The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1872-03-14
rhe aensr.l Assembly.

0aieS' II
iii The General Assembly. Ii
sta aaEA gs-i
Instead OF adjourning for good, this ras-
cally body has taken q recess, and may be
called together by the presiding officers, at
any time, upon the demand Of a majority Of
the members. Both houses had adopted the
concurrent resolution fixing yesterday as the
time Of adjournment sine die; but the plots
and potential necessities Of the Senators and
Representatives moved them to rescind their
action and PASS resolution which, they be-
lieys jenables them 10 meet whenever they
need renewal OF six dollars day, or when
ever they have any nefarious political or
financial purpose to.serve. Beginning with
loud promises Of reform, they have gone
lower and lower in the mire, dragging the
State to ruin, and daubing themselves with
disgrace. Even their party organ, the Co.
lumbia Union, is forced to take them to
task, and lectures them thus:
ssThe Legislature, by concurrent resolution,
fixed upon to-day as the time for adjourn
ment The session has now extended over a
period of not less than one hundred and
twenty days, or nearly one-third OF the entire
year. During this time but few bills Of any
Importance to the State have been passed.
The session has been frittered away In unne-
cessary and useless squabbles between con-
tending factions, aud the peoples business
has been left undone until the very last days
Of the session. Bills Of public Importance,
which should have passed before the holidays,
have been put of from day TO day. until the
very last day of the session finds them still
pending, while acts Of Incorporation, charters
to companies, railroad, military and other
wise,T have been rushed, through with; the
most astonishing rapldity, and without any
apparent regard 70 the value of the time spent
In considering, them. 1t is. safe to gay. that at
least thres:fourths of all zth he business done at
the present session of the Legislature is of,
purely private nature. More than half of that
which has consumed 80 much valuable time
could lust as well be done by the courts.
'The Republican party, If 1t expects to live
in this State for any length of time, must re.
member one fact. and that Is, that the people
who pay taxes, both white and colored, will
not long consent to see their money squan-
dered by the Legislature in deliberating over
measures of no earthly Importance to any
save those who Introduce them.
ssIf we expect to exist as party, we must
Introduce these measures of reform, and not
have them forced upon US by the opposite
party. There is no Disgusting the TACT that our
legislative expenses are nearly double what
they should be, and this is caused solely by the
extraordinary length of the session.
ssThe impeachment farce consumed not less
than three entire weeks, and cost the State
thousands upon thousands of dollars. Those
who engineered that scheme should be held to
q strict accountability when they again come
before the people for Office.
ssThere are scores Of useless offices in the
Stale which should have been abolished, or
consolldated: but whenever this subject was
broached, all sorts of fair promises were made,
but no deflnire action could be secured looking
to q curtailment of useless expenditures. Mem
bers were afraid if they voted for such meas
ures that some displaced official In their re-
spectiye counties would exert his influence
against them when they again come before
the people for reelection. All action seemed
to be purely for self, without the slightest re-
gard for the public at large.
."The moment man prostitutes his party,
to serve his own purposes, that moment he
should be kicked out of public position and
sent into political obscurlty."
But this is not all, nor half, the shame
ful tale. Besides wasting time and money,
thew have bartered their influence for Zee,
and have made themselves accomplices Of
those who live by plundering the people.
They passed the Validating bill, which con-
fesses that frauds were perpetrated, and
boldly declares that every dollar OF bonds
and stocks issued by the Ring is binding
part OF the debt Of the State. They passed
the Settlement bill, which may involve the
State In an additional debt OF a million or
more. They passed the Blue Ridge bill,
which gives the Patterson Ring 81, ,sOO,0 600
with which to pay off debt of $500, 900;
the State abandoning, besides, its statutory
lien upon the property Of the company. 10
addition to the License bill they have levied
a tax OF about two per cent upon all tax
able property in the State, and will, this
year, wrest three millions from the people,
although the total expenses before the war
were less than half million year. They
have wrangled and snarled; they have sold
their votes as butchers sell meat in the mar
ket; they have done all that honest men
would not do, and could not do. And their
last act, the election of an ignorant and ma
licious Northern negro to the judgeship Of
the Charleston Court, is fitting crown to
an edifce whose corner-stones are ignorance
and impudence, venality aud vice.
The Ku-KluI Trials.
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