Whig and tribune. [volume] (Jackson, Tenn.) 1870-1877, 1876-03-25
An Interesting Letter from the Capitol.
wAsnrNarox, D. Q. March 20, 1876

An Interesting Letter from the Capitol.
WAsHINGroN, ID. G. March 20, 1876.
There is a story Of three honest travel .
ers who dined at an inn and saw in one /
of the rooms a veIy costly watch. When .
they had gone away together the German
said: 81 wish had left my brass watch I
and brought away the gold one" 81
wish said the Hungarian 81 had taken
the watch az have il in my poke
| said the Bohemian. 1t afterwards APP
| peared that the German had indeed made
the exchange he spoke of; but as the
Hungarian had Immediately stolen the
gold watch from him, he took nothing by
the change. The good Bohemian despis-
ing such dishonesty exposed it TO the
public. If Don Piatt is to be believed,
something of this kind has been going on
in President Grants Cabinet: and he
| mentions the fall Of BelknaP, the rising
nation of Attorner General Williams,
the thrice attempted burning of the Navy
| Department building to destroy damaging
| papers, and the payment of fraudulent
cotton and railroad claims, and the Lord
| knows what other evils and blessings as
a few of the results. His story involves
| the writing of anonymous letters by one
lady of the Cabinet, exposing the wicked
ness of other ladies and the gentlemen of
the Cabinet.
Most likely this is all true; at least
the greater part Of it is officially proven
| and publicly known to be. l mention it
only because, taken with pending expo
sures i'm the immediate family Of the
| President, in connection with post-tra-
derships and the like petty infamies, it
shows condition of things which would
have swept any Chief Executive, at any
other time, out of his seat as soon as the
forms of law could be complied with,
and without waiting for Ell election, and
have broken any party to atoms.
Yet in the face of all this, New lamp
shire gives its Old-fashioned Republican
majority. Democratic Connections is in
doubt, and the town elections everywhere
in the North show Republican gains
The best men of the party have left it
and are in opposition or are silent. Its
present leaders in Congress are in no bet
ter moral standing before the country
than are those who surround the White
House. In short the party organization
, is a stencil in the nOstrils of the people.
But these same people vote solidly in its
support. There is but one explanation
, of this-there can be but One-and read
ers of this correspondence do not need to
be told what that explanation is. We
took occasion in advance of the speeches
of Messrs. Hill and Tucker in the House
to depreeate the airing of southern rhet-
oric on the subject of the war, or the
causes which led to the war, or the prin-
ciples underlying it, and warned our
leaders of the inevitable effect of such
utterances. We called attention to the
fact that the generous, impulsive men
who made the bulk of the Northern ar
my, as of the Southern, would most read
lily respond to any advances made them
, from the South, but would infallibly re-
f sent any supposed insult to the cause
they fought for or any unnecessary OF
! Ostentatious justification of the cause
) they foughl against. 1t was not the in
fiammatory speeches of Morton, Blaine
b, diers of New Hampshire to the polls, a
= compact body of Republican voters; for
{ such speeches have lost their power; but
. it was those of Hill and Tucker which
e could do no good in the South, but which
: have such power for evil in the North
{ that if they are continued Belknap him
/ self could be elected president in Novem-
4 ! Der over the purest democratic statesman
S in the country. Whether the war settled
= any principles of government or not is a
= question that wise minority will dis
/ cuss when discussion will help their
e cause, or at least when it will not pro-
: long and intensity the evils from which
they and their constituents suffer. There
! | Is yet time for Lamar and Gordon and
d Hancock to speak. 1t is full time for
4 Hill and ToOmbs and Tucker to be silent,
a The proceedings in Congress for the
past week are unimpOrtant, the absence
. OF Marsh preventing the judiciary CON-
mittee from presenting the article of i'm
' parchment against Belknap, but having
been granted immunity he will be here
on Wednesday and the trial will soon
commence. 1.-The executive Legislative
judicial appropriation bill is being dis
= cussed, and it is said that the New Hamp-
4 shire election has so emboldened the
, Radical senator's that they intend to re-
=. sist the reduction made by the House.
Senator Conklins seems to have 4
9 strange idea of propriety and of his duty
< as senator. He is known to be more
: powerful than any other senator in secur.
f ing appointments or removals in the de-
partments, and yet he went before the
t board of appeals of the Patent Office ant
,, as attorney for one of the parties in eth,
r interference case'' of Sargent agains
{ Yale made an argument, extending owe
: part of too days. OF course he won hi
i case, as the members of the board eoulC
be removed at his word. DEM