New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1877-02-24
A Stormy Crowd.

A Washington letter of February Is to
the Cleveland Leader says:
When the House adjourned yesterday
Mr.. Lamar handed the reading clerk no.
tice that there would be q caucus of the
Democratic members that evening at half.
past seven o'clock. Everybody had been
upset and unnerved by the decision the
evening before and wanted policy, and so
anxious were they that the cry of NOW"
"NOwyg Caucus now" was raised from all
parts of the Democratic side, and it was
kept up so long that the Republicans, laugh
ing at their discontinue, joined in the cry,
and the scene was similar to one frequent
ct the New York Gold Board or the Chicago
Board of Trade; the bulls and bears of poll
tics were howllng and believing at each
other; the galleries were quite well filed
with people who had expected to see the
count go on, but as was anticipated in these
dispatches, a recess was taken. The Demo
Gratis are utterly demorGiized. They are
split upon rock and are scattering without
q leader. Dudley Field attempted to as
sumo control, but the rank and file cursed
him for having brought disgrace upon the
House of Representatives. Mr.. Morrison
would come forward if Mr.. Field we're out
of the way, but there is no man he hates
with hOlier' hatred. Hewitt ia disheart-
ened and gloomy. Dyspepsia and disap-
pOintment have untitled him for leadership.
Lamar and Ben Hill have come forward
and are trying to bring order out of confu-
sion, in which endeavOr they may succeed.
All day Saturday, at the Capitol, little
knots of Democrats were standing around
with their hands in their pockets, talking
about "infamOus outrages," "fraud," "par-
| tisanship and scandalOus injustice" The
only two happy Democrats were Mr.. Carr,
of Indiana, and Senator Eaton, of COnnec-
| tiout. Mr.. Eaton was the only DemOcI alto
| Senator who voted against the bill, and
being an old granny he goes around shaking
his head and saying, II told you 60" He
would rather see Tilden sacrificed a thou
| sand times than have lost this opportunity
| to prove his wisdom and foresight. The
| Republicans are expressly happy. Senator
| Ferry deplores the partisanship of the Dem
| Ooratio members of the commission in in
variably voting solidly against the Repub-
lieans. There is no instance, he says,
where Democrat voted with the Repub
licaus, but Judge Bradley did at least once
| vote with the Democrats on question re-
lating to evidence. Senator Morton looks
ten years younger than he did last week
| and asserts that the decision of the COM
mission is in strict conformity to the cOnsti
tuition. He also deeply regrets the partisan
ship displayed by the Democratic members
| OF the commission,
After the House adjourned several Dem
ocFatio Senators went over there, and in
formal eAucuses were held in the different
committee rooms and by groups on the Hool
of the House. When evening came thu
marty were as much undecided as ever il
regard to policy. Only about half the
Democrats attended the caucus, thos'
who remained away declaring that thel
would not abide by the caucus action
and consisted mostly of the men who wan
to break up the commission before 1t goe
any further. As soon as he called the caucus
to order Mr.. Lamar ssked MT: Clymer x
preside and took the isOr, urging aequies
cence in the decisions of the commission
Ben Hill, Casey, Young, Of Tennessee, job
Young Brown and other SOutherners 1Olne'
with Lamar in trying to sOOth the RUNE
. spirits of the NOIthefners. Messrs. Hur
and Coehrane, of Pennsylvania, Jones, Z
} Kentucky, Dudley Field and others were
7 favor of extreme measures.
Senator Edmunds was the scapegoat fol
all the abuse, it being charged that be
! the MephistOpheles of this whole commits
} zion business. The Democrats insist tha
t Edmunds assured them the eommissio
3 could take evidence under the Dill, VIM
, on the contrary, while the bill was bein
! debated by the Senate, Mr.. Edmunds,
5 reply to q question from Mr.. Dawes 81
0 WHITE, and others, stated distinctly tn
!, the bill left the matter of evidence d
: cretionary with the commission.
: The caucus was exceedingly stormy
though the bluster WAS confined to col
parafively few men. The extremists won
J. not 20 into caucus. Dudley Fields idea
e Withholding appropriations for the arm
!. WA an exceedingly brilliant one, and I
A. though It gained no favor in the caucr
= the question naturally arises why DaV
a Dudley Field Wiihes 70 cripple the arm
4 be 70 organize new reeeliont