The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1841-06-17
Mtsrellaneolls.
CONGRESSIONAL oRAToRY,

| A debate arose in the House Of Representatives
last Tuesday on the propriety Of removing thospxu
| rous appendages, the arm chains OF the mcnbs as
impediments TO business. The British Hoe OF
Commons, IL was conlended, provided witiplain
benches, which certainly less favorable TO fuon
not properly connected with the business of CosIess
and 10 INCIDENCE than the apparatus Of separatdesks
| and comfortable arm chairs These certainl pro-
vocatiyes to somnolescency during prosy debss, u
not incentives to the practice of letter writing the
members, and, consequently, serious hindranss to
public business. ai&
The Improvement here suggested would be oristep
towards reforming the practice of the House. This,
however, is not enough. II does not reach the bsse
OF that growing eyilthe absence Of business haRts
The reformation must come from Without. The prb
lie must te enlightened 10 the value OF time N egsi
lave bodies. 1t must be taught that oratory asst Is
pursued in Congress, is Of the most expensive OF
ndugencies-nfntely more so than many monarchi
cal pageants An arithmetica account of the cost &c
the country Of the speeches delivered in that body
should accompany the publication of each speech
The total would only stare by its aggregate
amount but il would astonish the people, in the
of individual instances to know how high price they
were paying for an inferior article in the market Of
Senatorial eoquence.
II would present the elements of calculation by
which estimate could be made of the cost to the ma
ton of that class of its public men denomnated Ora
tors. IL would soon appear that II Is much higher
charged for third rate than for first rate not rea-
freiy, or according to comparative merit but absolute
iy--that while Mr.. Clay and few others cost the
country, in this point of vicw annual not per
haps above their intrinsic value, several mediocre
Statesmen and umfedged orators newly indicted, are
equal To tax oi'some housands dollars Let
il not be said that this would be too mercantile test
too utiifarian standard measured according to dol
lars and cents This is the kind Of argument that
would awaken public attention in commercial coun-
try and among economical people
Tito this process of arithmetic and financial est
mate were coupled the practice of reporting Con
gressiona Speakers they speak, 10 Tho letter, and
not as they would irish 10 appear before the public,
in their familiar garb and not in their holiday dress
II would strike from the roll many who catalogued
as Congressional oraors.-For this purpose there
must be more independence than can be expected in
the Washington Journals. They are not proof
against the solicitations and influences of members 10
put them IN appropriate costume Of speech before
the public. What they would have said if they had
cison OF misplaced metaphors redundant cpthets OBJ
security Of phrase, and inharmonous periods-what
they would hare rrHen, under the guidance of taste
not what they hare actually uttered they reported
TO have expressed.
Let the reporting become bona fde what purports to
be, faithful image of the speakers mind-a just
Rerion OF all his pecuares of idom, imagery, style
arrangement manly and feebeness as well his
energy and vehemence--his badness and repetition.
well as his elaboration of phrase and etlorescence
of fancy-his abortye wittcisDs well epigram-
matte eclties. Let the orator stand before the pub
lie IN his natural mein and proportions, IN his real
rhetorical garb and not trcked out by the art Of
position. and il would 30 farther to substitute bust
ness habits for mediocre oraory, than all the attempts
from riLiin. emanatng from the body itself whether
by the rigid enforcement of rules deprvng the
members Of those soft appliances to Incidence, which
consist in cushioned seats and rests for their arms.
Southern Patriot