The weekly herald. [volume] (Cleveland, Tenn.) 1876-1888, 1877-01-19
Now FrOn N aslIingl0n.

Committee is laboring earnestly,
and its members individually
seem anxious that some definite
plan of action should be decided
upon. there is good authority OF
stating that the difference of
opinion which called the commit
tee into existence are as far from
being harmOnized as ever. The
committee holds daily meetings
of from two to three hours dura-
ton, and these have thus far been
principally occuied in the
IDiscussiOn OF PTecedents.
More recently an attempt was
made to decide upon set ofrules
which should govern the count
ing of the votes. The same radl-
cal differences of opinion which
the Senators have displayed on
the floor of the Senate have, how
had their inhunce in the
committee-room, and have mill
tated against all
The Plans Suggested.
What these rules and plans are,
none of the Senators will disclose,
neither will they state with whom
V originated. In answer to =
direct lnterrogatory prOpOundcd
by your correspondent, a Repub-
lican member of the Committee
admitted that nearly all OF the
methods suggested had more or
less of a partisan cast, except one
or two which proposed throwing
the count into Supreme Court, Oh
others that provided for the crea-
ton of a special tribunal for the
settlement of the difficulty. The
same senator refused to answer a
question whether the subject OF
the presiding officer counting the
electoral vote had been acted
upon any manner. He intimated
however, thati t hand been
Up for Discussion,
and it is inferrable from his man
ner that it is one Of the knotty
points with which the committee
is contending. The reticence OF
the members Of the committee IL
not confined to their intercourse
wirh newspaper men. They are
equally backward about disclos-
inc the secrets Of the commit
tee-room to their fellow Senators.
One Senator, whose anxiety
about the matter is apparent to
even a casual observer, disclo sed
to-day that in his entire eXpe-
rience as member Of the Senate,
he had never seen
So Much SeCrctivencSs
displayed as the members OF the
Electoral Count Committee arc
now exhibiting. lie attributes
the aversion to making known
anything to a settled conviction
that all hopes Of satisfactory
agreement are abandoned, and
that both sides are reluctant to
be the first to admit this feeling
O: hopelessness. Nearly all the
Democratic Senators are more or
less satisfied that the committees
labors will prove in vain, and
some of them are outspoken in
their opinions. The Republicans
manifest a adisinclination to speak
upon the subject, but it is plmn
that they, too, are fast coming to
the belief that nothing OF
"A Satisfactory Nature
will be achieved. Although the
Senate Committee is empowered
to meet and confer with the House
! Committee, no overtures for such
conference have yet been made,
and Joint meeting seems to be
among the things not in the near
future.
The Washington Republican
says: "Whatever information we
possess in relation to Congress
man Whitthorne's spotless chas-
tity, or touching any other Con,
gresham, shall be furnished
cheerfully. We have no doubt
that Congressman Whitthorne
courts the closet scrutiny into his
private life and morals, and it
would be a great wrong to de
prive him Of the great pleasure
he will experience in seeing all
the facts appertaining thereto
submitted to the committee"
OF course it will. lie who Sus-
poets "Whit." of handling fancy
colored pasteboard thoroughly
misunderstands the man. He
would scorn to do such a thing.