Resolved, That the Secretary communicate these proceedings to the House of Representatives.

Resolved, As a token of respect to the memory of the deceased, that the Senate do now adjourn.

The Speaker laid the said resolutions before the House.

The same having been read,

Mr. N. J. Hammond submitted the following resolutions; which were read, considered, and agreed to, viz:

Resolved, That the House of Representatives receives with deep regret the announcement of the death of Hon. Benjamin H. Hill, late Senator from the State of Georgia.

Resolved further, That as a mark of respect for the memory of the distinguished Senator this House do now adjourn.

And then,

In accordance with the last resolution, the House, at 1 o'clock and 30 minutes p. m., adjourned.

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 6, 1882.

The following petitions and other papers were laid on the Clerk's desk, under the rule, and referred as follows, viz:

By Mr. Buck: The petition of F. W. Dean and others, of Glastonbury, Connecticut, for increase of duty on Sumatra tobacco;

By Mr. J. C. Burrows: The petition of A. W. Murphy and others, of Kalamazoo, Michigan, for an extension of bonded period on alcoholic spirits;

Also, the petition of R. A. Stone and others, for rebate equal to the amount of any reduction that may be made in the tax on tobacco;

By Mr. Cabell: The petition of manufacturers and dealers in tobacco of Danville, Virginia, for the repeal of the tax on tobacco, and for a rebate equal to the amount of any reduction that may be made in the tax; By Mr. Cannon: The petition of H. E. Lapham and others, citizens of Champaign County, Illinois, for such revision of the tariff as shall place lumber and other products of the forest on the free list; to the Committee Ways and Means.

By Mr. Chapman: Papers relating to the claim of Dr. Samuel A. Mudd; to the Committee on Claims.

By Mr. Deuster: The petition of Mrs. Maria B. Schug, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, for a pension;

to the Committee on Invalid Pensions.

By Mr. Ford: The petition of citizens of Saint Joseph, Missouri, for passage of bill granting pension to surviving soldiers of the Florida war;

to the Committee on Pensions.

By Mr. Henderson: The petition of C. Tegeler & Co. and others, rectifiers and wholesale liquor dealers of Rock Island, Illinois, for an extension of bonded period on whisky;

to the Committee on Ways and Means.

By Mr. A. S. Hewitt: The petition of underwriters and merchants of New York, for the establishment of communication by a telegraphic cable between Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard;

to the Committee on Appropriations.

By Mr. Houk: The petition of Betterton & Co. and others, of Knoxville, Tennessee, for legislation extending the bonded period for alcoholic spirits;

By Mr. Ketcham: The petition of Eastmead & Luce and 15 others,

tobacco dealers of Poughkeepsie, New York, for a rebate equal to the amount of reduction that may be made in the tax on tobacco, cigars, &c.;

By Mr. Marsh: The petition of M. L. Hoover and others, citizens of Bushnell, and of L. W. Clark, M. D., and others, citizens of Rushville, in the State of Illinois, for such revision of the tariff as shall place the article of lumber and other products of the forest on the free list; to the Committee on Ways and Means.

By Mr. Miller: The petition of William Gibson and others, relative to the pension claim of Abraham Levison;

to the Committee on Invalid Pensions.

By Mr. Neal: The petition of G. Buckingham and 70 others, citizens of the District of Columbia, in reference to the confinement of boys and girls in the workhouse of the District;

to the Committee on the District of Columbia.

By Mr. Nolan: The petition of Margaret Kempf, widow of Peter Kempf, late first lieutenant Company F, Fifty-eighth New York Volunteers, for a pension;

to the Committee on Invalid Pensions.

By Mr. Ritchie: The petition of L. Frane & Co. and others, of Toledo, Ohio, for extension of the bonded period on whisky already manufactured;

to the Committee on Ways and Means.

By Mr. G. D. Wise: The petition of physicians and surgeons of Richmond, Virginia, for the erection of a fire-proof building for the Army Medical Museum;

to the Committee on Public Buildings and Grounds.

Also, the petition of manufacturers and dealers in tobacco of Lynchburg, Virginia, for a rebate in the event of the repeal of the tax on tobacco;

to the Committee on Ways and Means.

