The weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington, Iowa) 1858-1860, 1859-04-12

adjournment OF the last Congress, Committee
from the Chamber of Commerce Of New Or
leans made their appearance in Washington,
and asked that the balance ($7l.000) of the
unexpended appropriation Of $4,000 for clear
ing out the mouth of the Mississippi, might be
placed in their hands. They alleged that polit-
ical favoritsm and the malfeasance Of those who
we're entrusted, by contract, with the expendi
ture of the appropriation, had been SO marked,
that although three-fourths of the sum had DIS
appeared, no good had been acomplished-that
the mud banks were just as high and just as
difficult to get over as ever, and that commerce
was seriously endangered by impedments in the
channel, Switch Government, though spending
profusey, had failed to remove. Congress, the
members OF which cannot fail to know how,
| since Mr.. Buchanan came into power, the way
the money goes, passed a resolution authorizing
the transfer of The funds to the hands of the
petitioners, for expenditure under the direction
of the very respectable and responsible body
that sent them on their errand. The sum re-
manning was not large, but it was, they thought,
equivalent in thei hands to half million dis
| bursed under the old system, and they were
wiling TO engage that for every dollar paid out
! a dollars worth of good should be done for the
| object which they had in view. The resolution
| came into Mr.. Buchanan hands just a. the close
OF the session; but that venerable old fogy, with
| his usual wrong -heade dness, could see no pro-
| priety in spending money in such way that the
commercial interests of the country might be
| benefited thereby, howmuchsoever of liberaiity
| he may be accused OF when partizan schemes
| are to be advanced; hence his signature was re-
| fused. According to his view of the matter,
| the contract system worked well enough. II
dug up votes it it dug up no mud. i opened .
way for his friends to fat Offices if it opened no
channels for ships. Mr.. Buchanan was content.
So was Slidell. So was Benjamin. But the
| people of New Orleans not. Their ships
| outward bound and homeward bound, are
sticking on the mud bars by flties, aud obsti-
| nately refuse to float or be foated off. Delays
they find to be vexatious and costiy-trsing
| alike to the temper and the purse. The Gov
erment scows are, in the meantime, poking
| around, laying bob here and sticking pole
| there, but really serving no other purpose than
that OF an inhrmary for the politicians who man
them. The evil that the large appropriation
was intended to correct, has got to be SO
rious and dangerous that the merchants and
others who are the immediate sufferers, are pre-.
pairing to interpose, and by private subscrip-
ton do what the Government is too Careless or
corrupt to accomplish.-[Ch Chicago Tribune.
WHO is RESPONSIBLE ?-The Louisville Jour-
nall says, sour grave contemporary, the Ma
tional lntelligencer, rarely relaxes its dignity to
perpetrate joke, but, in reply to the charge
of the Washington Union that the Republicans
of the House OF Representatives are response
BILE for the failure OF the postal appropriations,
it INDUCES in the following sly but cutting sar-
| M
| As we have no means of knowing the secret
counsels and purposes OF the Republican party,
we cannot undertake to disprove the assertions
OF the Government organ on this head; but il
| those who labored in the House tor the defeat
| of the Post Office Appropriation bill, in the
| shape IN which it was amended by the Senate,
deserve to be known and styled as "RepubIl.
| cans, We confess that the members OF that
| party were much more numerous il the last
Congress than We had before imagined; tor
among those who voted to return the bill to the
Senate, we observe the names OF many mem
bers from Mississippi, Kentucky, New York,
Pennsy lvania, Ohio and other States, whom we
had previously supposed to be democrats" OF
most undoubted orthodoxy. We are especially
surprised to find Southern members like Mr..
Lamar, of Mississippi, and Messrs. Talbot and
Mason, OF Kentucky, acting in concert with the
Republican party on a measure which was part
and parcel OF scheme for the promotion OF
what the Union calls the personal aspirations"
OF Mr.. Grow, an eminent Republican from the
State of Pennsylvania. We are equally sur
prised to learn that ten Representatives from
The latter State, who, by their course on the
"Lecompton question:" we bad supposed to be
Administration Democrats of the pnrest water,
ale found at last to have yielded TO the seduc-
tons Of the Republicans" SO fas as to have
become art and part with them in their maneu-
vres for the next Presidential campaign! New
er rhaps has amy House OF Representatives
witnessed SO great political detection; for the
Administration, which commenced with about
thirty majority at the opening of the session.
was found at its close. according to the CLASH.
hcation OF the Union, in minority of forty on
question involving the pending Presidential
contest of 1860