The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1921-03-04

abolishing the United States housing cor
porations.
In addition the usual annual supply
measures were put through and prelm-
mary ground work was laid by the house
of ways and means committee for reylS-
ing both the tariff and tax laws.
There We're three sessions OF the 66th
congress. The first, an extraordinary one
called by President Wilson by cable from
Paris after failure of some of the big APP
preparation measures in the preceding
congress. met on May 10, 1919, and con
tinued Just six months to Nov. 10. The
second session, a regular one, began on
Dee. ! 1919, and continued to June >,
1920. ending Just before the national po-
itical conventions. The third and final
session begun last Dec. 6. Including the
sessions during the war and earlier. con
greSs has been sitting virtually in contin-
uouS session for a decade.
The Versailles treaty was the great
bone of contention during both the first
and second sessions. 1t was twice de-
feated. first on Nov. 10. 1919, and again
on March 10, 1920. when. by a vote of a
To 81. it was returned TO President vii
son. The Knox resolution to end the state
Of war with Germany then was adopted
and. on May ~. 1920. killed by presi-
Dental veto.
The treaty debate began May %, 1919.
four days after the new congress convened.
The treaty was reported To the senate
with the Lodge reservations Sept f.
! 1919. and the senate Cloture rule adopted.
for the first time since its existence on
Nov. II. During the treaty fight Presi-
dent Wilson made tour of the country,
, beginning Sept. 3. 1919, which ended
with his illness, Sept. Is.
At the second session bipartisan con
fcrenceS of senate leaders failed to bring
an agreement on reservations and. with
debate renewed in February, 1920. the
/ final vote on ratification March - was
A m bo
The national presidential conventions and
! the popular solemn referendum fol-
/ lowed. No effort was made 10 obtain ac-
ton on the treaty during the session
which ended today.
! The first session was Signalized by
efforts to deal with the high cost of living.
1 At that session also congress conferred the
permanent rank ef general lfjDOns General
! i'erShing. but has declined to pass bills,
giving Major Generals March. chief of
STAFF, and Crowder. former provost mar
/ shall general. the rank of liuetenant gen
erals. Bills to give permanent rank of
admiral to Rear Admirals Benson and
Sims also failed.
Also during the first session, Victor
/ Berger. the Wisconsin Socialist, was I'M
seated by the house and. during the sec
/ Ond session, he again was denied a seat
/ after his reelection at a special election.
AT the second session the house passed
I balls to provide a bonus for war veterans
and to amend the tariff and internal rev
] enue laws-to abolish luxury and other
taxes-but they failed in the senate.
which at that session also rejected Presi-
! dent Wilson's proposal for an American
mandate over Armenia
The third and last session was devoted
principally to appropriation bills. with
economy as the watchword Huge SlasheS
were made in departmental estimates by
the subcommittee of the enlarged house
appropriations committee which for the
first time handled all of the regular sup
ply measures