The age-herald., 1898-07-09
THE WORK DONE
 BY CONGRESS

| marks the close of the first war congress 1 in a quarter of a century. Associated with
 the first hostile conflict with a nation of
 another continent since 1872. the annexa- l alton of Hawaii. and eontemporaneous 1 with a further movement for territorial | expansion, though with few important
 changes in the domestic scheme the pres l ent congress outranks almost any other l that has ever assembled. R It began with a widespread ciamor for l sympathetic action for suffering Cuba, but 1 there was apparently then no expectation l of armed conflict But when the trend of l events eliminated, the emergency was l quickly met and necessary legislation en- l acted. The first few but significant war 1 measures, suddenly needed, were arranged | and made law, but with the issue made l clear, there was a flood of bills and reso- lutions that fairly submerged the two 1 branches of congress.
 l Hawaiian annexation. Spain and Cuba, l war appropriations and war revenue leg l islation, organization of the vast volunteer l army and expansion of the navy, new 1 bankruptcy law-all these were features l of the session. Notable speeches and 1 dramatic scenes over foreign issues were | comparatively frequent in both legislative | urgent ueHcleucy piliS, ctIIH- 1 ing millions of dollars, were rushed I through with far less delay than marked
 the course of an ordinary measure of little | importance.
 The total appropriations footed almost 1 800. 900 ,O00, and upwards of $350 O0OOOO of l this was for purely war purposes It was 1 the largest aggregate by any session since
 the civil war and the general deficiency 1 1ar ta qinpa the | $750. 900 900 Dingley appropriation in 1s6S The naval appropriation bill provided for l three new battleshps, four monitors. six 1 teen torpedo boat destroyers twelve tor l pedo boats and one gunboat. The urgent l deficiency bills all carried provisions for
 aggressive work in the prosecution of the l war. The general deficiency, enacted in l the last days carried a provision for re- 1 funding the indebtedness of the Central l and Western Pacific railroads to the gov 1 ernment
 1 Cuba and Hawaii were the important l matters of debate and provoked the most 1 widespread interest. Hawaiian annexation 1 finally passed at the close, was agitated | throughout the session, first in treaty form l in executive session. last in open session l by resolutions accepting the Hawai-. an | governments cesson of the islands. 1 There were a number of messages from l President Mckinley bearing the Cuban l situation ranging from the submission of | report upon the Maine disaster and the | consular reports to the call for a declara- | ton of war.
 I The first real war legislation was when l congress placed, without limitation, $5O'OOO,- l 900 in the presidents hands as an emer- gency fund for national defense. Party 1 lines were swept away and both houses l unanimously voted it's confidence in the l administration.
 l Soon afterward a bill reimbursing the | survivors of the Maine disaster for their l losses net to exceed years pay, with l similar amount to those who perished, be- l came law
 1 April Il the president in a message left l the Cuban issue in the hands of congress. 1 Resolutions were soon enacted and De- | came law April 19, declaring that the peo- l pie of Cuba ought to be and are free ana 1 indenendent. and demanding that Spain re- ,inouish its authority and withdraw it's l land and m yal forces from Cuoa ana l Cuban waters and directing the use Of our | land and naval forces to enforce the reso- l lutions.
 The declaration of war was passed py | ooneress and approved on April 20. Sub | soouent lepislation gave free admission to all military and naval supplies purchased 1 abroad by this government, allowed teHi- l porary Notifications to be constructed OH tba v,.i+ten consent of owners of lands so | +okan and prohibited under executive dis l cretion the export of coal or other war | materiat- and three days before the de-
 claration of war. President Mckinley had l approved the volunteer aot. Under It all l the soldiers massed against Spain mustered l in the entire volunteer army have been raised. embracing 125,0OO men under the 1 first and 750OO under the second call. month previous legislation had been 1 enacted recognizing the line or the army effecting modern three battalion war TOT nation. It designated the peace organ,- 1 ga ton of these regiments with two patta'- l ions of four companies each of two skele- l ton or unnamed companies and supplied l the third battalion in war time py manning l the skeleton company ana organizing 'wo | additional ones, and made other important l requirements. Another law amended the | present administration of justice in the army, accomplishing reforms in courtmar- l tia1 proceedings.
 one feature of the session was the en- | actment of war revenue law. It's framers l expected it to produce $l5000 0O0.
 l Other revenue included a bill enlarging | in favor of importers the provisions as to 1 disposition of abandoned imported mer- l chandse, and extending the outage allow ance on distilled spirits in bonds from Tour l to six years. ,, s, l Other important legislation, aside from war. included: Prohibiting the killing Of | fur seals in the North Pacific country,
 prohibiting foreign vessels from carrying | merchandise directly or indirectly pe- | tween United States ports. an Alaskan | homestead and right of way act; encour- aging railroad construction; appropriating | s9OO. .0O0 for the relief of the Yukon miners | suffering from the fierce winter there; I creating a non-partisan industrial com l mission to investigate immigration labor, l manufacture and business; appropriating l s473 151 to pay the Behring sea awards; l creating a commission to allot lands on l the Utah Indian reservation in Utah; ad- l iusting the old land dispute between the l Tinted States and the state of Arkansas; l the compromise calling for payment from