The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-02-27

olP1eIe Record.
washington, Feb. 26.-An eventful De-
Rod in the country's history is covered
by the work of the fifty-ffth congress.
which is drawing to a close. It has
been a period of stirring and dramatio
action with questions of vast magni-
tude constantly engaging attention.
forming an epoch alongside those Other,
American epochs, the revolution and
the civil war. This congress has de-
clared war against q foreign foe, and
the treaty-making branch has partici-
Pdteu II rdtlfy1nS the treaty by which
IndC war was terminated. 1t has pro-
Vldec q great volunteer army, has en-
ldrSed the regular army and has ex-
pdhoed tne navy TO meet war emergen-
cleS ana new conditions. The tariff
mas peen revised, first by the Dingley
law ana then by the war revenue act.
a bond issue known as the war loan.
has been provided.
6uL 1ar-reachinS as these war meas
ureS are, the congress has had time
also to enact other legislation which
under ordinary circumstances would
MAKE It's session memorable This in
Guides the annexation of Hawaii: the
rejection by the senate of the general
treaty Of arbitration with Great BRIT
ain; the enactment of a national bank
ruptcy law; provision for taking the
twelfth census; reorganization of the
personnel OF the navy. To this list NAV
yet be added other important subjects
stun pending, including the Nicaragua
canal, the increase of the regular army.
the anti-scaiping measure the Hawaii
hill and he
OF American shipping. Some of tht
most important general measures arr
IN the final legislative stages, and it
VIII not be until the last hours arrive
that the success or failure of these
measures will be determined definitely.
DINGLEY TARIFF SESSION.
The present congress began its work
almost simultaneously with the opening
OF President McKiniey's administration.
Two days after his inauguration he is
sued the call for an extra session, and
IN pursuance TO this call congress as
sembled on March Is, 1897. The special
message to congress was directed 20 the
need of a tariff law that would provide
ample revenue for the support of the
government. No other subject Of Iegis-
lation was mentioned, and the tariff
bill at once became the all-absorbing
feature of the session. Chairman Ding
ley OF the ways and means committee
and his Republican associates had al
ready done much work on the BILL and
three days after the extra session began
the Dingley tariff bill was reported. 1t
passed the house within two weeks of
the opening Of the session; passed the
senate May Z; became a law July 24.
Hardly less important was the con-
sideratiOn in the senate of the general
treaty Of arbitration negotiated by
President Cleveland with Great Brit
ain The progress Of the treaty in the
executive sessions of the senate at
tracted worldwide attention. finally
resulting in the defgeat of the instru-
ment. The extra session also brought
forth four appropriation bills. but they
were those which failed of passage in
the preceding congress and were not
considered as properly chargeable TO
this congress Some general legislation
was enacted, including the Suspension
of President Cleveland's order setting
aside q, ,0OG. Geo acres of forest reserves:
providing for a gradual abandonment
Of sectarian Indian schools; extending
relief to Mississippi food sufferers
and to the destitute in Cuba. and in In
dia- The Cuban problem began to pre-
sent an acute phase at this early seS-
sion and the senate passed a resolution
recognizing the Cubans as belligerents.
which, however, did not pass the house.
GREAT WAR SESSION.
The second session of the present
congress is remembered as the great
war session. It saw the elimination
of the pent-up sympathy for suffering
Cuba; the declaration that the people
of Cuba ought to be and are free and
independent; the declaration of war
against Spain and the enactment Of
those vast emergency measures for
prosecuting the war. There were many
messages from the president as the
war clouds darkened. ranging from the
submission of the report on the Maine
disaster to the call for declaration Of
war.
The first real war legislation was
when congress placed at the disposal
of the president, without limitation,
$50, ,O-0, 900 as an emergency fund for
national defense. On April II the pres
ident committed the entire Cuban dueS-
ton to congress, and just one week
later the congressional resolution be-
came a law, declaring Cuba free and
independent, demanding that Spain
withdraw its land and naval forces
from Cuba and Cuban waters and di-
recting the use of our land and naval
forces to enforce the resolution. With
in another week, viz, April "a, the de-
claration of war was passed by con-
greSS and approved Inen came the
rush of war legislation on a stupendouS
scale. the work proceeding while actual
no. silities were under way and the
Dewey victory was achieved.
The act creating the volunteer army
had been approved three days before
the declaration of war. and under it
the president was enabled TO call into
service the 250.000 men augmenting the
regular forces. The latter, also. had
been expanded and improved by the
act establishing the three-battalion
formation in time OF war. Further
force was provided by authorizing the
enlistment of 10000 men, adapted to
tropical climate, since known as i'm
munes." Another act added two ad-
ditional artillery regiments to the reg
ular army, with a total of 1910 men.
These and many lesser army measures
were speedily enacted.
REVENUE MEASURES