Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1862-11-28

Tho Dpartmastb st Was1imgtos HaleFuu
cfAssistant Re6sls ~ Personal Matters. :
WAsH1Neros. Nov

l ..-. WAsHINGroN, Nov. 1s, 1862.
Every body who has ever visited the Cap
ital of this now harried Republic knows thai
it is as sorry, shabby and "one-h horse" speci
men Of town generally as ever any country
was cursed withs. You can stand, to-day
upon the Capitol and look into the slave-pens
Of Alexandria, where not long since men and
women were sold at public out-cry almost
within sound of Charles Summers voice,
hurting terrible thunderbolts against our
National Crime. Not six months ago, the
Capital Of the freest country on earth was
little better than slave market, and not much
more than thrice that long ago it was very
like huge den Of despots. It is not 50 bad
now, it is confessed, but still it is fearfully
near those regions we read Of, where the worm
dieth not and the fire is not quenched. The
public Of Washington City is efEete, demoral-
lied, positively corrupt Society here is
neither high-toned as to intelligence, nor
decent as to morals. I will take my corporal
oath that I would as readily consent to have
q female friend visit house Of strumpets as
to 60 to levee at the White House, for the
reason that at both places she would meet the
same cast Of characters not only, but in many
cases the same individuals. OF course do
not mean to say that there are not many pure
and estimable persons who attend levees but
they (the levees) are for the public, and the
public Of Washington is mighty dangerous
thing to take hold of.
It has had great influence with the admin
istration of the government for years, and
has greatly retarded the vigorous prosecution
of the war. There are now in the Depart
mcnts here nearly seven hundred employees
from Virginia, Maryland and the District of
Columbia = men whose fathers before them
have been pensioned in the government, and
who think they have sort Of prescriptive
right to all the snug places in government
at which they do nothing but sneer- men
who, the very best of them, so far as the war
is concerned, are neither hot nor cold, neither
fish, flesh nor fowl, not yet good salt-herring,
and who ought to be spewed out of their
places speedily, that the seat Of government
might recover healthy tone. Think Of the
custom-house frauds at New York, and of this
fact in connection Herewith, as stated by an
impartial witness sszsa' 1..3aaa -iax
"All the clerks involved in this wholesale
fraud, covering sum amounting to between
$700, 900 and 100000, are old Democratic
employees whom Collector Barney has retain
ed in the Custom House."
There is fine commentary on Mr.. Hiram
Barney's "clemency." The same thing is
true as to the Departments here, except that,
instead of helping themselves to stealings,
many Of the old employees in an hundred diff
ferent ways render aid and comfort to the
enemies of the country, and ought, therefore,
to be called Assistant Rebels. I hope and
believe that the recent developments in the
Custom House at New York will do much
towards having vigorous and thorough
cleansing of the Augean stables at Washing
ton.
Mr.. Kasson, Of Iowa, is here, and is hard
1T work on the Report for the Post Office
Department during the past year-a duty
which his thorough acquaintance with the
manifold workings Of that Department renders
him admirably qualified to perform. It was
well for our Iowa prisoners Of war that he
to be here, the other day. His visit
to Annapolis was productive of great good.
Col. Sauxy, in charge Of the paroled prisoners,
swore terribly as "our army in Flanders !"
when Kasson first called, but settled down
into admirable amiability upon learning that
his visitor was late First Assistant Postmaster
General and now Member of Congress elect
from Iowa. The bluff soldier was all at once
metamorphosed into the obliging gentleman,
and our brave boys had the pleasure of Justify
cheering an old friend from their loved and
honored State. They are now all on their
homeward way.
W. Richards, Esq, Of the Daily Gate City,
mas recently peen appointed to clerkshlp In
the Revenue Office here. trust he will soon
get the promotion he merits. Mr.. Watkins,
If Glenwood, Mills county, was appointed to
\ clerkship in the Second Auditors Office,
lew days ago, whilst Smeed, Of Bremer,
Cowie, of Poweshiek, and Page, Of Linn, have
al received promotions within short time,
but none too soon. =.
a Election Statistics. m Y5s
The aggregate majority of the six Repub-
lican Congressman in this State, is 1924;
over thousand more than was cast for the
Republican State ticket The majority in
the Dubuque District Is largest, and in the
Mahasks District the least. Mr.. Kasson's
majority is, numerically, the third in the list.
The whole majority for the Republican Dis
trict Judges is 24,024 This Is stnpendcus
il vnfo nr1 nn0 . ..