The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1866-12-05

| One OF Z hem steals n steam Engine
Another n House mud Lot-And a
Third Pockets Twenty Grindstones
Senate Requested Not TO Confirm
Any Of Them.
! Correspondence of the Cincinnati Commercial
THE CAUCUS.
The first Congressional Republican
caucus was held last night. They Ind
tumultuous time. Everybody who
had any thing to say against the Presi-
dent was vOciferously cheered, and no
one attcmted to say anything i'll his
favor
Mr.. Morrill,, of Vermont, was called to
the chair, and Mr.. Anderson, of Illinois,
was appointed Secretary. + TI
The first man ON the floor was Thad.
Stevens, who suggested that commit
tee of nine be appointed to report pro-
gramme Of action to the joint caucus of
the House and Senate, which is to meet
OH Wednesday evening. He merely
wished, he said, to make the suggestion.
He wished some one else to make the
motion, because he did not want to be
chairman of the committee.
Several gentlemen insisted that the
motion should he put as coming from
Thad. Stevens, and it was so done. This
made Thad. Stevens chairman of the
cOmn!itte.
The committee was then appointed !;
it consists of Messrs. Stevens, Schenck,
T.. b. Washburn, Boutwell,, Pike, Hart,
Allison, Paine and Orth. On motion
Mr.. Garfield was added, making ten in
all.
The next subject taken up was the
Congressional reception to come off to-
morrow. The programme was an
nounced. Colfax was appointed to re.
spond to the welcome speech on behalf
of the House.
Thad. Stevens was appointed to re-
spond in behalf of the House, at the
banquet on Monday night.
This matter having been disposed of,
Thad. Stevens offered resolution that
the Republican members of the Senate
be requested not to confirm any ap-
pointees of the President when they
were removed for political purposes.
A perfect storm of applause followed
this. Desks were ratified and hands
clappcd, when Mr.. Spalding, of Ohio,
had the temerity to rise and question
the rightfulness of the proposition. He
did not see how he could vote for any
such request. He believed the Senate
was rs we'll acquainted with the needs
of the country as the House was, and
that Senators knew rs well as Repre-
sentatives what was best to be done in
such an emergency.
This drew Thad. Stcvcus from his
chair. He jumped like an acrobat, and,
as he took the floor, he was liberally
applauded in advance, his sentiments
being easily anticipated. He pitched
into Spaulding in terrible way. Said
he:
1--WE are the representatives of the
people, and we know quite as well as
the Senate what the country demands.
We have right to advise the Senate,
and as we are fresh from the people, we
ought to know what the people want"
In conclusion, Thad. cast Il whitening
look ut Spalding, and quietly remarked
that he did not knew what selfish pnr-
pose that gentleman had in view. He
d' Isd in nT Ohio. e heard Of Judge I'D %
ship. or something of that sort, but he
hoped that the representatives OF the
people would stand mp to the work be.
fore them, and do it rs became men OF
principle and courage.
Judge Kelley, OF Philadelphia, was
Glad the resolution had been offered.
He didn't know how it was in other
parts Of the country, but i'll his city the
appointing Spowcr had been horribly
abused. Many men whom he, as Grim
inal Judge, had sentenced to the Penl-
tcntiary, had been appointed to offices
of high trust and profit, and he was Will
ling 10 take the risk of requesting the
Senate not to confirm any such appoint
ments.
One case especially occurred to Judge
Kelley, Just then. 1t was that OF Il man
who had once stolen Il steam engine
from the navy-yard and hidden it some
where. He was found out, and brought
if back Us soon rs the matter was
hushcd up. He stole it again. lie had
since then stolen all the copper and
metal he could carry off. He was one
of the Presidents appointess.
Several members here said that was
nothing to what had been done Ill their
districts. One man said the Collector
in his district stole IL house and lot.
Another said the Assessor where he lived
had been arrested once or twice for
picking pockets. A third said that the
postmaster of his town was known to
have stolen twenty grindstones.
Mr.. Darling of New York took the
floor. He could heartily concur in all
tina: had been said in the abuse OF the
appointing power in his district. The
most worthless and incapable men had
been selected for official positions. He
said he would not faithfully represent
his district if he did not use his intiu-
ence to prevent the continuation OF
such men in office.
Uereupon the caucus resolved itself
into sort of Methodist mass meeting,
ONLY that, instead of telling each other
what the Lord had done for them, they
related what the Devil, i'll the person OF
Andrew johnson, had been at since the
adjournment of Congress. Such n list
of woes never was given out.
Finally, the resolution was passed
unanimously, even Mr.: Spalding not vo-
ting against it, satisfied that 1T would
not be safe to do so.
Thad. Stevens then read his bill about
appointments and removals, which he
intends to offer at an early day. 1t pre-.
vents removals without the consent OF
the Senate, denies payment of all re-
iectcd by the Senate, and prevents them
from holding Office for three years after
such rejection. Every provision Ill 1t
was applaaded to the echo.
Mr.. Spalding moved that the commit
tee be instructed to report upon the ex-
pediency of calling the Fortieth Con-
gress together on the 9Th of March.
Mr.. Garfield jumped up and said he
had a bill for convening the Fortieth
Congress on the 4th of March at II
o'clock already drawn mp. He intended
to press it early. He said he believed
the watch-dogs of the nation ought to
kept On guard all the time. [Great ap-
plause for the watch-dogs by the watch
dogs themselves =,
Mr.. Boutwell,, of Massachusetts,, said
he intended to offer a resolution at an
early day calling upon Seward and
johnson for any correspondence IN their
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