Congressional Rec-Ord-Senate. 53
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1898 .. · CONGRESSIONAL REC-ORD-SENATE. 53 ' Jackson, Tenn., in favor of the passage of the so-called anti $25,000 will be required for the publication of these reports, and scalpers' bill-to the Committee on Interstate and Foreign Com asking favorable consideration by Congress of the same; which merce. was referred to the Committee on Pl·inting, and ordered to be By Mr~ SLAYDEN: Protest of citizens of Gillespie County, printed. Tex., against the annexation of the Philippine Islands-to the LEASE OF PROPERTY UNDER TREASURY DEPA.RTMENT. Committee on Foreign Affairs. The VICE-PRESIDENT laid before the Senate a communica· By Mr. SMITH of Kentucky: Papers to accompany Honse bill tion from the Secretary of the Treasury, transmitting, in compli No. 11017, to restore Jesse Everly to the pension rolls-to the ance with the ad of Congress approved March 3, 1879, certain Committee on Pensions. information relative to the leasing of unoccupied and unproduc By Mr. STEVENS of Minnesota: Petition of the Chamber of tive property of the United States under his control; which was Commerce of St. Paul and the Board of Trade of Minneapolis, referred to the Committee on Appropriations, and ordered to be Minn., urging measures to promote the ocean carrying trade in printed. vessels under the American flag-to the Committee on the Mer CONSIDERATION OF PENSION BILLS. chant Marine and Fisheries. Also, petitions of sundry citizens of Stillwater, Minn., for the Mr: GAL.LINGER. Mr. President, I beg leave to make a improvement of tho St. Croix River from Taylors Falls~ Minn., to request. It is that at the conclusion of the routine morning busi· Prescott, Wis.-to the Committee on Rivers and Harbors. ness to-day the Senate shall proceed to the consideration of unob By Mr. VINCENT: Petition of the Salina Commercial Club, of jected cases on the Pension Ualendar, the time to be occupied not Salina, Kans., asking that the "Act to regulate commerce,. be to exceed one hour. amended-to the Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce. The VICE-PRESIDENT. Is there objection made to there· By Mr. WEAVER: Petitions of the First Presbyterian Church quest of the Senator from New Hampshire, that immediately and of the Ministerial Association.all of Springfield, Ohio, to main after the conclusion of the routine morning business to-day the tain prohibition in Alaska and Indian Territory, and to extend it Pension Calendar shall be taken np for a time not to exceed sixty to our new half-civilized dependencies-to the Committee on minutes? The Chair hears no objection, and the order is made. Alcoholic Liquor Traffic. Mr. VEST. Let me understand the order. Some one was Also, petitions of the Springfield Ministerial Association, First speaking to me. Presbyterian Church, Second Presbyterian Church, Central Meth The VICE-PRESIDENT. It is that immediately after the ron· odist Episcopal Church, Young People's Union Meeting, and Sun tine morning business to-day the Pension Calendar shall be taken day school teachers, all of Springfiel~ Ohio. for the passage of up for sixty minutes. the Hepburn bill to forbid the transmission by mail or interstate M.r. VEST. I shall make no objection to it. commerce of pictures and descriptions of prize fights-to the Mr. President, I do not want to be captions. I do not set my· Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce. self up on a pedestal as a reformer. But I wish to say to the Also. petitions of various churches and religjons societies of Senator from New Hampshire that the practice of passing pen Springfield, Ohio, for the passage of the Ellis bill to forbid liquor. sion bills by reading them by title, and with less than a quorum selling on Government reservations, etc.-to the Committee on of the Senate present, must be stopped. Anyone who has read Public Buildings and Grounds. the report of the Commissioner of Pensions will understand why I make this remark. All I shall insist upon hereafter is that ' these pension bills shall be considered as other measures before SENATE. the Senate; not passed with half a dozen Senators present and by reading the title. and~ in a great many instances, without even THURSDAY, December 8, 1898. alluding to the report of the committee. Mr. GALLINGER. If the Senator will permit me, the Senate Prayer by the Chaplain, Rev. W. H . MILBURN~ D. D. will bear me out in the statement that I never have asked that liENRY C. HANSBROUGH, a. Senator from the State of North these bills shall be considered in any other way than as other busi Dakota, and JoHN L. MIT~ a Senatorfrom the State of Wis ness of the Senate is considered. consin. appeared in their seats to-day. Mr. VEST. I have not made any such statement. The Secretary proceeded to read the Journal of yesterday's pro Mr. GALLINGER. I think the Senator is quite right in