The following-named members appeared and took their seats, viz: Messrs. Berry, Blanchard, Dugro, C. B. Farwell, Hatch, Henry S. Harris, Knott, Ladd, Morse, Hoge, Humphrey, Gunter, Russell, and Van Voorhis.

Mr. Caswell, by unanimous consent, submitted the following resolution; which was read, considered, and agreed to, viz:

Resolved, That the Committee on Appropriations are hereby authorized to add a clause to the bill making provision for the postal service which shall reduce the rate of postage on first-class mail matter from three to two cents for each half ounce or fraction thereof.

Mr. Caswell moved to reconsider the vote last taken, and also moved that the motion to reconsider be laid on the table; which latter motion was agreed to.

Mr. Willis, by unanimous consent, submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Reform in the Civil Service, viz:

Resolved, That the Committee on Reform in the Civil Service be instructed to inquire and report to the House, as soon as practicable, whether at the recent Congressional election money was raised by assessment or otherwise upon Federal office-holders or employés for election purposes, and, if so, by whom, and what amount was so raised, and how the same was collected and expended; and further, whether such assessments were or not in violation of law.

The committee shall also inquire whether any Federal office-holder or employé has been dismissed or threatened with dismissal from employ

ment or deprivation of any right or privilege by reason of his refusal or neglect to pay any assessment made upon him at the recent election, or has been otherwise interfered with.

That in prosecuting these inquiries the committee shall have the right to send for persons and papers.

By unanimous consent, bills were introduced, severally read twice, ordered to be printed, and referred as follows, viz:

By Mr. Rosecrans: A bill (H. R. 6940) to amend an act entitled "An act to provide for the settlement of all outstanding claims against the District of Columbia, and conferring jurisdiction on the Court of Claims, and for other purposes";

to the Committee on the District of Columbia.

By Mr. Cobb: A bill (H. R. 6941) to authorize the pastor and members of the Catholic congregation of Saint Francis Xavier's Cathedral, at Vincennes, Indiana, to import, free of duty, certain oil paintings; to the Committee on Ways and Means.

By Mr. Simonton: A bill (H. R. 6942) for the relief of H. B. Wilson; to the Committee on Claims.

By Mr. Wadsworth: A bill (H. R. 6943) granting a pension to the widow of the late Major-General Warren;

By Mr. J. W. Singleton: A bill (H. R. 6944) for the relief of Charles E. Whiteside;

By Mr. Townshend: A bill (H. R. 6945) granting a pension to W. H. Weaver;

to the Committee on Invalid Pensions.

Mr. Townsend, by unanimous consent, submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Commerce, viz:

Resolved, That the Secretary of War communicate to this House the names and character of the "particular objects" referred to in that part of the second annual message of the President which discusses appropriations for rivers and harbors as likely to need additional appropriations at this session of Congress, together with a statement of any other works or objects now in course of construction needing such appropriations, and the amounts in each case which, in his judgment, can be profitably expended during the fiscal year ending June 30, 1884; also whether any and what part of the amount referred to in said message as the "present available balance" is covered by existing contracts; also what amount of such "present available balance" for river and harbor works will probably be on hand at the end of the fiscal year ending June 30, 1883.

The Speaker, by unanimous consent, laid before the House a letter from the Doorkeeper of the House, transmitting, in compliance with the act of August 7, 1882, a statement showing that he paid into the Treasury the sum of $706, on account of the sale of waste paper; which letter was referred to the Committee on Accounts.

The Speaker also laid before the House a letter from the Secretary of the Treasury, in response to a resolution of the House of the 4th instant, relative to the alleged shelling of two Indian villages in Alaska by the revenue-cutter Corwin; which was referred to the Conmittee on the Territories and ordered to be printed.

The Speaker then proceeded, as the regular order of business, to call the committees for reports;

When

Mr. Kelley, from the Committee on Ways and Means, reported a resolution distributing the last annual message of the President of the

United States; which was referred to the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union.

- Messages in writing were received from the President of the United States, by Mr. Pruden, one of his secretaries; which were laid on the Speaker's table.

And then,

On motion of Mr. Kelley, the House resolved itself into the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union; and after some time spent therein the Speaker resumed the chair, and Mr. Pound reported that the committee having had under consideration the following resolution, had directed him to report the same with an amendment, viz:

Resolved, That so much of the annual message of the President and the documents which accompany it as relates to the public debt and the public revenues; to the national finances; to the revenue provisions of the reciprocity treaty with Hawaii, and to commercial relations with foreign countries having connection with revenue questions be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

That so much as relates to the appropriation and expenditure of the public moneys be referred to the Committee on Appropriations.

