The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1871-12-23
Great Sur Among the Thieves.


cials OF the government, from the President
down to the smallest country post master, that
the honest men of the party became alarmed
and projected movement on the works of
the thieves with view to arresting the
Wholesale Expectations and Kidding the party
and the country of the injustice and scandal
OF their hellish practices. The movement was
headed by Lyman Trumbull, OF this state, who
offered resolution for the appointment of
joint committee of investigation, with full
power to look into and overhaul this whole
thievinS business, and particularly to turn
over that notorious den OF corruption, the \.
\. Custom House. at the head of which, UNI
til lately, stood Grants particularly honest "
friend Murphy. Now, if Trumbul had open
ed on the senate with fusilade of musketry,
the establishment ant; dismay of the loyal "
senators, who wear the Grant Collar, could
not have been greater. So notorious has the
thing become, that to utter the word "thief
in the United States senate is regarded as .
direct assault upon Grant himself and the
leading officers OF the government A howl
was at once raised that Trumbul, who was
backed up by Shurz, Sumner, Logan, Upton,
and three or four other republican senator's as
we'll as by all the democratic members, was
heading an assault on Grant, and was thus
"disloyal" to the great radical party. Such
a thing was too scandalous to be even named
in the senate, and Trumbull was choked
down with the intimatlon that such matters
could only be entertained IN secret caucus.
Well, the caucus, like corener's jury, sat
on the bussess two or three nights, and IN
spite of the vigorous and earnest protests of
Trumbull, Upton, Logan, &C., that they
meant only tine good Of the republican party,
the Trumbull resolution was twice voted down
and smothered.
But the thing wouldn't stay smothered
BY this time the clarion notes of the anti
thieves had begun to arouse the country and
about every click of the telegraph and every
mail brought to the loyal" senators notes of
warning from their constituents that the "peo-
ple' were in sympathy with Trumbull and
desired the investigation to 60 on. At this
the colar.bearers took alarm, and finally Mr..
Anthony, of Rhode Island, one of Grants
most o',sequious lickspitties, proposed a rcso-
luton, as the production of protracted mid
night caucus cogitation, for the appointment
of a standing committee of the senate, to
| whom should be referred, from time to time
for investigation, all charges of official cor
ruption, &c. This was such a simmeyinp
down of the Trumbull proposition tor an ac-
tive and searching investigation, that even
| Anthony himself blushed as lie read it in OPP
ell senate, and the independent republicans
and democrats laughed outright. The laugh
became broad guffaw when Anthony, as IA
part Of his resolution named the senators
who should compose the committee The
committee was headed by one Buckingham
about the most obscure man IN the senate, and
his associates, with the exception of Bayard,
democrat, an honest but singularly inetii-
cicnt man, were all senators who wore the
Grant collar and had opposed the proposed
investigation in all its stages. 1t was in vain
that Sumner, Trumbull, Shurz, &c, protested
against such composition of the committee.
1t was simply a broad farce-equal to the
man who was in favor of the Maine law but
opposed to its execution. Their protests.
however, were unavaing. The committee
had to stand as fixed up IN the secret con-
clave. :" Well, then" said Trumbull sat
least you will not object to giving the COM
mittee something to do" and he again offer
ed his resolution as an amendment, directing
the committee to send for persons and papers
and particularly to overhaul the Hodge steal
! and the corruptions of the New York Custom
House. But Conkling. chief collar. beare to
Grant. said no, that would never do 1t is
Of little credit to the republican party"
said he, to profess 'willingness or confess a
necessity, to investigate the affairs and the
administration OF its own party" And the
Trumbull amendment was again smothered
But again il wouldn't stay smothered.
Indignant letters from the people came pour
ing in on the collar bearers, and finally, on
Wednesday, they SO far succumbed as to al
low the Trumbul amendment to be adopted
and to add the name OF one tolerably efficient
democrat, that Of Casserly, of CAL, to the
| committee.
And thus this ten days war of words in the
Senate, which in its inception looked 30 ugly
and full of danger to the thieves, has ended