Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1906-07-10

by any other peace session III the ms
tory of the country in bills introduced
and passed. both public aud private III
the amount of appropriations voted ana
in the length of debates. 1t has passed.
more corrective legislation than any
other session in recent years and mas
paid closer attention to business.
In the making of speeches and draft
ing of bills the Congress fairly outuld
itself The Congressional Record
puffed and swollen far beyond It's usu'l
PROPORTIONS. will embrace small-sized
library in telling of the work OF the
session. while the files of the document
rooms were damned and oyernoWihS
with more bills, resolutions and reports
than any single session has ever had
and more than have been accumulated
in many an entire Congress.
The flood of bills was greatest IN the
House. although the Senate was not far
behind in proposing laws. The Diiis
filed in the House during the seven
months of the session numbered almost
21.OO0. In the Fifty-eighth Congress-
consisting of three sessions, there were
only 1920 bills introduced in the
House. The Senators presented 60oo
bills from December to July, as against
1906 for the three sessions of the FIJI
ty-eighth Congress.
The two Houses did not take up all
the time filing bills and talking about
them. They passed 1000 laws 800 of
which were public in character ana
destined to WELD a tremendous infu-
ence on the nation. The balance were
"private bills" mostly pension grants.
The Fifty-eighth Congress was content
with the enactment of 5,466 laws, rec
ord which is outdone by the private
acts of a single session of the Fifty
ninth Congress. In view of this accom-
plishment the people who believe the
country suffers from too many laws will
have Just grounds to complain.
Sets Record for Speeches.
But it was in the field of oratory that
both Houses won fame. With the first
weeks of the session the talkfest began,
and it continued to the end, veritaDle
Niagara of words. 1t is estimated that
during the seven months of the session
more than 100000 words were spok-
en- and reported in the two houses OF
Congress, a record that will probably
never be equaled by any legislative
body on earth.
The Congressional Record for the
session numbers more than 10000
pages.
The most popular speeches of the
session. judged by outside demand.
were the rate speeches of Senator'S
Bailey and Knox and Senator Till
mans attack on the President in con-
nection with the Mrs. Minor Morris
incident.
Money Bills Nearly 100000. 900
Lavish appropriations have been
made. In the total appropriated, all
previous records have been broken.
The exact amount is not yet known,
but it will approximate $S75,0oO,0OO,
and may nearly reach the $900,OOO,0OO
point. The appropriations of the clos
kng session of the Fifty eighth Con
gress, for the fiscal year, 1906, amount
ed to $500, 1S4, 1884, the high record up
to that time.
One of the largest items of increase
is in the postoffice bill. Last year the
postal appropriation was $1S1, 022, 093.
This year it is $19S,000,000, an in
crease of $170O0,000. An increase of
over 100000 had been made in the
meat inspection appropriation and
50. 100000 went to San Francisco. Ex
traordinary appropriations of about
S11 100000 were made for the Panama
Canal. An enormous increase was
made in the sundry civil bill, which
carried for the fiscal year 1906 little
Less than 67,000,000 but which went
through the Senate this session with
a total of over $102,000,000. OF this
more than $25,000,000 was for the Pa
mama Canal for the coming fiscal year.
Permanent appropriations carried at
the close of last session amounted to
less than S147,000,O0O. This total is
now much larger and is growing with
every session. 1t viii probably APP
proximate $160,0OO,0O0.
Chairman Tawney of the appropria-
lions committee and most of the House
chairmen having charge of big appro-
priation bills have worked bard to
keep them down, but have had an al
most impossible task. Congress has
been crowded for money from every
quarter. The Panama canal has re-
quired liberal treatment, San Francis
co had to be relieved, the meat inspec-
ton appropriation had to be largely
increased, postal business has been ex-
panding so as to require much larger
sums.
Rev Charles Ferguson, pastor Of All
Souls Unitarian church Of Kansas City,
was formally deposed as a priest Of the
Episcopal church by Bishop E. X. At