The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1877-11-17

the brains, aollity anu pioihtHCh0"
among the members of his own party
has seldom, if ever, been before at
tempted by a Speaker. The slight
put upon Messrs. Cox of New York
and Ellis of Louisiana, is especially
noticeable, and has no other expIa-
notion save the active opposition of
those gentlemen to the nomination OF
Mr. Randall for Speaker by the party
caucus.
The Craftsmanship of the Pacific
Railroad Committee is yet in abey-
ance. 1t was Mt first taken for granted
that the declination of Mr.. Potter
would constitute the second member
of the eommittee-Mr. ThrOckmorton
of Texas--its chairman, but Speaker
Randall argues that, inasmuch as no
organization of the committee was
effected, the refusal of Mr.. Potter to
serve leaves a vacant chairmansllip
to be filled by the Speaker. General
interest is felt concerning the course
Mr.. Randall will take in the premi-
ses. The friends of the Texas Pacific
Railroad claim that the presiding Of
fcer is morally bound to designate a
! chairman favorable to their scheme,
while their opponents as confidently
assert that he is pledged to an oppo-
site course. There must have been
| some tall deceit practiced by a GER
tain eminent gentlemen from Penn
sylvania, to give rise to such positive
contradictory opinions.
Congressman Ewing of Ohio has
been q great disappointment to his
friends. He seems to have been taken
at his own valuation by some of his
political associates, and was selected
to engineer the bill for the repeal OF
the resumption act. He entered upon
his mission with great show of con-
tidence, absolutely refusing to enter
tain amendments, and proposing only
limited debate. ais arrogance would
have come with bad grace from an
! old member, and in new one very
| soon provoked his more experienced
opponents to set legislative snareS
into which he walked straightWay
soon finding his bill hopelessly strand
ed in the morning hour; and it was
only after threats of blocking al
other legislation by the majority
favoring the b1i1, aud important con
cessions had been made to the minor,
ity, that he could effect a compro
mise by which a definite time was
| agreed to when vote is to be taken
Mr.. Bland of Missouri, one of the pio
neers in the RECOMMENDATION of silver
yesterday moved the passage of one
of the many pending bills for tha
purpose, aud it went through withou
any particular effort at opposition.
Extensive preparations were made
here for celebrating the great po
litical victories anticipated OH Tues
day, but neither party found very
much ground for rejoicing when thu
result of the elections became known
| The Democrats made substantial
gains in Pennsylvania and New Jer
sey, and clean sweep in the State
south of the Potomac and Mississippi
rivers, also reducing the unfavOrabl
maiorities in Iowa and Kansas. Oh
the other hand, the Republicans NOR
than held their own i'll New York
Massachusetts,, Connecticut and Wis
consin, so that the general result wa
something in the nature of n stand
off, affording small basis for casting
the political horoscope of the future
1t is mistake to suppose, as man.
away from Washington seem to do
, that there was any but a temporar.
interruption in the business of th'
Patent Office by the fire in Septem
Der. The routine work of the otfic
was resumed in less than a week ant
inventors need aPprehend no impedi
ments to the satisfactory transaction
of their business from that source
Business is transacted quite us rap
idly and with as much accuracy a
berore the disaster.
SENTINEL.
Hon. B. L. Defreese died in Ander