New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1857-03-02
,wAsH1NaroN CORRESPONDENTS.


The report of the Corruption Investigating Com
mitteeo the House. duplicating four Of its own mem
bers, and recommending their expulsion is Of course
the subject Of much comment and excitement at the
present time. 1t even overshadows, in Importance,
the constitution of the Cabinet. Here and there in
stances have been known of members suspected Of
being influenced by unworthy otivesin their capacity
of legislators But this is the first time in which the
proof has been positive and direct, and the first
time in which so many members have been involved
at once F......-
The trainers of the Constitution, in arranging our
form of Government while they kept the English
Parliament before them as model by which to insti.
tute two Houses of Congress- thought it best to
depart from their usage of not paying their national
legislators. The members Of Parliament were mostly
men of wealth. who could well afford to discharge their
public duties without fee Or reward. But in our case
it was intended that Office should be open to a of
whatever rank or degree and for this reason as we'll
as that Legislators might be above the influence Of
temptation, liberty given by the Constitution to
Congress to establish rates of pay for its members.
The members of the present Congress were elected
with no expectation of receiving more than eight
dollars per day for their days of active service Yet
they voted at the last session that their pay instead
lars per The people did not object because the
pay, previously, had been insufficient. 1t may seem
strange that membe RS were not satisfied with this
much as most of them could make at any other pur
suit But it is-and painful the development it
longer be concealed that at least four and per-
hapsa great many others who have been more eau.
tous and wary in their movements have resorted to
dishonorable means to /" put money in their purse"
is not the develOnmpnt tseIf--hut is tho
suspicion it has aroused that as nation we are
losing our high sense of honor and integrity, and
drifting in fearfuly rapid manner towards universal
selfshness and immortality exces the fears and
anxeties of the patriot. live are to become a ma
ton of mere political Adventures scramblng over
the revenues of the government like hungry dogs
over bone-upheld by moral honesty or integrity
but making all the better qualities of our nature sub
servient to the baser passions of gain and personal
advancement, it needs no prophet to forete the end
Internal prohigacy and corruption overthrow Rome,
the mghtiest power of its time on the globe-and it
will overthrow this government, unless checked at
once by the strong arm of public opinion 1t is easy
to see that corruption may descend from the polit.
clans to the people-and when the people become
corrupt the last hope of liberty is gone. Goldsmith
was poet, not a statesman-but no statesman ever
lage," when he declares:
III fares the land, to fastening ills prey
Where wealth accumulates and men deeuy"
1t is far more important that the people should rely
upon the virtue and intelligence and patriotism of the
lawmakers of the land than that the success of any
party, of any measure Of legislation, should be
secured Destroy the confidence of the people in the
integrity Of Legislators, and you necessarily de-
stroy all respect for their acts.
The report was made the special order for next
Wednesday, There is scarcely doubt that these four
members will be expelled, though apprehension is
expressed that their friends will stave off action, by
speeches and parliamentary expedients until the last
days of the session, when there will be an absolute
necessity for passing the Appropriation bills.
The House has passed Campbells Tariff bill, but il
amounts to nothing. The Senate will probably not
take tup at all or, if it does, only to defeat it at
once. The whole debate on the tariff has been time
wasted, has been apparent from the first Yet is
certain that at the next session material modification
of the tariff will be made and in view of the claor
in some of the Northern and Northwestern States
about the duty on sugar. the friends of that interest
should provide beforehand for successful resistance
to the attempt which will be made to repeal it.
1t is estimated that under the present tariff the
surplus revenue which will accumulate in the Treasury
by the first of July 1858, will amount to the enor-
nous sum Of sixty millions of dollars. Such sum
cannot be distracted from the channels of trade with
out producing commercial reyulsioh and entaiing
distress and ruin upon the people. If public debt
be public blessing, as some philosophc statesman
has asserted, it should follow c0nrerso that such
large accumulation of wealth would prove public
curse. And, indeed such it will be- if il breed cor
ruption among our public men and destroy the pub
lie virtue. blk E..
The Senate yesterday passed the bill providing for
the admission of Minnesota into the Union, with an
amendment similar to the one which the House
affixed to the Oregon BILL to the effect that none but
citizens of the United States should be allowed the
right OF suffrage in the preliminary steps of the for
nation of a Constitution. The bill, AS originally
reported by Judge Douglas, conferred the right of
voting upon all residents of the Terrtory-aliens as
well as citizens. When the bill was reported in the
Senate, yesterday, Mr.. Biggs, of North Carolina a
Democratic Senator, moved the amendment above
referred to. EUssy Senator from the South except
Toombs, voted for it. Every Freesoiler, except
Foote of Vermont, and Fish of New York. voted
against it.
The debate on this amendment was very interest
ing. 1t developed the fact that Southern Senator's
of all parties had accepted the creed of the American
party the extent of excluding unnaturalized resi-
dents from voting in the Territories Clay of Ala
bama went so far to say that he was sorry he had
voted for the Kansas bill, with the Clayton amend
ment struck out-an amendment similar to the one
which Mr.. Bggs yesterday offered.
The right of Gen. Whitfield to his seat as the dele
gate from Kansas was finally settled yesterday A
resolution from the Committee on Elections, declaring
him not entitled to his seat was laid on the talia NV