The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1859-12-13

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plurality rule will be adopted, that Sherman
will be elected Speaker under 1t, and that his
election will involve certain equivalents or
shares in the spoils, of complete organization
to the little cliques contributing to this result
according to The system of compensations
adopted in the election Of that excellent
Speaker, Nathaniel p Banks. The contending
parties and AUCTIONS in the House to. day are
nearly the same, and present nearly the same
respective strength as in the long struggle
over Mr.. Banks. There is the addition now Of
the democratic anti administration, antiLe-
compton faction, representing the balance of
power sufficient for the purpose of the re-
publicans; and as these antiLecomptonites
are only republicans on the half she'll,
this change from the programme of four
years ago is SO much in favor of another re-
pablican Speaker from the same tactics.
Assuming, then, that under the plurality
rule Mr. Sherman will be elected, what are the
compensations and equivalents alluded to, in
reference to the outside factions concerned?
First, Mr.. Hickman, having moved the plu-
rality rule, may be supposed to have an axe to
grind. He has; and his axe is Forney
for Clerk. Yhurlow Weed and Greeley,
it is understood, are very DESTROYS to do
this little favor for Hickman and Forney and
the contemporaries, in the way of re-
ciprocity; but there are some stiff.necked re-
publicans who still remember that Know No.
thing ''side door" arrangement of Forney in
1856, whereby, it has been said, Pennsylvania
and the Presidential election were lost to the
republican party. But still it is possible that
Forney may be crowded into the Clerks desk
to oblige MIR. Hickman.
But the great cure-all in this opposition
spoils coalition will be in the House printing
The Speakers Office is first in political impor-
lance, and in the way of spoils and plumber
there are some good pickings for the Clerk, the
sergeant-at-Arms, the Doorkeeper and the
Postmaster of the House; but all these pick
ings and perquisites put together are but a
drop in the bucket compared with the magnid-
cent job Of the House printing! job which
may easily be made to cover gross annual ex-
penditure of million of dollars. For this job
we learn that an obscure gentleman of Massa
chusetts, of the name of Bowles is the republi-
can candidate. But this is all mistake
The republican candidate in this case is
company, lobby company, and it includes
such old lobby campaigners as Weed, WENDELL
Webb, Greeley, Forney and others. Should
Bowles, like Steadman, be the man elected,
this company, like Wendell, will take charge
of the work and divide its profits. So large a
job as the House printing can no longer be
given out to one man, or a single business
firm. There are too many hungry drones and
drummers, and camp followers, and lobby
loafers, in every party, in these days, to think
of such thing for moment. So, as in the
case of Mr.. Speaker Banks, we presume this
House printing, after all, will be the financial
basis of the Speakers election, in liberal
distribution Of printing spoils
Granted, however, that the programme thus
chalked out will be successful from beginning
to end, we cannot perceive why it should give
any trouble to the democratic party. We are
| quite sure that the administration will ot
complain. Mr.. Buchanan has had his estimates
ror tie coming fiscal year made up on sid
footing of retrenchment, and if the party con-
trolling the House will only second his efforts
at economy, he will be content. Should they
fail to do it, they will be responsible. Indeed,
it will be something of IN advantage to the de-
mocracy, in view of the Presidential contest, to
be relieved Of all official responsibility in re-
gard to the doings Of this House in the inter-
val.
While, therefore, if there were any hope of
defeating this republican joint stock pro-
gramme for the election of Sherman as Speaker,
| it would be the duty of the democracy to con-
tinue their resistance, we think that when his
election is reduced simply to question of
time, it would be saving of time to pro-
coed to the election. We apprehend, too,
that as the democracy are in hopeless minori-
ty in this House, they can do better in stand
ing off to fight the majority than to assume
their responsibilities.