The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1841-12-02

in our public officers may be detected by thew
GLANCE of the Executive, and the offenders pun
shed through his interference; but when an
abuse pervades The system, its correction is be-
yond his jurisdiction, and it can be eradcated
only by the prudent and energetic action Of the
Legislature That il may be efficiently exerted,
its efforts must be guided by knowledge, and
though is but the superficial information, ca
sually obtained, by observers almost uninterested,
and without any intent of putting il TO use, we
think we can furnish some slight hints sufficient
to communicate incipient idea, of the character
of some prevalent evils-and these ideas may be
fully developed by the resources possessed by
members of Congress, but removed beyond our
reach. member may call for information
from the Departments, and we cannot he can
obtain resolution, permitting the summons
of persons and papers," which W cannot do
BY the judicious exercise Of the prerogative
vested in them, valuable information may be
acquired but if they are exercised, as they
most frequently have been, the result must be
such as it has almost always been-that all the
labor expended in the cause Of reform must be
frutless
In the first place, we would recommend, that
the person making ''calp' on any of the De-
partments should have an object; secondly, that
he should have distinct idea of that object;
thirdly, he should have the manliness and frank
ness TO declare it and fourthly, he must have
clear notion of the practical benefit derivable
from the answer II is fact well known, that
members of Congress make calls without know.
ing what they want as often as they vote with
Out knowing the question. 1t is well known
that they make these calls without an idea OF
what may result from them; and il is equally
known, that instead Of directly combining their
queries to the point which they wish 10 learn,
they extend to every object bearing any relation
| to thinking that amid the mass Of elements
which must, in consequence, be presented to
| their analytic skill, they obtain the one OF
which they are in search We might narrate
numberless anecdotes, in illustration Of the sin
gular character of the "calls" often made by
Congress. We shall allude, however, but to
| two. A gentleman, who seems to have enjoyed
the reputation Of being one of the body OF indie
| fatgable seekers after small evils-and blind TO
the great ones over which he stumbled in his
favorte pursuit, had incidentally heard that an
extravagant sum had been paid by public Off
Ger for an ox-yoke Resolved on exposing this
instance Of criminal prodigality he did not pro-
coed as any one except veteran Congressman
would, and inquire Of the Department whether
it had detected or could discover the truth Of the
guilt imputed to the individual accused, but he
scaled" on the Department TO furnish him with
schedule Of all the accounts of all the officers
of the Army and Navy for the two preceding
years. Five clerks were Immediately detailed
upon the duty of answering this inquiry After
several months labor, the document was COM
pleted-and by order Of the House was printed.
As is the fashion in such cases, it was read by
nobody, but the astute member himself But
gratfed by having document printed on his
motion, he studied it and pored over il with due
intensity Of industry, but the or-yoke acas no
,ohere to be found. He scrutinized the bant-
ling, but the mark Of guilt was no where disco
| ,.raUle onr. we nave related the preceding
anecdote as we have heard il the narrative
may be erroneous in some unimportant details,
but the main facts we believe to be correctly
stated. The same observation may be applied
to the following account made by another hon
orable gentleman. Its object, or the cost Of an
swering it, we do not at the moment remember
But nearly year after the call had been made,
the manuscript answer to it appeared at the Ca
pitol in the form of several large boxes filled
with papers-which had been despatched from
the Department in two carts
To read manuscript does not suit the dignity
or the Incidence Of the Representatives of the
People. The proposition to print such mass
of rubbish would have required more impudence
than any one possessed. The boxes, therefore
yet unopened, we believe remain in the Capitol
an instructive monument of the futity and ex-
uavagance of at least one ''call' by Congress-
This document, it was anticipated by tn, gen
teman, TO whom it was indebted for its exist
ence, was to prove a giant in the cause Of re-
forms but instead Of realizing any such expec-
tatlons, il lies liieless mass in lumber room,
tangible proof of the folly Of its father
Calls made SO bndy can evidently never be
productive of any benefit. We say nothing
whatever Of the cost Of preparing and printing
such documents. When we asserted that we
could call the attention of Congress to abuses ex-
isting within the immediate limits of their iuris-
diction, we had no reference whatever to their
own pay and mileage, or 10 the extravaganza so
frequently appearing in their contingent expen-
ditures, or TO the unnecessary cost consequent
on answering their calls Any reformation in
these matters is almost hopeless. We mean 10
bring forward no individual instances of guilt
even If we had the opportunity OF knowing
them. Our comments, as we have already said
| will he confined 10 ahnses xisIin4r ,ap.lox IL .