Weekly Trinity journal., 1872-04-13
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER.
MAsn1NoroN. March %. 1872.
SUMNER BEFORE THE ARMS INvEsTIGA-
TING COMMITTEE.

SUMNER BEFORE THE ARMS INVESTIGA-
TING COMMITTEE.
The extraordinary course pursued by
Senator Sumner before the Arms Inves-
tigating Committee has filed his friends
and admirers with grief and astonish-
ment. His so-called protests do not even
deserve the pretentious title, more-they
are mere insults given in the place Of ev-
idence, and to cover his utter failure to
prove anything wrong in the arms trans
action.
First-His elaborate quotation Of par
liamentary law proves simply this, that
all special committees should be com
posed of majority Of those who voted
for the motion to raise them. Nowhere
can be found the absurd proposition that
the presiding officer administering par
liamentary law can go behind the "ayes
and nays" and canvass the motives Of
the men who voted for or against any
measure. The Democratic minority, aid
ed by Sumner, Schurz, Fenton, Upton
and Trumbull, for these seem to be all
the malcontents, could not have forced
any investigation whatever. If the Re-
publican Senators had not voted to raise
the committee none could have been
raised. Now Mr.. Summer advocates
the preposterous doctrine that Republi-
can Senator voting for investigation, but
stating his belief that the Administration
would come out all right, is disqualified
to serve, and that an unbiased and Ml-
prejuciiced committee can only be made
up of those who stated it as their solemn
conviction that the Administration is rot
ten to the core, and that the arms were
sold through corrupt influences and vio-
lation of statute and international law ! /!
But be that as it may, the committee it.
self had nothing to do with the matter.
Second-As to the propriety of testify
ing before the Committee, | have simply
to say that the Senator took the response
biity of arresting the wheels of legisla-
ton for month to ventilate his griev-
ances. Among other things he made a
three-hours speech, alleging gross viola
tons of law dangerous to the peace of the
country, and when called upon in the in
terest of that public cause for which he
professed SO much love, to tell the coun-
try all he knows, he shields himself behind
a prctense of constitutional inviolability
and refuses to testify. This must be a
queer constitution which permits n Sena-
tor to bear false testimony in the open
Senate, but closes the door in his face, if
he is called upon to prove his charges be-
fore his peers, SO that the alleged griev-
ance may be redressed.
The truth is, that the evidence accu-
mulating everywhere that Grant will be
elected by two-thirds electoral vote,
has thoroughly maddcned his Senatorial
opponents. The sight of water to mad
dog is not circumstance to the convul-
sivc rage caused by the probable success
of Grant.
THE SOUTHERN CLAIMS COMMISSION.
The Southern Claims Commission Gre
ated by an act of Congress about year
ago, is composed of three commissioners
and less than score of clerks. Their
duties consist in examining into and re-
porting on the claims of loyal citizens
living in the South whose property was
appropriated for Government uses during
the rebellion. There have been placed
on the files up to the present time over
1000 claims with n fair probability at
the present rate of increase of the aggre-
gate number reaching not less than 2S,-
600 or 80, 600 before the expiration of the
time limited for filing.
One Of the pecuiarities of this office
noticeable comparisons by contrast with
Others is that the Commissioners all work
in fact, every item in n claim is exam
ined into by them before its final DISPOSE
ton, leaving to the clerks the mcchani-
cal part of registering and the simpler
portion of the abstracting.
TIE TARIFF IN TIE SENATE.
Senator Sherman's management Of the
Tariff bill has not been satisfactory. 1t
was expected that after having had the
subject under consideration, he would
have made n comprehensive exposition of
the question so that the Senate and the
country might have known what was ex-
Dccted to be done This was old Thn6