Arizona republican., 1899-03-05
Closing Scenes of the Fifty-Fifth
 Congress.
WAS IN SESSION BLL NIGHT
All inc Appropriation Bills Finally Agreed 10 by BOih Houses and All Signed by inc President Ex- Cepf One-HenderSon of Iowa Electrified House - Usual Com IimenfarY Resolutions Adopted.

Washington, March 4.-Wearily the
 house sat through the silent watches
 of the night, recessing from time to
 time awaiting conference reports upon appropriation bills. The floor of the
 house was filtered with waste papers,
 which drifted ankle deep about the desks and made the hall lock as if it had been swept by a snow storm. Still the weary and heavy-eyed legislators kept to their posts through the night.
 The leaders, upon whom the strain and burden of the closing hours fell most heavily. and the speaker, who had the greatest responsibility Of all re- n5ained constantly in their places, watching Yigilantly the progress of the contests between the two houses.
 Final agreement on the river and harbor bill, containing a compromise on the Nicaragua canal, was secured about 3:30 a. n., the sundry civil bill, in which the house forced the senate to surrender the provision for Pacific cable about a. m, the District of Columbia, with the appropriation for sectarian institutions, eliminated, about o'clock, the deficiency at 8:30, and the final conference report upon the naval bill about 9:3O a. m
 The hall presented a sodden, be- dIaggled locking scene until daylight sitting through the round glass ceil- ings dimmed the yellow ligh3s this morning. Outside, a fine drizzling mist was falling, completely shrouding the top of the dome and glueing the wet half-masted flags over the two wings to their staffs. Red-eyed mem bers sat istlessly in their seats and few persons in the galleries slun.oered peacefully
 About o'clock MT Henderson of Iowa aroused the house by an electric speech. It was one of the most elo- quent of this congress. The surround ings added impressiveness to his ut terances. DisheveleGJ members and wreckage of the night were about hin. It was on the question of sectarian in stitutions in the District of Columbia, the provision for which had been stricken out of the district appropria- tion bill. With force and pathos he denounced the bigctry of the ccnferees, who, he said, were willing at the be- hest of secret organizations, to turn the homeless and friendless into the streets. The scene was dramatic in the extreme when MT Henderson recalled the dark days of the war, when white capped Sisters of Mercy were admin istering on the battlefield to sick and dying soldiers.
 With the advent of day the house again took on an appearance of life | Members went below for baths and breakfast and returned refreshed to their stations. As early as 7:30 o'clock people began to pour into the galleries, | the first party tC. arrive being a dozen | ladies, who took their places in the | public galleries.
 The important business of the house | had been virtually completed when the | house recessed for an hour at 9:3O. All l that remained was the enrolment of | bills and final ceremonies
 At 1O:30 when the house reconvened ! the galleries were again packed to the doors and the hall buzzed with the con- fused murmur of voices. An American | flag had been lowered from the press gallery above the speakers chair. The | closing scenes in the house were of i more than usual interest. After all the | bills had been passed there followed | the usual resolution. That offered by MT. Bailey thanking Speaker Reed, and | the remarks of the minority leader, | were Of a character to lend dramatic | turn to the proceedings. The action of the house and the speakers reply | aroused the house and spectators to enthusiasm.
 After adjournment members and vis- itors joined in singing patriotic airs.