The National tribune., 1902-04-24
A SENSATION
In CONGRESS.
The Senate Rejects the Chinese Excln-
sion Act Sent Over from the House
and Reenacts the Present Law-The
Leaders 0verthrown in the House on
the Cuban Reciprocity Bill by Com
binatiOn between the Beet Sugar Men
and the Democrats.

and the Democrats.
Last week was the most notable in thu
history of this Congress. 1t not only wit
messed the settlement of an important
question in the Senate, but i'll the House
of Representatives,, for the first time dur
ing all the years of absOiutism which has
governed that body under the rules in
stituted by Ex-Speaker Reed, the lead
ers were overthrow, and the dictum OF
the Gar traled in the dust.
The debate of the Chinese Exclusion
Bill continued in the Senate up to a late
hour on Wednesday, with the measure
which had passed the House, and which
the ultra exciusionists under the leader
ship of the Senators from the Pacific
Coast We're trying to push through, con,
stantly losing ground. The bill never re-
covered from the attnck made upon it by
Mr.. CullOm, Chairman of the Committee
on Foreign Relations, who vigorously pro
tested from the start against the enact
ment of legislation in fragrant violation
Of our treaty relations with another Gov
eminent, and especially with one weaker
than ours. -
The sagacious Mr.. Plat, of Connect
cut, author of the famous amendment two
years ago relating to Cuba, finally led the
way cut of the woods. He proposed to
re-enact the present exclusion law upon its
expiration next month, with the amend
ment applying its provisions TO our new
possessions. 4# .tn
| The Senators began to vote Wednesday
afternoon and one amendment after an
| other was defeated, until finally the Plat
amendment, which was adopted in the
| form of a substitute, went through by the
| following vote:
| Yeas - Allison, Beveridge, Blackburn,
| ba,, pu RI
| Wyoming; Cockrell, Cullom, Deboe, Die
trich, Dillingham;, Dolliyer, Elkins,
Foraker. Frye, Gullinger, Gamble Glib
son, Hale Hanna, Hansbrough Hawley,
Hoar, Kean, Kearns, <ittredge, Nc
Comas, McCumber, McLaurin, South
Carolina; Mcmillan, Willard, Morgan, Mel
son, Pettus, Plat, Connecticut; Platt,
New York; Pritchard, Proctor, Quarles,
Quay, Scott, Spooner, Stewart, Warren,
Wellington, WetmOre-4S.
Nays-Bacon, Bailey, Bard, Bate,
Berry, Clark, Montana; Clay, CulbersOn,
Fairbanks, Foster Louisiana; Foster,
Washington; Harris, Heitfeld, Jones,
Laurin, Mississippi; Mallory, Martin,
Mitchell, Money, Patterson, Penrose, Per-
kins, Rawlins, Simmons, Simon, Talia-
ferro, Teller, 1illman, Turner, Vest-333.
Upon the final vote of the passage of
the bill as amended, Mr.. Hoar of Massa
chusetts, was the only Senator voting in
the negative.
Owing to the form in which the bill
passed it goes back to the House of Rep
resentatives as Il new measure altogether.
The House bill being killed, it will there
fore have to be referred to Committee and
reported to the House like any other bill
coming from the Senate. This parliament
tary situation somewhat disturbs the mem
bers from the Pacific Coast because very
Gttta Tina will oil haf, hn
law expires by limitation, and unless Il
new bill shall have been acted upon by
the House, in about two weeks more there
will be no barrier against the incoming
Chinese OF any class or from any quarter.
The Chinese Exclusion Act being out
of the road, according to the program, the
bill providing for temporary civil govern
ment in the Philippines was made the I'M
finished business in the Senate.
The sensation of the week was in the
House of Representatives. For n month
the storm over Cuba had been brewing
and for two weeks the debate upon the
Reciprocity Bill had been in progress.
After many caucuses and long considera-
ton, the Republican leaders, which in
other words means the Committee on
Rules, of which the Speaker is the head
had decided that they had majority for
the bill.
In the meantime rumors were floating
this confidence NJ tho Leaders was dino 70
n bargain which had been made with the
southern Democrats NV which tbev a@read
moi TO nress tbe resolution NJ Mr. C'rnm.
hacker Of InJ;ana n ;nvest;gate the
Southern election laws, in return for votes
This was amnba siyed in tho fret nIaco
bv the Democratic votes which furnished
n oiority over tba beet sugar insrrgents
ia close tLe debate on Fridav and second
tho Demncrots hold n cancns snnnosod 70
he secret bnt which was rnIiv renorteJ