digest Of the Pro.
cccdings in the Legislative Cham.
bers at Washington - Matters th.<
Concern the People.
Lawmakers at Labor.

Lawmakers at Labor.
The House passed the Indian appropria.
ton bill Thursday and entered upon the
! consideration of the agricultural appro.
pration bill, but all interest in these two
measures was overshadowcd by two 70.
markable speeches. one made by Mr.. Gros.
venor Of Ohio. attacking ex-Gov. Altgeh
of Illinois. and the other by Mr.. Dear
mond of Missouri, heapng ridcule on Sec.
| rotary Morton for the recent issue of q
pamphlet entitled 'The Farmers Inter.
est in Finance" Mr.. Grosvenor's obser.
vations on the Governor of Illinois were
| called forth by the latter's recent speech
in which he charged that Mr.. Bryan had
been defeated by fraud and based his
| charge particularly on the enormous in
crease of the vote in Ohio, where, he al.
legged, 10000 votes were illegally cast.
Mr.. Grosvenor analysed the Ohio vote
and explained the causes of its increase
| calling attention to the fact that the Dem.
ocratic vote in the State had increased
proportionately much more than the Re.
publican. The Senate. by vote of ii to
Is. confirmed the nomination of William
s. Forman of Illinois to be Commissioner
of Internal Revenue. Senator Cullom
presented to the Senate number of let
ters and memorials he had received from
Chicago business firms asking for the pas
sage of the Torrey bankruptcy bill.
BY the decisive vote of 46 to the Sen
ate Friday passed the bill for the appoint
ment of commissioners to an international
money conference The bill as passed is
as follows:
'Whenever. after March 4. 1897, the
President of the United States shall de-
termine that the United States should be
represented at any international confer
ence called by the United States or any
other country. with view to securing by
international agreement a fiXity of rela-
tive value between gold and silver az
money by means of q common ratio be-
tween these metals. with free mintase at
such ratio. he is hereby authorized to an
point five or more commissioners to such
| international conference, and for com.
pensation of said commissioners and for
all reasonable expenses connected there
with. to be approved by the Secretary of
State, including the proportion to be paid
by the United States of the joint expenses
| of any such conference, the sum of $780,
! COO. or so much thereof as may be neces-
sary. is hereby appropriated
"The President of the United States is
hereby authorized. in the name of the
Government of the United States, to call
in his discretion. such international con
ference to assemble at such points as NAV
be agreed upon"
The House witnessed another sensation
al episode. At the end of an acrimonious
debate on the conference report on the
bill to confer the rights and franchises Of
the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad on the
purchasers under the mortgage foreclos-
ure. Mr.. Powers of Vermont and Mr. Bar
rett of Massachusetts exchanged broad
sides
The nominal business of the House Sat
urday was the consideration of the agri-
| cultural appropriation bill, which was
passed before adjournment, but much of
the time was devoted to political discus
sion. The free distribution of seeds BIZ
the department Of agriculture raised a
lively discussion. Mr.. Northway Rep)
Of Ohio asserted that Secretary Morton
endeavored to dscredit the custom by
procuring poor seeds. and Mr.. Cromwell
(Rep) of Ohio charged that a Minneapo-
lis seed firm had attempted to bride him
by an offer of seeds free to refrain from
calling the attention of Congress to the
quality of the goods they furnished the
department. An amendment was offered
by Mr.. Mercer for the free distribution to
members of poultry. swine and other live
stock, to illustrate his opposition to seed
gifts. At the request of agricultural or
CARNATIONS of his State Mr.. Hill of Con.
necticut proposed to strike out the seed
items. but his proposition was lost. Speak
er Reed voted for the first time this ses-
sion. and against free seeds
An unusually large number of bills were
passed by the House Monday, but few
OF them OF any considerable Importance
The bills passed included the old bill
which has been pending before Congress
for so many years to retire John Nj.
Quackenbush, who was court-martialed
and suspended from the naval service in
1874 for drunkenness, as a commander
under date of June /, 1895: also a bill to
reimburse the heirs of Albert Augustine
OF Rose Hill, Iowa. in the sum Of $3.50 for
TWO cows destroyed in the Cayuse war of
1871. Bills were passed to authorize the
Columbia aud Red Mountain Railroad tn
construct a bridge across the Columbia
river; to prevent the CARRYING of obscene
literature and articles designed for indie
cent and immoral use from State or fer
ritory into another State or territory. to
prevent trespassing upon and the protec-
ton of the Chickamauga and Chattanoo
gu ana other national military parks; to
amend an act entitled an act to repeal the
timDer culture laws and for other pur-
poses THE act relates only to the entry
OF lands In the Sioux Indian reservation).
to authorize the entry and patenting of
lands containing petroleum and other
mineral oils under the laws relating to
placer mining 1.-THE purpose of the bill
was TO clrcumvent ruling made by the
secretary Aug. Z, 1886. The Nicaragua
canai Dill occupied the attention of the
senate most OF the day, but no progress
was made toward final vote.