The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1874-06-10
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER.

| in Congress, as regards questions OF
Importance to the general welfare,
though some of the debates have been
of local interest, and others not with
out touch of tartncss and humOr.
Thus there was the question Of pass
ports furnished to people who are go
ing aboard. Years ago the price of
a passport was 81. then during the
war it was raised to s., and after
wards passports were made free.
The proposition was to renew the fee
Of s., land one would not think there
was much milk in a cocoanut of that
kind; but there was. Butler wanted
to raise the price to $40, because it
would fall on the rich, who are the
only people who go aboard, and be-
cause it would tend to keep people at
home. People he said, go on abroad
and spend their money and impover-
ish the country, and buy all their
clothes there, thus cheating the tail
ors, and the wcayerS at home, Of
their chance Of work, and robbing the
government Of revenue, while they
get false and aristocratic notions in
to their heads, and all sorts Of cX-
travagant and oolish ideas. At this
Holman OF Indiana, pumped down
upon Butler, on accusation that he was
the enemy of the poor naturlizcd man,
who after having been iE this coun-
try few years and voted, wanted
to return to the old country and dis
plav the broad seal of the State De
partment 10 the astonished gaze of
the potentatcs Of Europe, as evidence
of citizenship and TO protect them
from the tyranny Of European Mon
arches, and Butler, he said, wanted
these poor men to pay their $50, for
the privilege. Then Butler said if
man was poor he could go without
passport, as four fifths OF them did,
and Holman said Buffers face was as
good as q passport, but the joke about
Buffers face is so old that no laughed.
The amount of it all was that 10000
persons go abroad Of whom 9,090 get
passports, and the rest go without.
\ tax of s., would probably induce
the whole to go without, and a tax of
50, would yield ten or twelve thous-
and dollars. The price was fixed
at s..
There was some debate on the
ozark" question in which Batter,
Conger, Brady and others, embarked
in the interests Of their constituents.
The New York and Michigan farmers
are in favor of a tariff upon bark,
and the Eastern tanners and shoe
manufacturers are opposed TO it.
Mr.. Congcr was the champion of the
farmers, and carried his point.
After so many months Of rumro
concerning the intentions Of Mr.
Richardson, he has at last concluded
to leave the Treasury. He was NOM
mated Judge Of the Court of Claims,
and Mr.. Bristow Of Kentucky for
Secretary, on Monday Bristow as
Solicitor General, made favorable i'm
preston here, as he is able, genial,
and popular in manners. Consider
ing the panic, Mr.. Richardson leaves
the Treasury in good condition, the
debt the past year having beenf re-
duced two and a half millions.
General Butler got a bill to . third
reading on Monday to allow women
topractice law in the U. S. Courts. Mr.
Dawes pushed through the Tariff bill
on the same day, and a large bust
ness was done with many measures
Of minor Importance.
We have to report q case ofunhap-
piness-Dawcs, of Mass. -Four years
ago,..hc opened up on the Chorpen-
ming claim and staked bis reputa-
tion before the country, that it was q
fraud lie made out, that the man
had not done half the service nc pre-
tended; had been more than twice
paid and was claiming it the third
time; that he smuggled bills through
Congress, righ: under the very nose
of Dawes himself, and tier bam-
boozled Creswell into making him an
award of halt a million, when he had
been doubly paid already. Dawes
said he bad the proofs, and said it so
boldly, that no one disputed him, and
Chorpenning and his claim went
into history as frauds, with
Creswell nick-named after him as
co-swindlcr. In his stump speeches,
Mr.. Dawes from that day made a
great handle Of vigilence in the mat
ter o. this claim, and thought folks
couldn't see exactly how he made
out that Chorpennins CreswelI was
all right, and Chorpcnning alone a
stupendous fraud, they accepted the
latter as q fixed fact.
But Chorpenning demanded a
hearing, and kept demanding, while
Dawes stood up and threatened anni-
hilation to the man who should ven-
ture to ask it for him. This session
however, John Cessna not having the
fear of Dawes before his eyes, got in
a petition for hearing for his con
stituent, and had it referred to the
Judiciary Committee. This commit
tee has eleven lawyers on it, the
greatest in the House; among them
Butler, Poland, Frye, Tremaine,
ClarksOn y. Potter and Eldridce.
republicans and democrats. They
investigated. They asked Dawes for
his proofs" but Dawes never came,
nor his proofs They asked again,
but there was no answer They read
his old speech, and studied it, and
analyzed it, and got all the evidence
they could hear of, and then reported
to the House, that Chorpenning chal-
lenged the severest scrutiny, submit
ted himself for examination, demand
ed a full investigation, and after all
their search and effort, they had
unanimously concluded that the Gov
crnment was in debt to him. This
conclusion knocks Dawes oil his stilts.
and into the mud. He thinks the
man has been over paid, and twice
paid, and has humbugged a whole
Congress, and he has the proofs; but