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Show MEASURES ENACTED BY FIFTY-NINTH CONGRESS Strenuous Exertion of Appropriation Committee Fall to Hold App-o. prlatlono to Much Less Than $900,000,000. Washington. A number of very material ma-terial mensures extending federal rrg-ulatlon rrg-ulatlon and control hnvo been enacted nt tho first session of tho Fifty-ninth congress. The railroad rate and tho meat Inspection hills will soon become laws and before adjournment both houses will have passed pure food bills, which, though dissimilar In tcrmn, nro both batsed on tho eamo principle of federal control. It Is tho present Intention fo try and adjust these differences before adjournment. Besides brnncblng off Into Ibis now field of legislative endeavor, tho present pres-ent sosslon has made Itself Important In other ways. It has added ono, and perhaps two states to tho union, nnd by so doing hns iVsposcd of four territories. terri-tories. Great results to the pcoplo aro expected from tho rcmovnl of tax on denatured alcohol and If predictions nro fulfilled, heat, light and power nro to bo supplied by alcohol mndo from tho corn fields of tho country, from sugar beets and sugar cano, from frulta and other vegetables. By a deft turn of legislative points of vlow, tho questions thnt hnvo perplexed congress for somo tlmo regarding tho Panama canal bavo ben settled. Tho president mny dig a lock canal as fast ns ho pleases. A Joint resolution resolu-tion wns agreed to requiring cnnal supplies sup-plies to bo mndo of American manufacture. manufac-ture. Congress has not dealt with tho foreign situation to nny extent. An act making n much needed reorganization of tho consular sorvico was passed. Nothing wns dono in tho Santo Domingo Domin-go controversy and tho legislation affecting af-fecting our colonial possessions was meagro and unimportant, although tariff revision for tho Philippines received re-ceived attention nnd approval of tho houso and nn act was passed revising tho tariff collection by tho Phlllpplno government. A colnngo act for tho Islands nlro was passed. Our Own Tarfff Law. But congress tnlked about our own tnrlff law. It broko tho records for words. Thousands nnd hundreds of thousands moro thnn have boon uttered ut-tered at any other fesslon woro complied com-plied in the congressional record. Not only on tho floors of tho two houses hns tho word record been heavy, but tho publications resulting from commlttco com-mlttco sosslons on tho subject nro larger and moro numerous- than nt nny previous session. A large number of bills woro Introduced in tho two houses'. Tho cnlondnr recordB that tho numbor has reached nenrly 20,000. 600 moro than wcro Introduced during tho en-tiro en-tiro three sessions ot tho last congress. Appropriations Large. Boforo discussing tho number of nets passed. It Is Interesting to noto that with all tho etrcnuous extortions of nn appropriation commlttco In tho houso with a now chairman Tloprescntntlvo Towney It has been Imposslblo to hold tho npproprlatlons down to much less thnn $900,000,000. although "economy" "econ-omy" was tho watchword from tho start. Ono of tho Important features of the gftsslon wns tho careful scrutiny with which tho demands of tho dlfforent government dopnrlmentB has been received re-ceived by tho houso appropriations committee Tho hearings nccorded to government govern-ment officials asking for money to run their departments nnd hurenus havo been moro oxhaustlvo than over beforo. be-foro. Tho result hns been tho enactment enact-ment of restraining legislation on nonrly every appropriation bill, which It Is Intended will havo a beneficial effect hereafter. In this class Is undoubtedly that requiring re-quiring tho bends of nil oxccutlvo do- Rnrtments t npportlon tho npproprla-ori9 npproprla-ori9 they receive In equal parts to avoid deficiencies. TIiIb Is to o dono under penalty. The only excuse wonld bo somo unforeseen emergency nnd unless un-less this can bo shown tho head of nny department shnll bo summnrlly removed re-moved nnd lays himself llnhlo In tho futuro to flno and oven Imprisonment. Restraining Clerks. Another matter of economy Is tho tnklng nwny from tho clerk tho right to sccuro a transfer to another department, depart-ment, at a higher enlary. until ho hns nerved three years In tho position ho wishes to abandon. Tho prompt turning turn-ing Into the treasury of nil moneys collected col-lected by heads of departments ns government gov-ernment revenue. U nnothor safeguard against oxtravngnnco. It was found that during tho past year ono department depart-ment hnd collected rovenuo to tho nmount of $75,000 nnd disbursed It without nuthorlty of law. A strict nccountlng Is horenftor to bo received from nil United Stntc3 court clorks. A rCwolntlon that ono such clerk has rooolvcd