New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1852-12-31
4 SPEAKING. MACHINE.

Those instructive travellers IN Tartary and
Tibet, Messrs. Hue and CADET, relate that m
one Of the countries they visited it is the Gus
tom for those who can sford it TO set uppray-
ing machines along the rivers. These ma
chimes extend their arms to Heaven covered
with deyOt onal petitions, which are ceaseless-
" change as now one arm and nov another Is
brought uppermost by the flow Of the current
which keeps the apparatus in action. Thus
the busy citizen may take care OF his soul and
pursue business or pleasure at the same mo-
ment, without any danger Of his temporal in
tere.ls causing him to neglect his eternal well
fare.
A similar contrivance has been found cat by
the representatives Of the people at Washing
ton. Moved by an equal desire TO attend TO
several things at once, they have invented
talking machine which relieves them from that
duty, in order that their precious time msy, as
far as possible. be saved for more agreeable
functions. This machine is known as The Con-
gressiOnal Globe and the current that kecpsit
in motion flows directly from the Treasury of
this great and glorious republic. The amount
of vcarious talk of which it is capable, is quite
astonishing, and it has been made to answer
quite as well as though every word had actually
been uttered by the Honorable members in
whose behalf the machine was set agsing.
1t seems, however, that the machine may do
too much. The other day Hon. Mr.. Smart,
of Maine, had it make speech of some three
columns of very impassioned and truculent
character. This led to complaint. The DIS
course was too long and too smart. Only easy
and sleepy speeches. needing no reply, could
be tolerated unless really spoken on the floor
of the House, and accordingly resolution was
passed on Wednesday curtailing the usefulness
of The Congressional Gtobsyer sensibly. Here
after no member can fill It's columns with
suppositOus speech for Buncombo without the
express consent of the House. Still, gentle
men are to be allowed to correct and tinker
ad Hbitum the speeches they do deliver, which
will often amount to the same thing. And
when they satisfy the House that there is
nothing in their orations, they will be allowed
to turn them over to The Globe just as before.
This saves time and money, they say, and i'm
poses on the people, just as the praying ma
chine helps the Asiatic in his pious efforts to
humbug Heaven.
1t is no new discovery that the whole sys-
tenn of reporting Congressional debates at
Washington is exceedingly slow and shifsless.
The Republic alone deserves the credit ofinde-
pendence in the matter, and of reporting what
is actually said without first changing it to
please the speaker; but it is not able to give
the discussions at sufficient length. The other
papers regularly send their reports to members
for correction, and it frequently happens that
some ass of Senator or Representative has
his speech entirely made over before it is given
to the public so that not word that he really
said appears in print. Moreover the debates
are often held back for days when they should
always appear promptly and in full the next
morning. The great London journals do not
have their reports corrected by members Of
Parliament, nor do they ever put off till next
week the publication of yesterdays proceed
iDgs, and yet the sessions end after midnight,
while Congress is done before dinner. But
their example can't be followed at Washing
ton, and so let us be thankful to Mr. Smart for
aaordng the occasion to put slight check
upon one abuse connected with the great pro-
cess of Congressional slang-wbanging.
A MASSACHUSETTS CONGRESSMAN.
The member elect from Marshfied, Mass,
to represent the IXth Congressional District
of that State in place of Hon. Grin Fowler,
deceased, may properly be the subject of a
passing notice.
EDWARD p. LITTLE is the son Of COmmO-
dore Little, of the United States Navy. The
father cruised against the enemy in the war of
the Revolution with success He was the first
Captain of the frigate Boston Intending to
place his son in the Navy, he carried him to
sea in extreme youth, SO that the earliest re.
collections Of the boy were the roar of his
fathers cannon at sea-
In the year 300 Commodore Little, with
the frigate Boston, engaged the French frigate
Berceau, superior in weight and metal, and
vastly superior in number of men. After an
engagement Of more than two hours the BOs-
ton captured the Berceau, and brought her
and her crew safely into Boston harbor The
subject Of this sketch was on board the Boston,
where bis employment was to carry cartridges
to twenty-four FOUNDER on the quarterback
Of the frigate. Although at this time but
twelve years of age, he was conspicuous during
the whole engagement, in which the ships were
so near together that Commodore Little HIM
self was struck and Frustrated on the deck by
q "A frop. a &c Il: