Evening star., 1902-01-13
Three Local Bills Passed bv the
House.
PENSIONS BILL THEN TAKEN UP
Department of Commerce Consid-
cred by Senate.
IN EXECU TIVE SESSION

iiouse vi representatives. and Immediately
after the reading of the journal Mr. Bab-
cock tWis.), chairman of the District OF
Columbia committee. claimed the day and
the House proceeded to the consideration OF
District business
Three Local Bills Passed.
The first District day IN the House at the
present session resulted in the passage Of
three bills of local interest Practically no
debate was occasioned, and but twenty five
minutes was necessary TO dispose Of all the
matters the District committee had ready
for action.
The first bill considered was a measure
which passed the House at the last session,
to confirm title to lot i, cquare 1Il3 to Jo-
hanna c. Black
Regulating Collection Of Taxes
Mr.. Jenkins bill TO regulate the collection
of taxes in the District OF Columbia was
next passed This bin provides that here
after. beginning with the fiscal year COM
mencing July L, 1902. the whole tax on real
and personal property In the District OF Co
lumbia shall be payable I'm the month Of
May of each year: Provided. however. That
on and after the 1st OF November of each
year the tax may be paid I'm two equal in
stallments, the first in November and the
second in May, but that no penalty shall
accrue for delinquency until the following
whole or any part Of said tax upon real and
personal property shall not be pad before
the first day of June i'm each year the same
shall thereafter be in arrears aud delin-
quent, and there shall then be added to be
collected with said tax, a penalty of 1 per
centum per month upon the amount thereof
and like penalty on the first dan of each
succeeding month until payment of said tax
and penalty, and the whole together shall
constitute the delinquent tax to be dealt
with In the manner now provided by law"
Executing Deeds I'm InsuIsr Possess
sIons.
Mr.. Jenkins bill to provide for the execu-
tion In the Philippine Islands and in Porto
Rico Of deeds for land situate I'm the Dis
trict OF Columbia was also passed The bnl
was amended at the suggestion OF Mr.
Fitzgerald Of New York to include other In
struments affecting lands. Mr.. Jenkins
stated that similar provisions had been
made for the territories. which was as far
as Congress was allowed to legislate I'm
this regard. The necessity OF this bill is
owing to the presence In our colonial pos
sessions of a number of our residents who
are Interested in real estate i'm the District
of Columbia, such persons being employed
by the United States government In the
Philippine Islands and whose signatures to
deeds in fee, releases of trusts. etc. are
quired in the transfer of real estate In the
District OF Columbia, and who are now un-
able to execute any valid deed owing 10 the
absence of competent authority to take
such Acknowledgements. Considerable COM
plication and hardship have been imposed
upon owners of real estate in the District
and have delayed necessary settlements
and releases.
Authority to Print.
A resolution authorizing the committee II
print at its discretion the matters coming
before 1t was adopted. In explaining the
necessity for this Chairman Babcock said
that the committee was about to begin the
consideration of several important matters
of which members of the House should be
informed Among these he mentioned the
code, the union station and other matters
Eastern Star Home.
The bill Incorporating the Eastern Star
Home in the District of Columbia. which
the committee authorized a favorable
port. was not acted upon, as the report
thorized had not Yet been presented TO the
House.
Pension Appropriation Bill.
At the conclusion of the District OF Co.
lumbia business the House took up the
pension appropriation bill. Mr.. Barney
Cxis) in charge of the bill. explained that
it carried s139 SAG 4S0. as against s145,2i5,-
30 appropriated for the current year.
The estimates for the payment of pen
sions decreased from sl44 100000 to sl3s.-
100000. He was asked by Mr.. Richardson
CTenn) why the amount for pensions de-
creased five and a half millions. while the
number of pensioners was said to be larger.
Mr.. Barney explained that this was ac-
counted for by .-Ie fact that the arrearages
were decreasing and the number of large
pensions (those from $50 TO S15 month";
was also decreasing. In reply to another
question he stated that the commissioner
OF pensions believed that the high tide OF
nrSinr 1a,1fS hn6 hann ran had and
the amount required proably would remain
stationary for some years.
Mr.. Bell (Col.) denounced the practices OF
the pension sharks" He declared that
they were importuning soldiers OF the
Spanish war and those who had since
served in the Philippines to apply for pen
sions He said that in some cases soldiers
who were thoroughly examined at the time
of their discharge and found to be per
fectly sound yielded TO these opportunities
ami applied for pensions within month
after their discharge He made strong
plea for justice 10 the soldiers not only OF
the rebellion, but of the Spanish war. con-
tending that to secure Justice for deserving
veterans pensions to the unworthy should
be opposed
AS against the soldier of the rebellion
who had not applied for pension until re-
cent years .he thought the present commits
sioner was too strict. bat in the matter OF
ferreting out fraud he thought Commits
sioner Evans had been unexcelled by any
Of his predecessors.
Mr.. Grosvenor Assafis a Report.
Mr.. Grosvenor (Ohio) secured the floor
and assailed the report of committee OF
the G. A. R., made to the Grand Army en-
campment at Cleveland last summer. The
report placed at the door of certain men,
bers OF the House and Senate (among them
HIMSELF the failure to pass what was
known as the preference" pension bill. Mr..
G-csyenor characterized the report as ''un-
Just, unfair and untruthful."
Mr.. Grosvenor said that during his long
service in the House he always had sup
ported cordially every general and special
bill for the benefit of his comrades in
arms.
The objection to the bill, he said was
that IL contained q provision which would
have given preference over the old soldiers
of the rebellion to quarter of a million
men who enlisted In the Spanish A merican
war He did not think the provision just
and explained why he could not support It
in the shape In which IL appeared before the
House. After the bin was defeated ne said
he went to the late Representative Shaw OF
New York. ex-commander-in-chief Of the G.
A. r., and explained that the objection to
the bill arose from the obnoxious provision