Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1872-03-01
Our washington Correspondence.
WASHINGTON, FEB. 26, 1872.
SETH JOHNSON

SETH JOHNSON.
This man has at last been given his just dues,
during the past week he was arraigned in our
Criminal Court on the charge of embezzlement
of public money, and through misconstruc-
Won of the law was discharged, the mistake
was not discovered until next day, but in time
to stop the entry being made on the Court re-
cord. He was re-arrested and brought into
Court, for second trial, and entered plea of
guilty, and was sentenced to be confined in our
county Jail for the period of one year, and pay
a fine of $40, 900.
LARGE BODIES MOVE SLOW
l had cherished the hope that the present ses-
sion of Congress would be an exception, and
not like the preceding ones, that there would
be little more work and less talk, but must
acknowledge that the cherished hope has long
since vanished, not like streak of lightning,
but like snow-drift under the rays of sum-
mers sun, gradually. was hard to convince,
but stern facts stared me in the face and have
no other alternative than to acknowledge the
corn, that this session will be no better than
the rest Business has been delayed by long
winded speeches and the discussion of political
measures. Already two months and half
of the session has passed and hardly measure
of Importance has been disposed of, in fact very
few bills have passed. The Senate is more
backward than the House, they have yet to act
upon nearly all the appropriation bills, the most
important of which are the civil service bill,
the deficiency bill and the miscellaneous bill
These bills have not yet been fully considered
by the Committee on Appropriations, and when
presented to the Senate will, without doubt,
be amended by that body. They will then be
sent to the House for its concurrence. The
House will get its ''back up'' and non-concur,
(which is generally the case, by this time the
session will be drawing to close, and to ex-
pedite business, committees of conference will
be appointed, who will arrange matters to suit
themselves. In the hustle the reports will be
presented to both Houses and adopted in some
cases, without reading, every thing is in con-
fusion but few days of the session remains,
there is no time to read long or short reports.
In this manner the bills are rushed through,
without the proper consideration, and they
very often contain measures obnoxious to the
will of the majority of both Houses. 1t is here
where the lobbyist and the congressional sharp
ers make their biggest hits. If most of the bills
passed in this way were properly considered
have no hesitation in saying that they would
be quickly voted down. 1t is out of the ques
ton for the President to veto them, as that
would virtually kill the bills, as time would be
too precious to reconsider. | see no remedy
for this loose way OF carrying on business, only
that no resolution of adjournment should be
adopted until after all the business on the
Speakers table is disposed of.
INFRINGEMENT.
By the end of the present fiscal year (June
3O) the clerical force in the different depart
ments will be reduced some three or four hum
dred By this time the Pension Office will be
out of existence, and the Third Auditor will
reduce his force thirty-seven men. The Int
rior, Postofice, War and Navy Departments
will also drop a number of clerks from their
rolls.
HON. WILLIAM B. STOKES.
The trial of this man for conSpiring to de-
fraud the Government out of $50, 000 will be
brought up in our Criminal Court this week.
He had trial last week and was found guilty
of receiving. bride money while member of
Congress. His friends think he can prove HIM
self innocent of this last charge, and it is as
serted that he called sometime ago on our Dis
triet Attorney to have the parties arrested, as
suspected fraud on their part Beatty Il Co., }
but the District Attorney refused. If be can
prove this think he is all light, but doubt it.