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Show FORTY-XINTH CONGRESS. The Senate. Washington, December 17. After the reading of the journal, Dolph presented the credentials of Mitchell, the newly-elected United States Senator from Oregon, which were read. Mitchell was then sworn in. The chair laid before the Senate aletisr from the Secretary of the Treasury, transmitting trans-mitting the report of the Superintendent of the Coast and Geodetic Survey. Hoar, from the Committee on Privileges and Elections, reported favorably the bill to fix a day for the meeting of the electors for President and Vice-President, and to provide pro-vide for and regulate the counting of the vote for President and Vice-President, and the decision of questions arising therefrom. Hoar said he would call up the bill for action immediately after the disposal of the Presidential Presi-dential bill and the bill fixing the salary of United States District Judges. The bill went to the calendar. ' The chair laid before the Senate a resolution resolu-tion of Butler, calling for a committee to inquire in-quire as to the alleged organization of the Territory of Dakota into a State and the alleged election of United States Senators. Harrison did not think a committee necessary neces-sary for that purpose. The efforts of Dakota, he said, were perfectly respectful to the United States. Its new constitution constitu-tion fully recognized the authority of the United States, and stayed the hand of the new State organization until the new constitution should be approved by Congress. For six years the people of Dakota have been trying to secure action by Congress looking to their admission. The Senate had passed a. bill for their relief, but the bill had not passed the House. Butler inquired by what authority United States Senators had been elected in Dakota. Harrison replied he could show that Senators Sena-tors had heretofore been elected under precisely pre-cisely similar circumstances.. Dakota had the right to go at least as far as Tennessee, California and Michigan had proceeded. Butler remarked that if the proceedings in Dakota were regular and proper, no one would more quickly recognize the fact than himself. He had offered the resolution for the purpose of obtaining the facts. He thought the Senator from Indiana had been working himself into a passion unnecessarily. unnecessa-rily. Harrison replied that he was not in a passion. pas-sion. "The Senator," said he, "has never seen me in a passion, or he would be able to discriminate. ' Laughter. Harrison briefly reviewed the history of the question of admission of the Territories, and said that the Democrats at any rate ought not to question the propriety of the action of Dakota. Butler said that no question of politics was involved. Harrison was glad that Butler took so statesmanlike a view of the subject. - Butler inquired whether Harrison would sustain aotion by the Territory of Utah similar sim-ilar to the recent action of Dakota. Harrison replied he would, but would reserve re-serve to Congress the power to approve or disapprove their Constitution, and that power was recognized and admitted by Dakota. McMillan said Minnesota had been admitted ad-mitted to the Union without any enabling act, and the Democratic Senators had been elected and were ready to take their seats immediately upon the passing of the act of admission. After further debate, the matter went over until to-morrow, and the Presidential succession suc-cession bill ffis taken up, and Evarts addressed ad-dressed the Senate on it. He took the round that the succession ; provided for y the bill now before the Senate - was the only possible constitutional exercise of a very limited power accorded by the Constitution Consti-tution to Congress. Evarts spoke about an hour, and was listened to with the utmost attention, both on the floor and in the galleries. gal-leries. , After a few words from Edmunds in reply to Evarts, and differing from him as to the "very limited power' of Congress, " Edmunds' Ed-munds' amendment was voted down yeas 21, nays 37. , Edmunds' amendment was the one striking strik-ing out the clause. The bill was then passed without division, as reported from the committee. com-mittee. . . |