The independent. (Harrisonburg, La.) 1853-18??, 1858-05-19
VIVA, na. ba..eA In Congress,
MoraIists have inferred many 1 vain hom1

Aoralists have uttered many vain homily
on.the folly Of mispending time. The indi.
viduaI who wastes bis time foolishly, inhicts
an injury only upon himself and upon taose
having claims on his industry and his exer-
tions. Public assemblies that fritter away
in vain and proftless discussions, the time
that should be given to the consideration OF
subjects Of real utility and benefit to the
country at large, incur heavy responsibility,
and they should lie required to answer i: at
the bar OF public opinion. Such deliuquen-
eies in the servants of the people are real
grievances that sooner or Later, must be re-
dressed. The present session Of Congress
has been so tar, public nuisance. Five en-
tire months have passed in the Congress o!
the United States, and nothing has passed
there but those five months. 1t has got
clear in most disreputable manner of the
Kansas question, by Offering bride to the
people of that Territory, OF large portions of
the public domain TO induce them to adopt
the Lecompton Constitution, after strenuous
exstions for four months to force it upon
them BY an act Of congress. A few years
back an absurd and unfoupded claim was
set up to the "Whole Of Oregon" and four
months were spent in congress discussing
the ridiculous preieuson. Albert Gallatin
hen living, published in the National Intel
ligenccr, four numbers on the subject, and
it was clear to every intelligent man that
read them that he knew more O. the matter
than all the senators and all the representa-
tives. The government in the end got out
Of the scrape by receding from its demand.
The expense of maintaining so improbable
concern as the Congress of the United
States for five months is no tliH;ng affair.
The per diem alone of the members amounts
for that time to more than three hundred
thousand dollars; sum sufficient to build
forty miles of the Pacific Rail Road which
they have not as yet touched this session but
once, and then only to postpone the subject
another year.
Whether this pestiferous propensity for
speech making and wasting time, that per-
vades our public councils State and National,
to so alarming an extent, is to receive no
check. no rebuke from the people, is surely
A question OF great moment. 1t is beyond
all cavil very serious evil. In the earlier
days Of the Republic it was not 30. No
member spoke unless he had something to
say that no other memb had touched, and
which he deemed Of importance enough to
advance. The speeches Of those days are
marked by their condensation, brevity and
ooint.The speakers were few and their speech
IS short. Now, the speeches with but few ex-
;eptions, are verbose windy, garruous. The
peaker has something to say about every
hing except the subject under discussion.
lie rants about his patriotism which is gen
,raly found to consist of his disunion senti-
nents. His facts are few and his arguments
weak. He has neither learning pith, terse
.ess nor imbellishment. But he gets over
hese DEFICIENCIES by throwing the subject into
he pathetic as steam doctors throw their
patients into fits They know how to treat
he pathetic; to bring down the House by
depicting the woes of ''Blceding Kansas or
he wrongs and injuries of the Sunny
SOUTH"