Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1876-03-31
WASH GTON LETTER
Investigations. Legislation. Afri
chnfZattOn, Exhaiation
and Starvation

The events of the week, from ,
Washington standpoint, may be told
in very few words. The DISTINGUISHED
exile, Marsh, returned from Canad,
with his memory stepped iu oblivion
When he first appeared before tn,
judiciary committee he remembered
very little that he had told the com
mlttee on war claims two weeks before
but, under a crucial cross
he was compelled to divulge his knowl
edge of the fact that Belknap was cog
INFANT OF the criminality of his rela
tions with the post traders, at least. ,s
early as 1872 This evidence will
effectually divest Gen. Belknsp of the
plea that he received the money limo.
Gently, through his wife, surprising i,
to come from an investment of hers
made prior to their marriage.
Impeachment proceedings will be
instituted next week, and it is believed
by many that if the ex-S"cretary is not
successful in plea to the jurisd lotion
of the Senate denying their right TO
lmpeach citizen &c O6fcio, he will
plead guilty at once This will OF
course very much simplify and abre-
vlate the Impeachment business and
enab Congress to give more time to
legislative work.
Mr.. Marsh 10 his testimony TO-DAY
entirely exonerated Mr.. Clymer from
the charge. (Which however was never
seriously beIievedD that he (Mr. ely
raer) had been the cause of Msrsh's
leaving for Canada His evidences
proves that Mr.. Ciymer 80 far from
alarming him. to use Marsh's Ian.
guage, "pacified' him, and Was in no
way the cause of his flight.
Early during the present week. a
bill was introduced in the House max q.
ing 1t email offence to assess gov
eminent employees for election purposes
ana was the occasion of all acrimonious
deta ate in which Mr.. Blaine again ap-
pc red IN his stereotyped roll of bully
and parliamentary trickster, and after
he had paralyzed the bill with amend
meLts. rendering it practically non
efnclent. 1t was passedO It will be re-
membered that some time ago there
was p defamation to the effect that
no government employe should be
assesss d for election purposes, but the
chairman of the National Republican
Com mittee, who is in perfect accord
| with the administration. still prose-
cutes the assessments, and woe to the
foolish employe who attempts to shield
himself with the President 8 proclam.-
ton.
Since Senator Logan relieved him.
SELF OF his long pent B.llingsgate
against the press tn Senate has con-
fined itself to .dignitied debate upon
Senator Morton's bill changing the
method OF counting the vote for Presi-
dent and Vice President.
Many members of Congress r.
SICK with lthu' MA, and there IL
much complaint of the bad VENT.
latlon of the Legislative hall. The
galleries, winch are quite COM
modlous, are always crowded with |
street lazlroni, mostly coiored. who
make it business ITO iDfest the |
galleries of the House aud infect |
the atmosphere. Portions of the |
gallery @ro re- ervod respectively
for reporters, ladies, the diplomatic |
corps, and tie families of member, Of |
Congress-; but. at least two-thilds If
tne space is open for citizens, or it,
ct Ter words for the couvenierca of the
constituents OF members who NAV
lave come to " ashlngtOu to see among
other sights Congress i'll session. Tbey
are, however, very frequently exclnd-
ed from the portion of the gallery Ut
is called here the smallpox gallery ct
apart for them by the noisome horde
ot street loaters who sleep and exhale
On the seats. A 1esO ution was intro
1uced IN the House last week to admit
20 this gallery only those who held
tickets from members; this would
nave given each member an opportu
lity 10 FAVOR his constituents when
hey come to Washington without peril l.;
o health, and would also have gone
ar TO purify the atmosphere in the ,
house; but MIR. Conger of Michigan
opposed the resolution in few burn
ng words about the rights of man and
he injustice of class legislation. and
he nuisance is undated.
An almost invariabIe remark of v;si-
ors, from the western, northern and
middle States, is: 'there seem to he a i
.reat many colored peeps in Wssh- I
ngton, even visitors from the south
ay: there are great many negroes
ere, aud negroes express the opinion Il
nat there are almost as many colored f
eopie as PLAN IN Washington. The s
eader Can make his own Inference "a
the shade of our population Since >;
ne war, TINS city has Leen a kind of a
egro paradise, L had almost said hell ,
,hey came from Maryland and Vir-
INA, not sinely, but in battalion.
urlng the regime of the Board Of .,
'ubl1c Works, and constituted Boss -
nepard's constituency; but, since the =
lstrlct has been deprived II the fran. *
hlse, and the public works have been ,
appended, Otilello's occupation is r
one. 10 more dos he vote: he ra- a.
alns Ia the city however, shucks +
ysters, blacks boots, phys the razor p
Id waits on de table,; but, how very p
any OF them manage TO subsist. is
lsier learned from the records of the G.
'lice court. AS class they are i'm. "'
'oy'dent and incompetent; they will
ply Tor work. in half starved con- ~,
ton, but they have no sooner found a.
situation aud lined themselves with w.
. or three square meals, than feel ~,
the revfvifylng return of prosperity. 20
ey are back upon the street. 70
There Is no doubt but that there is 49,
very sharpest distress among the na
~ large number of government en- r.,
Dyes deprived OF work by the tempo, an
y suspension of the bureau of an. or;
wing and printing; morning paper H.,
blishes thirty letters TO- Law. mostly " w
m females, imploring Coneress to Iie
mt an appropriation for the resumn-
OF work in this bureau, aud afford
M and those dependant on them an r.
iorable escape from impending star ba4
on. Their condition is very sad 70
pitifuI. and there is an effort to fix ~
IN the present Congress the oppro- or;
um OF inhumanity and cruelty; but NJ
present Congress is in no wav re- mo
nsible for this condition of things 10 10
the opprobrium is really with the o''
~ tina. has made sinecures and asv-
Is of the government Offices and
Tded the civil service till there is
only nothing for many of the en- age
'ees to do. but until they are actu- for
in each others NAV