The state rights democrat. [volume] (Albany, Linn County, Oregon) 1865-1900, 1865-09-30
A COSTLY

OF. Louis on the LSt OF OctoDefs with q mil
tary escort provided for his safety.-IStates-
man., Sept. 18th.
Since when, We wonder, has IT become
a privilege of U. s. Senators to be pro-
vided with military escorts? Senator
Nesmith receives about $4,000 mileage.
That amount ought certainly to pay his
way by any route which can be travelled
from Oregon to Washington. To make
the people further pay in order that he
may go sqfcty is rather presumptuous in
him, We think. But Senator Hesmith
seems to have a penchant that way. Al
though nearly his first business ON his ar
rival at Washington, just after his cleo
ton, was to pry into the mileage account
of his predecessor, Gen. Lane, and TO
send word back to his organ in Oregon
that that gentleman had drawn construct
i've mileage for 1 siAxe session,-and
this was done purposely g fpjure General
Lane,-the same Mortified, virtnous Sen-
ator Nesmith. two years afterwards. first
voted to himself and then drew from the
Federal Treasury, about $50, 900 con
structive mileage. whilst he had never
travelled n mile to or from his home
to warrant the honest payment of the
money. The same men who $ abusive
" eensared Gen. Lane for receiving
$4,000 which he had not voted to him
self. but had taken in accordance with
usage, could not, however, discover any
thing censurable in their favorite, Mes
NTH, for having, contrary to any preee-
dent, to all usage, voted to himself s2o,-
900. for three constructive mileages in a
a lump.
This last extravaganza of Senator Mes
mith's is more extraordinary than his
mileage ~extortion from the pockets of the
people. The gentleman must have a
fondness for military escorts, Ii we re
member rightly, he went to view the bat
tie of Chickamauga. There he became
almost paralyzed with fear, aud General
Thomas, to save him from capture by the
rebels, ordered a military escort to con-
duct him to a place of safety, very far in
the rear. That escort may not have cost
the Nation much, however. Now. he
comes back to Oregon, and is provided
with $4,000 mileage to pay his travelling
expenses here and back to Washington
he will also be pretty certain to come in
for a handsome sum for his sextra servi-
ees'' as one of the Senate Committee tc
look into the affairs of the Indian De
partments in Oregon aud Washington.
And yet, on his way back, when he could
go by steamer very safely-and SO viii
he draw mileage for the five or six thou.
sand miles of steamer route instead of the
three thousand miles of overland road he
will actually travel-he Journeys leisure
IL across the country, guarded by a mill
tary escort. 1t is the first instance of the
kind we ever heard of. In autocratic and
monarchical Europe, Emperors, Kings
Queens, Princes and N~oblemen, high dig
nitaries and officials, are attended on theii
Journeys by military escorts; and, We
grieve to say, the practice has for two o.
three years past been copied b ythe Exec.
atiye at Washington. But this is thC
first instance. we believe, in which a Sen
ator has secured to himself at the cost o
1.-THE people an annual escort for his safety
lover a road too which hundreds dali.
travel without protection of the kind. L
Is about the only thing Senator Nesmitf
has exhibited originality in, and perhaps
it oughttob Be faded for this sole reason
and yet it IS in the Application, not tn
5Style itself, MEUfirfndLEor he but ape
the nobility Of Europe in this, as snobs 0
other tastes cory them in dress, tone, dis
play, DC. 1t is worth while to note tn
fact that while a Senator can be provides
with a military escort for himself acros
the plains, ~emigrants who come to thi
coast are not furnished with any i no
can troops be spared to fight hostile In
dams who infest the mining REGIONS, bu
they are at once furnished to a scare,
Senator Who daressn not travel unless sar
rounded by soldiers. Senator Nesmitl
might have gone by steamers to the East
and saved the people all this extra ex
pense; however, he may have remember
bered that several years ago some of tn
naGyes caTtho kthmas attacked passen
gers there, and Of course they might d
so again, and there he might be unable t
procure protection of an escort fer hi
safety. There is one thing in which pei
haps most of the people of Oregon wi
agree-that if it be necessary to provid
senator Nesmith a military escort to re
turn him to the State, the people any
where at the East are welcome to kee,
him amongst them. he is not so usefu
to or valued blythe people of Oregon tina
they would consent to go the expense Q