The Valentine Democrat. [volume] (Valentine, Cherry Co., Neb.) 1896-1898, 1898-07-14
WORK OF CONGRESS-.
NATIONAL LEGISLATURE HAS
BEEN BUSY WITH WAR.
Not for Twenty-Five Years Have Sc
Important Matters Been Considered
appropriation that Aggregate
Nearly S3O3,OOJ, 900 We're Maze.
An Iunortynt Session.

An 1n.pOTI"ntF cSSiOu
The passing of the second session of tie
LVth Congress marks the close of tie
first war Congress i'll a quarter of CEN
fury. Associated with the first hostile
conflict since 1872 with Il nation of an
other continent, the annexation Of Ha-
waii, and contempOraneous with further
movement for territorial expansion, the
present Congress eutranks almost any
other that has ever assembled.
Hawaiian annexation, Spain and Cuba,
war appropriations and war revenue legls'
lation, organization of the vast volunteer
army and expansion of the navy, and
new bankruptcy law were features of the
session. Urgent deficiency bills carrying
millions of dollars were rushed through
with far less delay than marked the
course of an ordinary measure of little
Importance The total appropriations
footed almost $900,000,00O, and about
$3.50 100000 of this was for war purposes.
1t was the largest aggregate by any ses-
sion since the civil war. and the general
deficiency was the largest separate meas
ure since the $75O,O0O,00O single appro-
priation in 1863. The naval appropriation
bill provided for three new battleships
four monitors, sixteen torpedo boat d.
stroyers, twelve torpedo boats and one
gunboat. The urgent deficiency bills all
carried provisions for aggressive work IN
the prosecution of the war. The genera
deficiency measure, enacted in the last
days, carried provision for refunding the
indebtedness of the Pacific railroads to
the Government.
Cuba and Hawaii were the important
matters of debate and provoked the most
widespread interest. There were a num-
Der of messages from President Mckin-
ley bearing ON the Cuban situation. rang
ing from the submission of report upon
the Maine disaster and the consular re-
ports, to the call for a declaration of war.
The first real war legislation was when
Congress placed, without limitations,
S5O.0OOOOO in the Presidents hands as
an emergency fund for national defense.
On April II the President, in Il message,
left the Cuban issue in the hands of Con-
gress. Resolutions were soon enacted and
became law April 10 declaring that the
people of Cuba ought to be and are free
and independent and demanding that
Spain relinquish it's authority and with
draw its land and naval forces from Cuba
Of our land and naval forces to enforce the
resolutions.
The declaration of war was passed by
Congress and approved on April %. Three
days before the declaration of war. Pres
ident Mckinley approved the volunteer
act. Under it all the soldiers in the vol
unteer army have been raised, embracing
125.O0O men under the first and $4,000
under the second call.
One feature of the session was the en-
actment of the war revenue law. Its
trainers expected it to produce $150.G00,-
700. Minor war legislation included the
following: Organizing a volunteer army
signal corps, organizing a volunteer brig
ade of engineers, creating two additional
artillery regiments, adding 81 .61O men;
creating a United States auxiliary naval
force, not exceeding 1000 enlisted men
and appropriating $3,O0O,OOO therefor
keeping iife-saving stations ON the Allan
tic and gulf coasts open during June and
July for patrol purposes, authorizing as
slstance to Cubans and providing them
with arms and supplies, allowing
homestead settlers who volunteer to count
their service in homestead requirements,
resolutions of thanks to Dewey and his
men. and the presentation of a sword to
him and medals to his officers.
Other important legislation. aside from
war. included prohibiting the killing of
fur seals in the north Pacific and importa-
ton of sealskins into this country: pro-
hibiting foreign vessels from carrying
merchandise directly or indirectly between
United States ports: an Alaskan home
stead and right of way act. encouraging
railway construction; appropriating $780,
900 for the relief of the Yukon miners:
creating a ron-partisan Industrial commits
sion to investigate immigration, labor.
manufacture and business. Late in the
session general bankruptcy law was en-
acted providing for voluntary and invol-
untary bankruptcy.