The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1845-01-25
REPELLING ASSAULTS.

ed assault of the enemy is successfully repulsed
IL is always, or nearly always, propitious mo
ment for the assaulted TO become the zssal
ant SO, having shown that MIR. Tylers AID
minisusliou" is invulnerable on the score Of ap
pointments, and that the officers selected by
= Mr. Tyler have proved to be faithful and honest
in the sAfe-keepi ng and disbursement Of this
pubic money, we shall proceed TO sHaign HI.
enemies
IL will be remembered that the Globe, unde
the auspices Of that asIute politician, MIR. Drom-
COOL e, threw out intmations OF corrupt prac'
tees" on the part of certain executive officers
having charge OF The "public funds"-and more
recently, that grave Senators were in the habit
Of receiving "lolln from the nominees laid be
fore that body by the President. Indeed one OF
the Globes tenders. the Albany Atlas, support
ed by the aid Of Mr. John Van Buren,, has had
the sudaciry TO asssl the Administration on ae-
count Of the alleged detaIcs,ion of the late
Clerk Of the House OF Representatives, when 1t
was notorious that Mr. McNuliy was the mid
night caucus nomination of the Vau Buren,
men And il is also within our memory that
MIR. McNulty violently resisted TO the last the
Reputation of Mr.. Van Buren, in the Baltimore
Convention.
But. let US see what the Globe was quietly
eHecting for its own overgrown money box,
while it was endeavoring to direct attention TO
the .'conupt practices" of ''high executive Of
fcers, :" aud also Of dignihed Senators.
IL
in the last New York Herald aud let il be re-
msmbered that Blair and Rves are officers of
of the House:
Correspondence efIt< .Nsr York Herald.)
One Of the most striking evidence Of the man
ner in which certain members Of Congress have voted
the Poop es money for their own benefit and use,
without any right authority, was evidenced by the
passage of resolution al the last session. which sup
piled themselves with books amounting in value to
alb ut AGO 0O0 under the following circumstances
On the l4th of June tn days before the termina-
ton Of the session, Mr. Winthrop Of Massachusetts,
whig member, offered resolution, directing the
CLERK Of the House to furnish the members Of tina,
Congress, with all the books furnished to the mem
bers of the preceding Congress, aud also the " Con-
gresso~ai Globe and .3ypendr, the latter Of which
never supplied 10 members before, and the cost
of which was $40 each, making an aggregate, incu-
ding four copies supplied to the library of the sum Of
- $50. The books making up the balance OF $50 000
consist Of The Public Archives,"" American State
Papers," Ell,o,ts Debates Gales & Seaton's
Register of Debates - "'The Land Laws of the Uni
ted Sta,ss,p "voume of Contested Elections, &c.
&c. This resolution was adopted ~ihout the call OF
the ayes and nays, as not one fifth Of the members
present could be found TO support the CALL Be
tween the fourteenth and seventeenth Of June, the
attention Of several members Of the House, was
called to the enormous expenditure under this
fiprA md ia Of lhA Unvv ere
conferred upon Congress under the Constitution
and an effort was then made to reconsider the
vote, which reconsideration finally laid
upon the table by small majority, lhus cvncing
that conscience had been excited in the minds
of many who hcediessly had given their sanction
10 this public robbery Of the peoples treasury.
Although the resolution, directing the clerk 10 sup
ply the books, had passed. yet appropriation for
the payment Of this enormous sum not adopted.
In this ofthe case the clerk, by letter mmedi
ately notified Blair and Rives, Gales and Seaton,
Force and Rives, and Mr. Elliott not to deliver the
made for their purchase. These gentlemen replied
by letter and verbally, that they would comply with
the request of the clerk, and in fact, they had nc
right to deliver without his order. The clerk was
thus induced to act, because appropriation had
been made by Congress to pay this sum Of money
and it supposed that the resolution would he
sci1ded at the present session, and the money mol
thus drawn illegally and uDconstutonally from the
treasury of the nation, as members had the same
power TO vote themselves $500 in cash, that they had
TO appropria this sum Of money for books for theii
own USE or to dispose Of to others. II is well known
here that many members dispose of all hooks supplied
to them received half price, and that The
book dealers, who have made fortunes here by hi.
traffic, then sell them bach to the government at full
price; and, in many instances, the books have never
been removed from the shelves Of the contractors
but sold and re sold, and sold again to the govern
mcnt at a profit of $50 per cent ..-
Under previous resolutions of similar character t
the one hele alluded 10, there nearly five hun
dred ex.members OF Congress yearly receiving books
published IN this city, to complete their sels some
which will not be finished for many years; and a
long ~ this practice prevails the increase Of supply
ex-menbers will be geometrcal proportion until
amounts to millions Of dollars.
At The enhancement Of the present session o
Congress, BLAIR 4 Rivss, of the Globe in violation,
tho resolution directing he supply, commenced tn
delivery of the" Congressi onal G,be and Appendix
TO members, in order to anticipate the passage of
resembling resolution, and TO induce members vol
for the appropriation The present session This BE-
ing made evident, the other publishers proceeded
deliver theI works and Is supposed that at the pre-
sent Time, nearly all called for under the resolution
has bcen -upp'ud, but the appropriation Of the
for payment has yet 10 be mad 5y Congress This sbou
be restricted, AZ an outrage upon tho powers Of Con
gre-s, and the constituents of every member shout
watch his vote whenever the resolution comes befor
the Hou'e Tor its action. An attempt will be made 4
appropriate this round sum of 300 900, without cal
Of the syes and nays and those members who homes,
ly and conscien,iuusIy know that Congress has u
poo or 10 vote money for such purposes will rende
themselves lns'ngy popular among the people by de
feaung this proposition in whatever shape it may
presented. OF one thing however, You may rect per
feciy assured Whenever il IL called up he House
candidate for reelection will dare record bis
in nA favor. THIS is onIy the commencement, of Ger
tain e1positions that VIII be presented through you
columns, Of the manner in which the people ar
hecccd at the seat of government More anon.
The following article, we have not the leas
doubt, speaks the views Of the President elect
1" From the Nashville Union.
THE CONSTITUTIONALITY OF ANNEXA
TON BY CONGRESS.
Since the defeat Of the treaty of annexation at tn