Litchfield enquirer., 1860-01-26
Our Washington Correspondence.
NUMBER TWO.

faint signs in our Armament that the deuge of | Southern eloquehce" which has prevailed now for the space of just forty days is beginning to be assuaged. When I accepted the proposal of the illustrious editor-in-chief of THE NORTH
 AND SOUTH AMERICAN HEMISPHERE to do the
 ' heavy business" at the Capitol, namely, that of reporting to listening universe, the utterances Of the assembled orators and sages of" the Low CT House" it was for stipulated stipend, which | was satisfactory at the time, though candor com pels me to say it was graduated rather by my simple and inexpensive habits, than by the ce- lebrity of that journal. Yet had foreseen the nature of the inhiction which I should be called l to endure for seven long weeks, I should have confidently demanded more adequate peculium
 1t is some relief, dear Enquirer, to step down, now and then, from the stately marching sen tences which have contracted to furnish to or der for the N. & s. A. II. and have a little slip shod gossip with you.
 For these seven weeks, the floor of the House has presented singular spectacle In front of the beautiful marble platform on which are placed the empty Speakers chair looking now like the Queens chair of state, in the House of Lords, more exalted by it's vacant sortude) and the Clerks desk are some six or eight semicircuar rows of crimson velvet sofas Directly in front Of the chair is broad passage-way leading to the main entrance door of the hall, dividing the semi circle into two equal parts. This passage the wits of the gallery call Mason's and Dixon's line." On the right hand of the Clerk sit the Democracy pure and simpe-mostly of course from the South, with sparse sprnkling of N orth- ern Doug am not going to write the word you think, sir)-Douglasites On the other side are the Republicans While the main armies are thus entrenched, the Southern opposition and the few anti-Lecompton Democrats like light troops are scattered over the whole field. The battle opened on the first day of the session by what was meant to be destructive fire on the Right, but no shot was returned. The next day the same assault was repeated, still no reply again the Right returned the charge, again the same tranquil silence the Left l ..l ;ileG now and # then by dersive laughter as the force of the shot g bore more than usual inverse proportion to the n noise and smoke of the explosion. Imagine this to continue for six weeks-on one side an nces.
 sant rattling fire generally with ve,:y small arms < and those with propensity to scatter, which l. would make the old Queens arm' which your l. great grandfather carried in the French war to look black in the muzzle with grimy disgust, r. though occasionally relieved by the genuine crack of rifle, and once or twice by plunging shot a from field piece of good calibre-while on the s other side the batteries remain unmasked, and , the same silence-whether indifferent or disdain- full it is hard to tell-prevails. But the Bucha- niers do not have the whole sport to themselves. The South American artillery dash into the field whenever they see weak point in the Demo-
 cratic line, with smart damaging effect, and - now and then the crack of an ant-Lecompton
 rifle tells the practised ear that it comes from no r unshotted barrel. And now the result of all this seven weeks fusilading is that the Republican = rank is absolutely unbroken, not single man fallen out of the line, while the Administration > forces which came into the field in tolerable or
 der, are dsorganised, broken up into factions and bitterly demoralised. A desperate effort will be made next week to rally, but with no success. How naturally one who works on the big pa-
 pers" falls into the military style of writing now : a-days! forgot myself for moment.
 I think see indications now of change in
 the Republican tactics. The fact was drawn out 5 yesterday that large number of the ultra fire t eaters have bound themselves by written agree ment to resist by every method known here as |" fillibustering" the adoption of the plurality rule'' As it is now perfectly certain that thisis the only mode in which the House con be organ
 zed, the Republicans will constantly press it. and
 the Clerk rules that in the present state of the House every motion may be subject to intermi- nable debate, if it appears that the Administra-
 ton deliberately intend by this means still fur
 ther to protract the contest, the Republicans who have thus far deemed their duty to refrain from this dsorderly discussion, and earnestly and
 consistently to endeavor to organize the House,
 and enter upon the business of the country, will
 take sufficient of the time which they cannot
 prevent from being thus spent, to place them
 selves and their opponents in their true positions
 before the country. At most that is the rumor
 in the reporters gallery.
 1 An exciting scene occurred this afternoon
 Clark of Missouri, was speaking on the famous
 Helper resolution. which he introduced, and in
 the course of his remarks he said he introduced
 the resolution in order to give gentlemen an op-
 portunity to eeplain their connexion with that
 book. In an instant loud clear voice was heard
 above the din on the floor" Mr. Clerk',-every
 member started as they recognized the voice and
 saw the tall commanding figure of Sherman in the centre of the House. In an instant the hum of conversation, and the rattlng of papers ceased
 members loungng in the lobbies, or writing at the side tables gathered into the middle of the hall-and for almost the first time this session the floor and galleries were hushed into perfect silence. Mir. Sherman proceeded in his graceful manly and most gallant speech which haven t room to sketch but will send you as reported. You will find it good food for scissors. He allud
 ed to his position in regard to the Helper book, to the offensive and insulting character of the | resolution, and to the fact that his lips were