1896. CONGRESSIONAL RECORD-HOUSE. 5897 Infantry arm. The message also announced that the Senate had passed without Lieut. Col. David Dougall Van Valzah, Twenty-fourth Infan- amendment bills of the following titles: . try, to be colonel. A bill (H. R. 3282) to repeal Rection 61 of an act to reduce taxa­ Maj. Emerson Hamilton Liscum, Twenty-second Infantry, to tion, to provide revenue for the Government, and for other pur­ be lieutenant-colonel. poses, which became a law August 28, 1894; and Capt. William McCadden Van Horne, Seventeenth Infantry, to A bill (H. R. 886) to amend section 3255 of the Revised Statutes be major. of the United States, concerning the distilling of brandy from First Lieut. James Dallas Nickerson, Seventeenth Infantry, to fruits. be captain. The message also announced that the Senate has passed with­ Second Lieut. Charles Baldwin Hagadorn, Twenty-third Infan­ out amendment the following resolutions: R esolved by the. House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), That the try, to be first lieutenant. Committee on Em·olled Bills of the two Houses be authorized to correct the POSTMASTERS. em·olled bill (H. R. 5731) entitled "An act to regulate the practice of medicine and surgery, to license physicia-ns and surgeons, and to punish per3ons vio­ I. J. Jenkins, to be postmaster at El Paso, m tne county of Wood­ lati~g the -provisions thereof in the Di.:;trict of Colu~bia 1 '.' by striking out, in ford and State of Illinois. sectwn 3, lines 1 and 2, " 1st day of July, 1896," and msertmg ·• pas...<>age of this act"; also, in section 12, after the word "Columbia," strike out "nor to med­ Harry Warren, to be postmaster at Winnemucca, in the county ical students who have matriculated in any medical college in the District of of Humboldt and State of Nevada. Columbia prior to January, 1896." W. A. Shepard, to be postmaster at Auburn, in the county of Also: Placer and State of California. Resolved by the House (the Senate concurring), That there be printed for Sylvester H. Day, to be postmaster at Carson City, in the county the use of the Treasury Department, Steamboat Inspection Service, 300 copies of Ormsby and State of Nevada. each of the proceedings of the Board of Supervising Inspectors of Steam Isaac N. Sherwood, to be postmaster at Elko, in the county of Vessels for the years 1895 and 1896. Elko and State of Nevada. A further message from the Senate, by Mr. PLATT, one of its Moran Scott, to be postmaster at Ardmore, in the Chickasaw clerks, announced that the Senate had agreed to the report of the Nation, Ind. Ter. committee of conference on the disagreeing votes of the two Oswald Allen, to be postmaster at Loveland, in the county of Houses on the amendment of the Senate to the bill (H. R. 3279) Larimer and State of Colorado. to authorize the reassessment of water-ma.in taxes in the District Lewis W. Christian, to be postmaster at Weatherford, in the of Columbia, and for other purposes. county of Parker and State of Texas. The message also announced that the Senate had passed with­ William H. Smith, to be postmaster at Newport, in the county out amendment the bill (H. R. 3578) granting a pension to of Perry and State of Pennsylvania. Elmira E. Dustin. Kate V. Caseber, to be postmaster at Charleroi, in the county The meseage also announced that the Senate had passed with of Washington and State of Pennsylvania. amendment the bill (H. R. 6739) for the relief of John N. Quack­ John W. Brown, to be postmaster at Butler, in the county of enbush, late a commander in the United States Navy,·asked a Butler and State of Pennsylvania. conference with the House on the said bill and amendment, and Harry L. White, to be postmaster at Eldred, in the county of had appointed Mr. MITCHELL of Oregon, Mr. LODGE, and Mr. McKean and State of Pennsylvania. PUGH as the conferees on the part of the Senate. · Harriet L. Hastings, to be postmaster at Port Gibson, in the The message also announced that the St.~ate had passed the bill county of Claiborne and State of Mississippi. (S. 715) for the relief of B. F. Dowell; in which the concurrence Benjamin F. Shaffer, to be postmaster at Canon City, in the of the House was requested. county of Fremont and State of Colorado. The message also announced that the Senate had insisted upon FrankS. Kearney, to be postmaster at Warsaw, in the county its amendments to the bill (H. R. 8293) making appropriations to of Wyoming and State of New York. supply deficiencies in the appropriations for the fiscal year ending Charles Morgenstern, to be postmaster at Attica, in the county June 30, 1896, and for prior years, and for other purposes, dis­ of Wyoming and State of New York. agreed to