The New York herald., 1871-02-23

Congress Yestcrsay-A series of Engage
n,ents in tho House.
The House yesterday was in one of its most
belligerent moods from the opening Of the
session, at eleven o'clock in the morning,
until its adjournment, at six in the afternoon.
There was constant succession OF skirmishes
carried on with more or less acrimony and
with more or less damage to the disputants.
First came the conflict between Farnsworth, OF
Illinois, and Butler, of achusetts-those
unrelentlng antagonists-in which Farnsworth
charged Butler with having an interest in
fraudulent contract for supplying granite for
the Boston Post Office and with having pro-
cured expensive mirrors from the Treasury
Department with which to grace his Washing
ton mansion. Butler Indignantly denied both
allegations, and applied to his opponent the
perfumed epithet of ''mud machine, whose
business 1t was to scatter filth on decent peO-
pie. After this pair of worthless had retired
from the scene a more amusing comedy was
introduced by our friend Brooks, who, for
want of a better subject, got up another dis
cussion on the question of the interference
of military at the elections last fall and in
aiding the revenue officers to suppress illegal
distlleries in Brooklyn. The idea Of the gov
ernmeut doing anything to thwart repeaters
or contrabandists is something so repugnant
to the State rights democratic instincts of
Mr.. Brooks that he loses no opportunity of
expressing his horror of federal interven-
ton, and so he struck in upon that favorite
topic yesterday, apropos of some army items
in the Deficiency bill. Mr.. Dickey, of Penn
sylvania, came to the rescue of the admins
tration, and said some severe things about the
New York democracy and its readiness to
create a riot whenever any movement was
made to stop its supply Of whiskey.
AS soon as that discussion was got out of
the way another sprung up, in which demo-
cratic New York and republican Massachusetts
were pitted against each other. The cause in
controversy was some items in the Deficiency
bill for the Freedmen's Bureau. Mr.. Fernando
Wood opened his batteries upon General How
ard, whom he arraigned for all manner of
misdeeds connected with his management of
the bureau. A democratic member from Illi-
nois-Mr. McNeely-aided him in the attack.
But Hoar, of Massachusetts, came to the de-
fence of General Howard, and pointed to the
speeches of Wood and McNeely as two add-
tional illustrations of the malignant hatred of
the democratic party toward all the poor and
oppressed and downtrodden. Then Sunset
Cox moved to the rescue of the "6erce
democracie," and said all manner of
disagreeable things against the people
OF Massachusetts for the treatment
Of their paupers and their insane and
for their peculiar idiosyncracy Of poking their
noses into other peoples business. He insinu-
ated that in the discussion Massachusetts, was
not defended by her ablest man, making a
classical allusion to Troy and Hector. But
Hoar made brilliant flank movement upon
him, and turned his classics against him by
the remark that Troy did not need to put for
ward Hector against an attack that was led
by Thersites. This turned the fortunes Of the
day against our doughty little champion, and
he did not turn up in the fight any more. But
his colleague, Fernando Wood, did not so
escape The veteran Townsend, of Chester,
Pa, assailed him in connection with
his famous telegram TO Toombs, Of Geor
gia, and his proposition to the New
York Common Council to SCI up this city
as free port, Independent of the general
government. The stately Fernando parried
the attack, and asserted that in the trying
days Of the rebellion his public acts bespoke
the ardor of his loyalty. Dawes, the chair
man of ;Hhe Committee on Appropriations, was
so worried and Worn by the continuous con-
flict that he found himself constrained to
interfere and put an end to 1t by motion to
suspend the rules and pass the bill without
further discussion. This movement was suc-
cessfully carried out, and then the House
adjourned, after seven hours session.
The proceedings in the Senate were without
interest, the session of the day being devoted
to the consideration of the Indian Appro-
priation bill.