New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1874-02-26
WASHINGTON.
THE BOSTON COLLECTORSHIP.

|
sPEcUIAIloNs AND PREDICTIONS AZ TO TIE RESULT
| SENATOR BOUTWELL, IN AN UNCOMFORTABLE 20
| sIIIoN
EBY TELEGRAPH TO THE TRIBUsE.l
| WASHINGTON, Feb. 25.-Simmons sticks por
ton of the Boston Commercial Club headed by some
Of the members of tho House from Massachusetts,,
waded through foot of snow in driving storm
this morning to the White House. to urge the Presi
| dent again TO withdraw the detested name Of
| Simmons No satisfaction whatever was granted,
and Senator Boutwell, ~ therefore the
| happiest man in Congress. He not quick
enough in his perceptions originally to see to
what extent the Simmons matter would lead him,
and So instead of disposng of the nomination by
confirmation rejection at once, and thus puttingan
end to the controversy he shamblcd along until he
is now between two powerful bodies, liable to be
crushed by either OF both If he seems to favor Sim
mons he excios the resentment OF the most respect
| able portion of Boston and Massachusetts. If he
seems to oppose Simmons Mr. Butler and all his
warriors are in arms against him.. SO between the
! two his position is anxious and critical.
| There are those who saysthat Simmons will not
| be withdrawn; that Simmons will be confirmed;
! and that Simmons will make the best Collector Of
| the port that Boston ever had and that in Gen.
| Butler and Gen. Grant, Simmons has two OF the
most servceable friends that candidate ever had.
| On the other hand, there those who say that
| Simmons stands no moro chanse of confirmation
| than SimmOns's friend does of being Governor OF
Massachusetts,; that Mr. Boutwell, will at last yield
TO the business people of Boston and defeat Sim
mons OF that Mr. Butler will at last be compelled to
withdraw Simmons and look out Tor some ot9er
Office for him i'll case he leaves his present one. OF
Course one side predicts the destruction of the Re
publican party IN Massachusetts, unless Simmons is
| nd he ot AZ ia
future of the party is very clondy unless Simmons
is rejected Both seem to be equally certain of the
| fact
In the mean time a majority Of The Massachusetts,
members Of the House have united and request OF
| Mr.. Boutwell, 10 agree upOn compromise rather
than to endure the disgrace Of Simmons They will
be willing to accept ex-Mayor Lincoln, Postmaster
| Burt OF Deputy Collector Fisk, and If Mr.. Boutwell,
| Will only consent that one of them may be APP
pointed, the result will be satisfactory to all but
| Butler and Simmons
THE DEBATE ON THE FRANKING BILL.
A PERSONAL ATTACK ON MR.. PITELPs-GEN. BUTLER
CLOSES TIE DEBATE WITH AN ATTACK ON THE
| PREsS-PROBABIIITY THAT THE QUESTION WILL
BE DISPOSED or TODAY.
lBY TELEGRAPH TO THE TRIBuHEl
| WASHINGTON. Feb. 25.-The debate on the frank
were smartng under the satirical attack OF Mr.
Phelps yesterday, which, although delivered in a
spirit of perfect good humor did not please a num-
Der of gentlemen who felt themselves hit partcu-
larly hard by his genial sarcasm. Before the House
met tho report current that of the Western
| men were going to scalp" the New-Jersey meu-
Der, and that they would make his jokes about the
GrangeTs the text for q severe attack upon him as
railroad monopoIist.
When the morning hour ended and debate on
| the bill was again III order, Mr. Cobb, new MEM
Der from Kansas got the floor and began the job of
chastising Mr.. Phelps with great vigor. He com
! pared him to the rich man Of Scripture, who "de-
parted sorrowfu because he had great POSSESSIONS
| quoted half dozen Bible texts against rich men /;
read list of the railroads and banks of which Mr..
Phelps is a director; and finally. invoked upon him
| the wrath of the Changers, and warned him of the
| consequences of their aroused Indignation. Mr..
Phelps, in his reply, did not fall readily into
his peculiar humorous and ironical style
| of speaking. and after while dropped it
entirely, and made strong and earnest protest
against the injustice of attacks upon men who had
| employed their wealth in the development of the
| great material interests of the country. He told
| the Western members that he like other Eastern
capitalists had invested fortune, inherited or ac-
| quired by hard labor in constructing railroads in
ILLINOIS, haDSaS, anu QUIET "hiCn h'su
developed the country through which they ran to an
extent impossible without them, causing prosperous
towns to spring mp and increasing largely the value
Of all property along their lines but which never
| had returned one dollar of profit to their owners
and would not for many years to come If ever; and
that the Western people, having thus benefited by
this expenditure of Eastern money, now turned upon
| the men who furnished 1t and abused them.
The closing speech of the debate was made, late
in the afternoon by Gen. Butler who was, of course,
for Thanking in its largest and least limited sense.
| The burden of his speech was an attack npon the
| newspapers. When Mr.. Butler gets the floor now
everybody knows that the press is going to catch it,
| His same old tune about the debanehed corrupt,
| and lying press has already become bore, and is
only listened to with interest by few Of tho hard
ened salary grabbers, who owe the newspapers a
| drudge which they are glad to Mr.. Butler at
tempt to pay off. The gist of Mr. Buffers remarks
was that the papers, by printing details of crime,
caused murder burglary, and rape to abound IN the
land. and that these wicked sheets, which, beside,
were all the time telling lies about him. ought not
| To be allowed to 90 through the mails free while
| Congressman had to pay postage Oh their yirtuous
speeches and on the valuable public documents.
Mr. Packer demanded the previous question at 4
| o'clock, and while refusing to allow the amend
ments of Messrs. Kasson, Packard and others, pro-
posing Just and economical methods of distributing
| the documents to be voted on, he admitted Mr.
Hae's amendment revivng the old franking privi-
lege entire In this action he clearly revealed the real
animus of the advocates of the bill, who would to
man be glad to vote for restoring every feature of
the franking abuse if they dared. The main ques
ton was ordered by vote of 12G to III, and then
the House adjourned leaving the vote to come first
in the morning upon Mr.. Hales amendment, and
hat ailo ~ 1nnhf fart ha