North Iowa times. [volume] (McGregor, Iowa) 1867-current, 1870-07-06

constituency. (Laughter.) They have
become sick, they are nauseated with
this stuff that has been sent to them
from Congress under these thirty-three
thousand franks, and they hope and
pray you to abolish it. Their stomachs
will stand no more of what has been
sent to them. (Laughter) They have
asked you for fish and you have sent
them serpent. They have asked you
for bread
Mr.. Warner-Allow me to ask the
Senator
Mr.. Thurman-Oh, no; do not i'm
terrupt.
Mr.. Stockton-The country will new
er know how that sentence wo'd have
ended, on account of the Senator's in
terruption. Laughter.) The Senate
will never know posterity will never
know you, Mr.. President, will never
now; the world will never know how
that sentence would have terminated
on account of the unfortunate inter-
ruption of the Senator from Alabama.
Mr.. Drake-I hope the Senator from
New Jersey, when he scintillates on
that side of the Chamber, will not con-
fine it to that particular region, but
will allow us to hear him on this side.
Mr.. Stockton-Mr. President, can
you imagine-perhaps some of you
have witnessed such scenes-a boat at
sea with shipwrecked crew, and wo-
men and children on board.,, On the
third or fourth day the last drop is out
of the fresh water; after day or two
a man becomes insane and jumps over
board; and then another, unable to
endure the agony any longer, leans
over the side and drinks the salt wa
ter, and drinks his own destruction,
drinks poison at every drop he drains.
Sir, that has been the effect of the
franking privilege on the people. The
people were athirst and they cried out
for relief, and you sent them, not pure
water, not what would quench their
thirst, but you sent them nauseating
draught that drove them to delirium.
Therefore, the people have come here,
with one voice, demanding that you
keep your medicine; they want no
more of it. Mr.. President, remem-
Der when 1 was boy, 1 think in one
of Walter Scott's histories, a torture
invented in the highlands for an ene-
my, which has been considered by
many as one of the most severe that
has ever been inflicted. The prisoner
was let down into deep cavern and
kept there.f for many days without food
and when the craving of his hunger
had become intense they let down a
piece of salt beef which he seized and
greedily devoured. After time, when
thirst almost choked him, they let
down cup, which he siezed with avi-
dity, but the cup was found empty
So have the people of this country
grasped at this yellow covered litera-
ture so have they seized this empty
cup; and so have they come here to
Congress, and said, "abolish the frank
ing privilege; give US no more docu-
ments; no more empty cups to tanta-
lize our thirst beyond endurance."-
Sir, shall cast my vote, heartily, free
ly, and do all that in my power fair
ly can, to abolish it, because Congress
is not the schoolmaster of the nation.
The speeches and the lessons that are
sent out from Congress to the people
do no good, but harm. One wo'd have
thought that after this war was over
doctrines like those to be found in the
5th chapter of Matthew, the "Sermon
on the Mount" would have gone out
from Congress, that peace was to be
spread throughout the land that the
doctrines of peace would have been
disseminated from out the North to
the South, and all through the coun-
try. Oh, with what joy would have
franked those documents With what
joy would the people have received
such documents What glorious
name would you have made for your
selves. Then Senators would not have
been seen rising in this Chamber and
saying, "my Democratic friend" or
"my Republican friend" We would
have been one party and one people
in this country from north to south,
from ocean to ocean. But no; that
was not the spirit that prevailed =
those gentle words were not uttered !;
but in their place "rebel," ''traitor,"
'such things will never be forgotten"
The fact that civil war existed, that
men differed in their construction of
the constitution, is overlooked alto
gether. This is forgotten, but not the
bitter phrases. It is said that the men
who went out of this Chamber violat'd
their oaths, committed perjury: call
ing political offences, for the sake of
making an argument, by name only
found in the criminal calendar. Such
were the terms and such were the
speeches that have been sent broadcast
throughout the .land, and hence the
people come to you and say ''Send us
no more of them; no more radical
speeches.
"No more ont, Hal, as thou lov'st me-"
! Now, Mr.. President, do not per-
tend to be prophet; am as likely to
be mistaken as any other person; but
I tell'you, abolish or do..not abolish this
franking privilege, and you will find
out that at the bottom of the signing
of these petitions was much more than
the Postmaster General and his depu.
ties conceived; much more than the
/ q rom mania fhat have haon naod In This