The Council Bluffs nonpareil. [volume] (Council Bluffs [Iowa]) 1857-1867, 1860-04-07
sR1spuMDENCE OF THE NoNPAaKILi
WASHINGTON, Magah 20, 1860.

lcoRRxsronDEscE OF TmE ronfAaErE
wAsH1soroS, Mageh 20, $50.
DEAR Error The special mssssgS sent
into the House BY the President to-day, Is
certainly one Of the most extraordfnary
documents ever issued by the Chief Magis-
trate Of this Republic. As you win proba-
bly, publish it entire, l will not attempt
synopsis Of il. As Mr.. Buchanan grows old
his mind evidently wandsrs back into the
dark ages; and, he instinctvely, as it were,
tappropriates that ancient motto OF despot-
ism, ssshe King can do NO wrong.'' The
reading Of the message caused great deal
Of merriment in the House number Of
Senators were in, Douglas among the rest,
and the Little Giant and his adherents en-
joyed the sport hugely while the varmest
friends Of the President who possessed any
sense Of the ludicrous or absurd, must have
keenly felt the humiliation Of the old man
in this strange exhibition Of kingly prerog-
alive and whining complaint. Sherman,
Grow, Haskin and Covods. with their cut
ting sarcasm slashed it pitilessly and, al
though Bocock stood up for it manfully, he
no doubt cursed in bis heart the folly whit b
foisted SO heavy load upon the shoulders
of the Democracy at this critical period Of
existence. 1t had enough in all conscience,
to bear before, but this:last load the Presi-
dent has laid on its back, is a staggerer; but
truce to politics, and we'll talk Of some
thing else. Except the standing business
Of President making, the Pacific Railroad
bill is probably exciting more interest here,
than anything else. In all the previous
sessions, it has been sort of Banquo's
ghost !; it would not doUn at the biddings
of old fossils, but still it gave no signs Of
life. This phantom has fitted before the
gaze of the American people, till they have
almost lost hope of seeing it vitalized; but
the ghost is becoming flesh and blood, nay,
iron! and We w;l have road or roads for
che icon horse across the continent. Then
hurrah for the West, the giant West.
A bill to organize Jefferson Territory,
willno doubt pass the House, and strong
hopes are entertained by all of US interested
in that region, that it will pass the Senate
also but then there is danger of its being
killed there.
The contesting of seats in the House is a
tedious business; and, for the sake of justice
and the good Of the community, it is to be
hoped some more summary method of de-
Gliding these things will be adopted.
Thddeus Hyatt, who made such con-
summate fool of himself, by refusing to tes-
tify before the Harper's Ferry Investigating
Committee, still lies in Jail 4; and, | presume
the echo of the notoriety he expected to
gain, has not yet reached his cell. He
counted little too strongly on the sympa-
thy of the Northern people-their hearts go
out with a generous impulse towards the
oppressed, whether black or white; but, if
Hyatt chooses to rot in Jail simply to graft.
fly within of his own, they II let him rot.
l dare say some Of my lady readers re-
member my mentioning in letter two
months ago, a certain lady Of Washington
who put on airs at q killing rate. have
learned her name and position. She is Mrs.
Avery, and the wife Of q clerk in one OF the
departments. see her often, ana some-
times think what happy fellow would be
if | had such wife ? ...--.. ...
took stroll on the banks of the Poto-
mae, on Tuesday. Invent up to the g little
falls" FIVE miles above Washington. These
falls are at the head of tide water, aad are
simply short rapids. was astonished to
find the'"broad Potomac'' so narrow-here
it is two miles wide, and most beautiful
stream, or rather sheet of water; but, at
the falls and above them, it not more than
hundred to a hundred and fifty yards wide;
and it chafes and tears along its rocky bed,
as if eager for chance to spread itself. The
''great falls" are twelve miles above little
fails and here the Potomac water works
take in their preciou, freight for Washing
ton. 1t is said that above the great falls,
the river is very wide; but don't talk about
scenery on the Potomac. Pl oughed hills,
red in their barrenness; rocks plenty enough
ana rough enough, but not half big enough
to be grani; groves of spruce, pine, and
hickory, bat oil ligh. growth. and inspiring
no awe as gloomy oil forests. Some may
love to gaze upon these cras,ry and scrubby
evidences of sterility bu. give me the broad
bottoms and picturesque grass-clad b,,nf's.
OF the Missouri--they speak Of latent wealth,
and are grander and pleasanter to look
Upon, than any thing have seen on the Po-
tomac. OF course speak only of what l,
have seen. Below little falls, saw FISH
ermen scooping up with dip nets, a kind of
fish they call tailors, but which are known
on the New England coast as porgies. (see
porgies in Webster's unabriIged.) There
they use them by cart loads for top dressing,
but here they are eaten at three bits a dozen
herring, shad, catfish, and rock fish, are
also caught, but the large senes in the
river Off Alexandria and below sadly inter-
fere with the dipping business of the small
fishermen above; but the law clears the
river Of seines on the 18th of May, and then
the dippers have good time during the
fishing season, which lasts till about the
middle Of June. One of the fishermen, a
very good natured fellow, about 90 years
old, asked me if the Hudson and Penobscot
rivers don't run into one another. He said
fishing was hard life, and when he could
get little money together he meant to 60
out West-s'out to Ohio or Massachusetts,
somewhere out that way" lie seemed
greatly surprised when told him that Iowa
was further of than Massachusetts,. He
said he had worked on a farm some in Vir-
ginia, a few miles from here, and he said he
would rather have one acre Of land in Md.