The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1874-02-26
Sam. Cox on Army Moths and Party
NofTa.

Sam. Cox on Army M0ths and Party
Moths
The Army Appropriation Bill being un-
der consideration IN the House OF Repre-
.seutatives, the Clerk read as follows:
"For preservation Of clothing and equi-
page from moth and mildew, heretofore
adopted and now in use. $4,000"
Mr.. Cox moved TO strike out of the bill
$4,000 aud insert $25.OOO, N IN sup
port of his motion said:
/ have a report before me from Quart
ermsster General Meigs, perhaps the best
officer in our service: It shows that we
are spending hundreds of thousands to
fight moths. fhey are worse than domes-
tic enemies.
Before / come to that, may / refer TO the
report Of Quartermaster Bingham, oil De-
cember 80, 1927. This report shows that
then we had $23, 455,S2l27 in wooden
clothing and tents, mostly the former.
This did not then include some forty-two
thousand blankets, worth $12S, 900. Nor
did this include coats, jackets, trousers,
flannel sacks, blankets, goods made mp and
not made up These items run into the
millions, and the moths run into them
Laughter.
Here are IS. 600. OOO-worth ofcoats, Jack
cts and trousers. Nearly eight hundred
thousand ofthese articles Of apparel for an
army OF thirty thousand. Our a~ppropria-
ton is a dollar and thirty six and two
thirds cents per soldieT-not per moth.
Omitting the weoIen blankets and "moun-
ted great coats" flor the cavalry. / sup
pose.) and the "sky-Llue kerseys," there is
a splendid objective point for the army oil
moths, which no great General OF that
corps should omit to attack, If feeling well,
Did the moths fail? Ii they did, what
need of this appropriation?
In this list we have at least one million
and a quarter yards Of flannel not made
up. We have millions of dollars of this
peculiar wooden property not yet made w
into uniforms.
1t is subject TO the attack of the moth.
A large part of this is still on hand, eth.
er unif)rm or otherwise. The gentleman
confessesto seven millions. Now, accord
ing 10 the report Of the Quartermasler
General Just referred to, there were $780,
600 appropriated in a couple of years last
past for a peculiar kind of process, which
Is said TO prevent moths getting into thi:
cloth and clothing. The Quartermastel
General in this report asks this Cengres:
this year for $l00, 900.
Mr.. Wheeier-And we give them hal
Of it.
Mr.. Cox-Why do you reduce? You
give them $4,000 I know that. I still
propose to reduce it. 1 do not understand
( whether We can by law sell out all thi!
cloth and clothing at once l hope so.
Mr. Wheeler rose
Mr. Cox-The gentleman knows I have
| oniy FIVE minutes, and be must not inter
rupt me
Mr. Wheeler will not trench on the
Ime OF The gentleman.
D. THE LiLIzs OF TIE sALLEET.
Mr.. Ccx-Yau can get the fioor at any
t me 1 w,u,d prefer, lsther IL a.
b fighting moths at such an immense x
pense, to give these IN forms away, Oh
| serve those eminent colored patriots in the
| g%alleryl They sit with us so regularly
TGr5at lAughter.] They toll not [laughterl
neither do they spin. They are the lille
of the valleyl Yet Solomon in all hi;
/ glory would not be arrayed like them !
| thew were clothed with these "sky blue
| uuiformsl renewed laughter. They sit
wonder, uniformly, day after day; and why
rot in uniform? Let them AZ pear IN thu
gallery properly arrayed in the colors o
| the Republic-heaYenlY bluel Laughter.
WHAT Is TIE ARMY GoTHR
Now, SIR, what, or rather who, are thes,
moths. It is a matter of much concern t.
| our families. Our women ought TO know
| Science ought TO tell US. Scripture-ah
l zee my friend from Massachusetts, is i'm
patient. He is about to rise. l am afraid
he will make a scriptural Illustration. II,
is thinking Of that place where moths ana
rust do not corrupt"-[laughter -
Several voices-"Where thieves breal
through and steal"
Mr.. Cox-I did notknoW the House wa
so accomplished in the scriptures. Laugh
ter.
Think the gentleman Mr.. Dawesl wa
| about to apply it to The democratic side o
the House. | have anticipated him b,
a more appropriate application. Th'
whole House. including the lilies of th,
gallery, know where THIS quotation fits.
What is the moth, MIR. Chairman
have looked HIM up, laughter, and bold
ing up an illustration in Chambers Eaey
| clopedia, volume g., there he is. [Grea
laughter. There are several kinds.
The moth ID a burglar, a nocturnal ras
cal. There are many families of them. j
is worth while, since it costs Us nearly hal
| q million 10 watch this enemy, because iii
of the butter fly species. 1t bristles will
GnEenn0l From base to apex these GnLeIl
nG are p~ectinated, especially in the male!
laughter and they are formidable eithe
in the larVa or ehrysalis state. l speak no
of their beauty Of color; l prefer to refer Z
the number of their eggs. If there is one
moth l prefer TO another, IT Is the Hawl
moth; but the Lackey Is the one l have
here p~ictorially illustrated holding up TIL
volumel..s The Lackey moth IS represen
ted in politics: first by this belt OF eggs
second, AS the caterpillar; third as the pm
pa in the cocoon, and then the full-iedgeC
insect for which we pay so much in this ar
my bill. Laughter.
Now, alter this analysis OF this insect
l would like to know from the distinguish
ed gentleman from New York my co
league Mr.. Wheeler whether The moth
to protect our array clothing from which
we would give this $4,000, Is the Phato'
ma moth of Linnoeus or the LepadOpterC
of other scientists. [Renewed laughter.
Mr.. Wheeler-The gentleman must al
low me some time to refresh my entomol
ogicsl knowledge. [Laughtes
A CENT A sNEEzE.
Mr.. Cox-I knew that | could not get
satisfactory reply! When | first read th'
item in this bill appropriating $4,000 foI
protection against moths in the army, ana
when 1 read that $3.50 900 had already
been expended for that purpose, l won.
dered. in my simplicity, why SO muct
money should be expanded for such 4 pur.
pose, when We might so easily econqmize
by selling out our old and questionable
army clothes. CASTING about, in my sim
| nle waY. I remembered that the only pre-.