That so much as relates to the judiciary of the United States; to the question of providing a bankrupt law; to the construction of the law restricting immigration of laborers from China, and the delinquencies of railroad companies to which grants of public lands have been made be referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

That so much as relates to affairs between the Government of the United States and the governments of foreign nations; to legislation. touching the sending of delegates to represent the United States at international conventions to consider matters of common interest to civilized nations; to the holding of a peace congress at Washington, District of Columbia, to be composed of representatives from the countries constituting the American continents; to the centennial celebration of the birth of Bolivar, the founder of South American independence, to be held in July, 1883, at the city of Caracas, Venezuela, and to a reorganization of the diplomatic and consular service be referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs.

That so much as relates to the coinage and to the mints of the United States be referred to the Committee on Coinage, Weights, and Measures. That so much as relates to the currency and to national banking associations and to the issue of silver certificates be referred to the Committee on Banking and Currency.

That so much as relates to the organization and government of the Territories of the United States be referred to the Committee on the Territories.

That so much as relates to the Navy and to explorations in the Arctic Ocean be referred to the Committee on Naval Affairs.

That so much as relates to the Army; to providing an armament for defense on the sea-coast, and to additional legislation in relation to the retired list of the Army be referred to the Committee on Military Affairs.

That so much as relates to postal affairs and to the reduction of existing rates of postage be referred to the Committee on the Post-Office and Post-Roads.

That so much as relates to the care, education, and management of the Indians be referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs.

That so much as relates to the improvement and defense of rivers and harbors; to the revival of American ship-building; to the regulation of

inter-State commerce, and to international rules to prevent collision on the high seas be referred to the Committee on Commerce.

That so much as relates to the revision of the laws, and to the transfer of the Light-House Service, the Coast Survey, and the revenuemarine service, as now organized, from the Treasury Department to the Navy Department be referred to the Committee on the Revision of the Laws.

That so much as relates to illiteracy and to the extending of aid by the United States to promote education be referred to the Committee on Education and Labor.

That so much as relates to the improvement of the Mississippi River be referred to the Committee on Levees and Improvement of the Mississippi River.

That so much as relates to the public lands be referred to the Committee on the Public Lands.

That so much as relates to the Pacific railroads, except as herein otherwise provided, be referred to the Committee on Pacific Railroads. That so much as relates to the extension of the Capitol, to the care and improvement of the Capitol grounds, and to the public buildings and grounds in the District of Columbia be referred to the Committee on Public Buildings and Grounds.

That so much as relates to the issue of patents, to increasing the present accommodations of the Patent Office, to the publication of the abridgment of patents, and to the registration of labels and trade-marks be referred to the Committee on Patents.

That so much as relates to agriculture and to the preservation of the forests against wasteful destruction be referred to the Committee on Agriculture.

That so much as relates to civil service reform be referred to the Select Committee on Reform in the Civil Service.

That so much as relates to the District of Columbia be referred to the Committee on the District of Columbia.

That so much as relates to legislation in reference to counting and declaring the vote for President and Vice-President of the United States, and the intendment of the Constitution in its provisions for devolving executive functions upon the Vice-President in the event of disability of the President, be referred to the Select Committee on Law respecting the Election of President and Vice-President.

The House having proceeded to their consideration, the said amendment striking out the words in the first paragraph on page 1, "and the revenue provisions of the reciprocity treaty with Hawaii," and inserting the same on page 3, after the word "service," was agreed to, and the resolution as amended was agreed to.

Mr. Kelley moved to reconsider the vote last taken, and also moved that the motion to reconsider be laid on the table; which latter motion was agreed to.

A message from the Senate, by Mr. Sympson, one of their clerks : Mr. Speaker: The Senate have passed bills of the following titles, in which I am directed to request the concurrence of the House of Representatives, viz:

S. 1704. An act to amend section 1860 of the Revised Statutes so as not to exclude retired Army officers from holding civil-office in the Territories.

S. 1725. An act for the relief of certain settlers on the Duck Valley Indian Reservation in Nevada.