Middletown transcript., 1876-04-22
Letter from Washington.
WASHINGTON, D. D., April Is, 1876

WASHINGTON, D. D., April Is, 1876.
THE ARRAIGNMENT OF BELKNAp.
Contrary to general expectation Gen.
eral VIM. W. Belknap, late Secretary
of War, appeared in person at the bar
Of the Senate on Monday, the 18th
instant, to answer to the articles of i'm
pcachment exhibited against him by the
House Of Representatives. 1t was be-
lieved be would not respond to the
summons Of the Senate an propria per-
soma; as, strictly speaking, he was not
required to do so. He could, had he
SO wished, have appeared by counsel,
which would have been entirely salts
factory to the Senate sitting as High
Court Of Impeachment; but be was ad-
vised by his lawyers to put on bold
front, and, by his presence endeavor, to
impress the court with the fact that he
was not afraid to confront either it or
his accusers. 1t must be confessed that
be went through the ordeal remarkably
we'll. 1t is almost needless to say that
be was the cynosure Of the Senators
who sat as the judges in his case, of the
members of the House who occupied
seats on the floor, of the "lynx-eyed"
reporters, and of the thousands who
thronged the galleries; and, that through
out the entire proceedings, he main
tanned calm demeanor scarcely to be
expected under the circumstances. A
portly, 6ne-looking fellow Of forty-six
or forty-seven. of the pure Saxon type,
with blue eyes and long blonde beard,
he sat between Jeremiah S. Black and
Montgomery Blair, two Of his counsel,
holding in one hand pair Of lemon
colored kids, apparently as unconcerned
as the Ethiopians who slumbered peace
fully in the gallery.
EX-SENATOR MATT. H. CARPENTER
is the senior counsel in the case, and
will probably take leading part in the
trial. Self-possessed, and amiable in
manner, Carpenter. With his conceded
ability, has an easy. staggering air
about him which endears him to the
"b'hoys," who are ready to shout,
"Hi! Hi" whenever witticism drops
from bis lips. Somehow or another,
the people Of Wisconsin saw fit to drop
the Honorable Matt. from their list Of
favolites, and be returns to bis profess
sion to defend the Treasury thieves like
Ottman, safe burglars like Harrington
and Babcock, carpct-bag Senators like
Spencer, and yenders Of post-trader-
ships like Belknap. The Honorable
Matt. has always strenuously insisted
that no United States Senator can live
on his salary. Possibly not, if Sena-
tors will keep pace With the ex-senator
from Wisconsin in his lavish elpendi-
lures. Said he. during the Spencer in.
vestigation: "Gentlemen of the Com
mittee, l object to that question If
General Spencer did borrow money, it
was no crime You know, gentlemen,
as we'll as J., that after a man has been
10 the United States Senate three or
four years, he must necessarily be poor;
and. certainly none of you will say that
poverty is crime" Query: If serv-
ing in the Senate is sneh ap impover-
ishing process, why are there 30 many
aspirants for seats in that body who are
willing to spend thousands Of dollars to
secure ths object Of their ambition ?
A prize chrome, valued at Twenty-Five
cents. will be awarded to the person
who will solve that conundrum.
THE CHIEF IMPEACHMENT MANAGER.
Having referred TO the counsel for
Belknap. let us take a look at the