by the House of Representatives, had agreed to the con­ George W. Salisbury, to be postmaster at Cazenovia, in the ference asked by the House on the disagreeing votes of the two county of Madison and State of New York. Houses thereon, and had appointed Mr. HALE, Mr. ALLISON, and Charles McCray, to be postmaster at Ash Grove, in the county Mr. CocKRELL as the conferees on the part of the Senate. of Greene and State of Missouri. MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT. H. E. Blakeman, to be postmaster at California, in the county A message in writing from the President of the United States of Moniteau and State of Missouri. was communicated to the House of Representatives by Mr. Giles M. Stoddard, to be postmaster at Groton, in the county of PRUDEN, one of his secretaries, who also announced that the Pres­ Tompkins and State of New York. · ident had approved and signed bills of the following title: On May 28, 1896: An act (H. R. 6248) making appropriations for the legislative, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. executive, and judicial expenses of the Government for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1897, and for other purposes; FRIDAY, May 29, 1896. An act (H. R. 8167) to authorize the construction of a bridge The House met at 12 o'clock m. Prayer by the Chaplain, Rev. across the Red River of the North; and HENRY N. COUDEN. An act (H. R. 7285) for the relief of George McFarland. The Journal of yesterday's proceedings was read, corrected, and CONFEREES ON DEFICIENCY BILL. approved. The SPEAKER. The Chair appoints the following conferees Mr. KEM. I make the point of no quorum, Mr. Speaker. on the general deficiency bill: Mr. CANNON, Mr. NORTHWAY, and The SPEAKER. The gentleman from Nebraska makes the Mr. SAYERS. point of order that there is not a quorum present. [After count­ CONTESTED-ELECTION CASE-JOHNSTON VS. STOKES. ing.] The point is overruled, there being a quorum present. Mr. McCALL of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, after the three ADJOURNMENT OVER. very able arguments that have been made in this case by my col­ Mr. DINGLEY. Mr. Speaker, in view that to-morrow will be leagues on the committee it will not be necessary at this time Memorial Day, I move that when the House adjourns to-day it be to have an extended statement of the case made to the House. I to meet on Monday next. say that, however, upon the assumption that all the members of The SPEAKER. The gentleman from Maine moves that when the House either heard those arguments or have read them in the the House adjourns to-day it be to meet on Monday next. RECORD. The majority for the contestee, as appears from the The motion was agreed to. report of the minority, which is made from an accurate compila­ tion of the figures in the case as corrected, is 4,275. The contest­ ORDER OF BUSINESS. ant, Johnston, proposes to exclude none of the returns of this dis­ Mr. JENKINS. Mr. Speaker, we desire to resume the argu­ trict, so that in order to seat him it is necessary to prove that at ment in the Johnston and Stokes case. least 4,276 legal voters made an offer to vote for him and had their votes rejected. MESS.A.GE FROM THE SENATE. He proposes to do this, Mr. Speaker, first, by claiming that cer­ A message from the Senate, by Mr. PLA.TT, one of its clerks, tain persons were entitled to vote who were not registered under announced that the Senate had agreed to the report of the com­ the registration law of the State of South Carolina, on the ground mittee of conference on the disagreeing votes of the two Houses on that the law was unconstitutional. I think there is no doubt the amendments of the House to the bill (S. 1247) to establish and whatever that this position is correct so far as the unconstitu­ provide for the maintenance of a free public library and reading tionality of the law is concerned. Th-e registration law was passed room in the District of Columbia. in 1882. I may say that the constitution of South Carolina at that 5898 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD-HOUSE. MAY 29, time was one of the freest constitutions in this country, and por­ admitted by all that the law is unconstitutional; but my Demo­ vided that all male citizens of the United States over the age of cratic colleagues do not think that the whole law is therefore 21 who had been residents of the State of South Carolina one year vitiated and destroyed. The majority of the committee, however, and of a given precinct or county sixty days should have the hold that it is unconstitutional in such essential provisions that right to vote; this, with certain exceptions o1· disqualifications on the entire law is void.