New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1869-07-19
THE "STRIKERS" OF THE WASHINGI0N
LOBBY
BY JAMES PARTON.

- Arono the ,nuIfitudes OF people who 20 20 Washing
ton every Winter TO seek things difficult OF attainment
the striker finds abundant game although DO does ho'
conne his operations to the capital OF his country o
mode i'm which strikers operate are various Olteh oy
sell an Influence" which they donot possess. Example
IN the early mart OF the last session. large NUMBER OF
assistant assessors aud deputy collectors reGelHI q ~
cular letter from Washington OF Whloh the ioio"e "
ISiR Certain influential parties, with myself VIII
undertake at the coming session Of Congress 10 30 h
the passage Of law securing for you the pay me time
salary and fees you are properly ~. it District
during which you acted collector for the JosT ~
Of Kentucky namely from the 4h day OF march, loOi W
the 27th day OF March, 1857, but when te ~ o We
partment has authority In law 10 paJ t -, ,o
shall require as compensation MY per eois % I
amount due you and will thank you 70 SI ~ ns
soon as may be whether you are wluns " Nv
We desire TO preserve tins matter as much as 9ssiDiS
from nOorety as otherwise II iSeS came 10 the hands
Of Mr. Schenck, Chairman OF the Sommlttee oi S
o%ort tbs bi referred TO- and who IL known TO
MANY had determined to 40 So Inc claln wac tit ~
%sp ~ nress ifs allowance upon the House The sgner
of the episte lust given being aware OF TINS lntehu0
connfrV Sere about TO receive money which they
had begun to despair of ever getting sek IOr sho
him befnre The Committee Intercepted him. found
that he had acted he admitted himself very Wrongly
thai he was peDitent for it, and was Wiling anu VoIn
teered 70 write to every whom he had addressed
this circular, cOnessng this wrong; ana We io Iarvsd
he had been in other respects good cltLcn ucseI ou
much from the GOvernment-indeed had receiver
medal of honor for his services an aoneuded
on the whole TO suppress the name
STRIKING A WHISKY D1sTnLER
will give another example, derived from tho member
whom the matter Immediately concerned The name OF
the gentleman who performed the exploit about 70 DO
related is before mo- but following the seductive ex-
ample Of the Chairman Of the Committee OF Ways ana
Means suppress it. certain dstiler, who had not
paid the tax on quite all the whisky he had manutac.
tured and had been compelled to reveal TINS ana ote
dsereditable facts to an investigation committee was
extremely DESTROYS to get his name leit out OF
Ignorant of the place native Of the country NOR
bidy anxious and immensely rich ne ell INTO to nans
of striker who agreed get the thing done Tor twenty
thousand doarsfve thousand down. ana hfteeh taIu
sand to be deposited In bank not 70 pe t9uenTS
Ter ventured to intimate that this was Dig price,
chairman of the committee. he ntmated. was an enor
nous being whose very presence the striker couu 10y
himself of great magnitude only to be tempted by SUN
of money pTopOruOned 10 it, The disuer consented
the five thousand dollars and deposited the fifteen thou
sand Tho striker made no attempt of any kind what
ever induce the committee TO omit the name 10
Der OF the committee heard from or heard OF him Inc
friend Of the chairman, who was TO DO seen by the
striker, never by him, and knew not OF ms eX
istence The advenurer soon left Washington ana, on
reaching the much larger city where the dstier Ved
| informed him that it was all right" ,.,.,
On the contrary it figured frequently and not advan-
tageousy. The distler demanded an explanation OF inc
striker That individual could only account Ior ne
hap by saying that thOse scOundres in Washington had
Saeaer pea - omit II be name To Washington came the
distier furious and there confronted the friend OF
but who was not That friend denied the
ton and presented him to the member who also declared
the whole transaction cheat Inc dsueT sara 10 the
friend in his shame aud misery, "Wll you come
| to New.YOrk aud face hm" ." VIII, VII VIII
RSo Confessed his Tiiiany The fifteen thousand
dollars were rescued but the FIVE thousand were os c
ter mp than recover sum WHICH, 1nder b Ama5Iw
Now the committee might have thought 1t best, fo'
from their report In that the striker would have
quietly pocketed the other fifteen thousand as wen a
the fervent gratitude OF the distiler who Womb laV
communicated to all his intimate friendsthat members
Congress were purchasaDle some of Andrew John
sons And Fam distinctly informed that spec
ulatons Of this nature upon what members VIII proDa
| stance Sometimes, however we have seem striker
obtains positive Information Of members commit
scheme Of spOliatiOn more or less extensive
AN INNOCENT swISDLER.
Occasionally man a striker in spite Of himself The
following rests great quantity of sworn ties
tmony taken before tho celebrated COvode Committee In
1850 Two young men-One partisan, the other an op
ponent Of Lecomponwere joking together one day, in
their common at Washington. with regard TO Mr.
The oppOnet at length AZ croSnins
said win take the contract for putting that measure
through for ten Thousand dollars The other In his zeal
10 serve the administration reported this remark TO the
King OF the Lobby, Cornelius Wendell, who then
helping the wTetched Buchanan debauch the public
science. Wendell sought interview with the oeuar
young man, with whom he was acquainted, suppOslng
from his connection with the press and politics Of ONO
that he might bring over Few Of the ONO t @ ie
adding bushel OF gold is object in this matter
which true. The young man protested that his re-
mark TO his roommate was nothing but aJoke that nc
had votes and that he was not acquainted
En sSy 6T % not Toe Which the %
thus replied You damned little fool you might as well
Finally the young said lie would think about It;
and of for he who celebrates is LOST he was will
chanan's corruptorgenerai Here is what will do,
said Cornelius Wendell who then wrote upon slip OF pa
| sloc glotYo
P'' 'H' ST. ss,s2--~ eye s5o-"
which, as afterward explained by witness, meant five
piled That he would prefer TO receive five thousand dol
lars down for dong what be could ana not take the pro
| for that amount and gave 1t him.
He deposited the check in bank IN Washington, pro.
fOundy astOnshed and beWdered, TO find himself
the p0ssessOr Of such sum OF money He knew that he
could do nothing 10 IT, and he did nothing For some
| time past he had been urging the members whom be
knew met to settle" the Kansas question In some
and his whole testimony credible aspect and is
supported by the general character OF the evidence bear
said nc, iran after single members urged the set.
Element Of that question as had been doing before"
that mountain Of money which had tumbled upon him
out OF the sky He could not attain TO comfortable
assurance that 1t was his own and he feared ne should
90 10 the bank some day and find gone parayzed by
control At he drew out most Of it. sent il home to
Ohio, and paid of old debts with IT, Ny object" said
he, I'm doing that, TO IL afraid they
would find out was not doing anything and would stop
|
Wendelrs experience would throw away money in this
manner, II the fact not established by superb.
bundance Of credtable testimony. But, with ali his
money, he could not buy vote for LecOmptOn. Votes
may have been bought but the price paid was other
| than money.
THE ALAsKAIRlHGI
The whole Of the Alaska scandal the work OF un.
successful strikers. say this without reserve because
accident placed in circumstances at different times to
get trustworthy information both from the strikers and
the stricken Readers remember probably the publica.
ton OF the paragraphs which asserted that the Russian
Minister had only sent home five millions Of dollars and
had expended the remainder-two millions two hundred
thousand dollars, in gOd-in substituting the press and
buying votes There two atoms OF truth In this
huge, many.sided lie. The Russian Government was
informed by person who could hardly be mstakcn Ind