Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1858-07-28

oV MS OrloeS! Is tins economy! Is I
right? Does it not rather uncover NJ
nr abuse? Turn the matter which way
will, We get further and further fro
4. being reconciled 10 it, or acknowledge
e any g~rievous fault in opposing it.
Is His answer TO the remarks on Co
II gressional temperance is hardly more sa
isfaciory. His long experience al Was
g ing'ou enables him 10 inform. us that Il
Y Vice President could not close the re
tauranl belonging to the House of Reprt
E sentaIives, and our language implied III;
S there was only n saloon within the Cal
/, itol building. We acknowledge our ell
ror, and admit that there are taco re:
taurant under the LEG, s!alive roof, one f.
Senators and one for Representatives. an
tina; the Vice President closed The onl-
one he could close, viz, the Senate's.-
But what does this prove? Are the Sen
ators sinners above all that dwell a
Washington? or are they drunken upor
some old Compensation law whilst III,
Representatives are kept sober by double
plyl B5Ih branches are under the a NJ
law, and the effect upon the Senate
ought TO be the same as upon the Hous,.
The orderliness of the House may have
been complete, but when Grow and
Keilt had au alteration which Immediate
ly became a genera! roagh-and-tumble
fight of the members, when the London
Punch c%aricaiured il, ard all Europe was
sneering al our legislative morals aud de-
corum, the whole country cried out at
the scandalouS habits of congress-, and
Mr.. Giddings' explanation Of the two
saloons does not satisfy us that the copn-
try was wrong
But the argument Mr.. q. apparently
relic on with most confidence in his pres
ent letter, is, that by The new compensa-
ton bill the sessions are made shorter, and
the expense of running the machinery Of
Congress is thereby saved. We had be-
lieved the session under the new law
equal to the Average length Of sessions for
twenty years, but taking Mr.. GiS a>ser-
ton on that point, we am help asking
what is il in the new law that makes the
session shorter. Is it that feature of The
law Of which the people complain, and
which makes it a grievance, viz, the
enormous increase in the emoluments
of members? Not at all; what shortens
The Sessions is the yearly salary instead
Of a daily salary. As much pay will be
received if the Session lasts four months
Is if it lasts eight, and very naturally
members will be a little inclined 10 hur-
y matters, but will Mr.. Giddings or any
'ther sane man pretend that the same eff
ect would not have followed If the sala-
y had been fifteen hundred instead of
lree thousand Per Gnnum. if the mile
ge had been made straight instead of
ircuitous? This argument is no strong !
than the oilers. L
We think we have said enough upon
lie FIRST of our objections to the bill, /
that it immoderately increases I
pay Of Congressman, to justify rs in '
alllng the measure an extravagant one, l
nd in urging the people of this district o
insist upon its repeal. But there was [
ground Of objection, the mileage, |
nd TO This Mr.. Giddings replies with [
ven more feeling than he manifests in f
agard 10 our other arguments. He tells {
; that the mileage is fixed by the law
1919, and not by the new law. If 4
is were SO, il would moi mend The mat a
r, fol- when Congressman were regu- S
ting their pay, it was their duty to cor ?
ct the old abuse, and no law would be p
tisfactory 10 The people which did not p
duce the mileage Of members to a fair "
d easily determined rule, by which il
e reasonable expenses Of travel should a
paid and no more. The fact that o
ch a bill left the old cause of com "
amt in lis full proportions would in n
elf be a sufficient eason for opposing ST
But the new law does more than lie
is. 1t distinctly the old c.
leage law, showing that the mileage "
estion was not overlooked. ST
What old law provided that twenty al
les travel should be regarded as a RI
Us work for which members of Con. CT
ess should receive their eight dollars, oil
distance TO be reckoned by the near pr
commonly travelled route. The M
ople have long felt that under the new N
d cheap modes of travel. it was hard Us
fair to pay Congressman at the rate as
eight dollars per day for forty days, HI
travelling expenses, when the actual
taken would be less than three DAYS. W
d the actual cost not over twenty five re
This was the feature of the law CT
which we complained when we spoke III
mileage, and We still insist that when W
, subject of compensation was up, this al
leage business ought to have been at g
lded TO. The evils connected with the by
are manifold. The law of 1919 he
es not fix the number of miles from hi
ashingtOn to given points; the mem tn
themselves report the distance from &c
cir homes to the seat of government, b
d the statistics of Congress show that
!, distance as reported by them is in
my cases fully double the distance BY Il
; mail routes as fixed by the post Of pc
e department. 1t is not therefore e n
ely correct TO state, as Mr.. Giddings m