his ceedings, when, on motion of M.r. HALE, and by unanimous con contention that these bills should be read in full, and if any Sen sent, the further reading was dispensed with. ator desires a report read, that the report should be read. I quite ADJOURNMENT TO MONDAY, agree with the Senator in his suggestion on that point. F 'or the most part these bills have had very careful consideration, and or Mr. HALE. I move that when the Senate adjourn to-day it dinarily it is not thought necessary to read the report. Yet if be to meet on Monday next. any Senator desires a report read, of course it will be read; and The motion was agreed to. the report will not be read, as it is not read in other cases, unless INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY CONVENTION. a request is made. Mr. VEST. The difficulty, Mr. President, has been that when· The VICE-PRESIDENT laid before the Senate a communica. ever these pension bills are taken up all but about half a dozen tion ·from the Secretary of State, transinitti:ng translations of two Senators leave the Chamber. · notes from the legation of Belgium at -washington, with reference We might as well be-entirely frank about this matter. A good to the protocol of the Industrial Property Convention signed at many of us. myself included, have felt great delicacy in interfering Brussels on December 14, 1897, by the delegates of the United as to this pension business, having taken the unsuccessful side in States and those of other representative powers, recommending the civil war. We have, right or wrong-and I take my full share amendment.s and additions to the Convention for the Protection of the responsibility-felt that it was a question to be determined of Industrial Property concluded at Paris March 20, 1883, etc.; by the Senators who had supported the Government. Recent which, with the accompanying papers, was referred to the Com events, I am glad to say, have obliterated all sectional differences, mittee on Foreign Relations, and ordered to be printed. and it is conceded upon all han<fs that we are again united, one country and one Treasury. The time has gone y when Southern INTERNATIONAL MINING AND INDUSTRIAL EXHIBITION. Senators can afford to sit here and allow this wholesale spoliation Tha VICE-PRESIDENT laid before the Senate a communica of the Treasury. 1 use the word advisedly, because it is sustained tion from the Secretary of State, transmitting a copy of a note by the last report of the Commissioner of Pensions. He says him from the British ambassador at Washington, extending, on behalf self that so far from any diminution of the pension list it has been of the government of Western Australia, an invitation to that of increased; that there have been more than 50,000 original pension the United States to take part in the Western Australian Inter claims filed during the last year, and that the amount now paid national Mining and Industrial Exhibition, to be opened at Cool out for pensions, thirty-three years after the war, instead of de gardie March 21, 1899; which, with the accompanying papers, creasing, has increased and is continuing to increase. was referred to the Select Committee on International Expositions, I submit in all fairness, without the slightest partisan or sec and ordered to be printed. tional feeling, that it is our duty to see what is the matter with this pension business. TRIAL OF HENRY WIRZ AND OTHERS. Mr. CULLOM. If it will not interrupt the Senator, 1 will ask The VICE-PRESIDENT laid before the Senate a communica him if he know&-! do not-whether a part of th~ increase is a tion from the Secretary of War, transmitting certain information result of the recent war or whether it is all confined to the late relative to the reports, correspondence, orders, and other papers civil war? relating to Henry Wirz, John H. Gee, and J. W. Duncan, Con Mr. VEST. The report of the Commissioner of Pensions shows federate officers who were tried by military commissions after the that none of it has come from the present war. There will be un cessation of hostilities upon charges of cruelty to Union prisoners questionably a considerable increase on that account; but the last during the war, and stating that an appropriation of not less than report of the Commissioner of Pensions shows $141~000,000-I 54 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD-SENATE. DECEMBER 8, speak from memory-to have been paid out during the past year; PETITIONS AND MEMORIALS. an increase over the preceding year. Mr. SEWELL presented a petition of the Jersey City Druggists' I repeat, it is our duty, our sworn duty ~nd solemn d_uty, to s~e Association, of Jersey City, N.J., praying for a repeal of Sched why, thirty-three years after the war, this enormous mcrease m ule B of the stamp-tax law; which was referred to the Committee the number of claims and in the amount expended is still going on.