emoluments amounting to $330 In ono day brought nbout this provlf Ion. Although thero hns hecn nn effort to provent tho enlnrgomcnt ot what Is known ns tho "permanent annual ap proprIatlonB,"thls character of cxpones has Increased during tho session to the oxtont of nearly $5,000,000, making a total of permanent annual appropriation appropria-tion of moro than $140,000,000. Measures Meas-ures were Introduced on which action will bb pressed at tho next session, to repeal a portion of the permanent nn-nual nn-nual appropriations of tho govornment Organized Labor Victory. Organized Inbor has succeeded In Its requests of the present session of con-press con-press to the extent of securing tho enact men! cf what Is known as tho "employero' liability bill." This en-, netment will mnko It pnsslblo for an eniplo.M1 to recuro damages for his Injury, rot withstanding his own negligence negli-gence mny bavo been In part respon-H'ble respon-H'ble for Mint Injury. AMiihi'r bill thnt will dnubtlosB become be-come n law Is thnt limiting tho hours of continuous service of rnllway trainmen train-men to 10 hours concocutlvo work to be followed by 10 hours' rest. The much agitated eight-hour day bill received re-ceived a favorable voto from tho house committee on labor, but too late 'o ser'tio neden rr tho hands of congress. con-gress. Tho nntl-lnjunctlon bill was postponed post-poned In committee until the next session ses-sion Ono of the novel features of lawmaking law-making was tho enactment of a measure meas-ure fo preserve tho scenic beauty of Nlngnra Fall'. This notion wns In direct di-rect response to n popular demand that tho falls be not denuded of their beauty to servo the purposes of commerce. com-merce. Knthuslasts for the "greater navy" regard the legislation of tho session ns Initial to proper growth of that arm of our fighting force. Congress author-bod author-bod tho construction of tho "biggest battleship nfloal" with tho provision that beforo tho plans aro submitted ot bids received or accepted tho plans of tho ship must bo submitted to con-gross con-gross nt Its next session. This provision pro-vision wns fought in tho houso with groat zeal, and was carried out by a small majority. Bad for Hazers. Hazing at tho naval academy wns given n furlhor legislative rebuke by tho passage of 11 bill giving tho secretary secre-tary of tho navy discretion to dismiss :or othorwlso punish hazors at that institution. in-stitution. A law wns passed which will result In appropriate markings being mndo ovor tho graves of confederate veterans veter-ans of tho nrmy and navy who died In northern prisons during tho civil war. Tho wearing of tho insignia of tho Grand Army of the Republic or othor boldler Inslgnlas by other than mem-, bcrs of thoso organizations Is mado a mlsdcmoanor. Tho president wns authorized au-thorized to tako tho necessary steps to prcscrvo "American antiquities" by creating government reservations In locations- where such antiquities exist Alaska was given tho right to send n dclcgnto to congress nnd nn act wa passed whereby that territory will havo n larger Rcalo and public Improvement Im-provement fund. Tho flccrctnry of tho Interior wbb also authorized to allot homesteads to tho natives ot Alaska, Although tho ship subsidy measures did not becomo a law, 24 public acta rolatlvo to shipping wcro enacted. Thoso wero all minor In chnrncter nnd inaugurated no now policy. Tho application appli-cation of tho coastwise laws to the Philippines was postponed until 1909. An omnibus bill authorizing tho erection erec-tion of n number of aids to navigation became n law. ' Liberality toward tho Indians, the wards of tho nation, characterized the Boveral enactments on that subject Tho tendoncy Bhown wns to grant full citizenship to thoso Indians who show capability for It: to open for settlement settle-ment certain reservations, tho proccds to go to the Indians, and In one Instance In-stance pnovhlo for the distribution ol tho tribal property to tho individuals of the tribe. Ton bills relatlvo to the courts of tho United Stntv wero passed. Tho Important Im-portant measure relatlvo to court pro-cecduro pro-cecduro Is that which prescribes the, exact procccduro which must be followed fol-lowed by witnesses to socure Immunity from prosecution Inter. President Itoospvclt wns glvon $25,-000 $25,-000 to pay twollng expenses of him-solf him-solf nnd Invited guests. Tho prlvnto pension legislation of the session wns heavy and many hundred hun-dred such acts will bo signed boforo tho ond comes. Tho Jamestown, Va., ccntonnlnl Is expected to be recognized by law be- j forw tho session ends. ' A bill Introduced by Roprosontnttvo Sherman of New York, wns passed and will nmlto It unlawful horeaftor io stnmp tho words "government assay" on articles manufactured of gold and silver. |