The Findlay Jeffersonian. [volume] (Findlay, Hancock County, Ohio) 1870-1881, 1877-10-19
WASHINGTON LETTER.

WASHINGTON LETTER.
From our Special Correspondent
| WASHINGTON, ID. c., Oct. s, II.
Mr.. Schurz has been severely criticised
for the seeming slow progress made in
getting temporary roof over the North
and West wings of the Patent Office left
exposed by the fire. The wind and rain,
terrific in force and quantity, of last
Thursday, threatened to complete the
destruction of building and valuable
records rescued from the flames. 1t is
complained that the 10 days favorable
weather was frittered away and the tardy
equinoctial found those responsible
wholly unprepared for its advent. The
wafer poured in streams through the
tesselated floor, standing TO the depth of
six inches in some of the rooms below.
There was hastyremoval of everything
liable to damage into the corridors and
rooms of the unscathed portion of the
building. Chaos ruled the hour and
confusion ran riot Even now, some of
the divisions have hardly got down to
routine work Many of the burned and
calciDed marble blocks of the walls were
reduced to a doughy consistency by the
water, and came crashing to the pave
ment, nearly third of the ceiling ofthe
North Portico cracking across from it's
own weight, and tumbling through the
opening, defacing the ornamental work
of the pillars and angles. Roofiess and
prostrated houses, uprOoted trees, over
turned fences, and stranded vessels down
the Potomac attested the violence of the
gale. From insufficient sewers, hun
dreds Of cellars and easements were
flooded, and hundreds of chimreys,awn-
ings and signs were tumbled down or
wrenched from their fistenings, and dis
appeared. TIE streets were flooded,
travel impeded along the line of rail and
other roads leading outward from the
city, while flower gardens were uncere-
moniously invaded and the pride of
many a householder, the fruits of months
of diligent labor and culture were scat
tered "in the twinkling of an eye" This
morning the heavens are frowning on US
again and old Probabilities has ordered
out the danger signals; and Mr. Schurzls
clerks gloomily contemplate a recur-
renee of Thursdays disaster. The COM
mission appointed to look after the other
public buildings report them, so far as
they have gone, literal tinder boxes"
awaiting an accidental spark to reduce
to ashes millions of dollars worth OF mat
ter and material, the accumulations of
years, and to blot out tons of Govern
ment archives whose value cannot be
computed in money. We may regard
our exemption from destructive confia-
grations heretofore as wholly matter of
luck; for the practice has been uniform
in crowding easements and attics with |
hundreds of tons of the most in flammable !
matter. In Winders Building there is
packed under roof largely composed of
wood, End Auditors vouchers represent |
ing, it is said, over $1,9OOOOOOOO The
War and Navy Departments with their
records of those arms of the service from |
the foundation of the Government, are |
imperiled. Even our magnifi |
cent Capitol, representing the expendi-
ture of twenty millions of dollars, and |
containing archives whose value cannot
be calculated by money standard, is in
constant danger from this source. In
obedience to an imperative demand, it
is understood that appropriations will be
asked to make the Government struc
lures fire proof
Senator Pattersons arrest has aroused |
much indignation here. Many Repub.
licans gave in their adhesion, very reluc-
family to the recognition of Hampton,
with the tacit understanding that by
cones have to be treated as such. With
out expressing any opinion as to the
guilt or innocence of the Republicans Of
South Carolina who have been pursued
and prosecuted by the triumphant De
of that State since the first hour
they gained the ascendency, it is said |
that even if guilty as charged, their sins
would only rank as slight misdemenors
as contrasted with the bloody record of
many of those now uppermost in the
affairs of that Safe, and foremost in
prosecution of Republicans; and it is
claimed that Hampton and the men be-
hind him have forfeited every right TO
The esteem, confidence and forbearance
Of honorable men by their disregard of
heir word never more solemnly pledged
han to the President last Spring. Rich
Dourg, the man sent by South Carolina
to effect the arrest, secured a abench war
rant from Justice Carter on Hamptons
He had some trouble in
finding the Senator, but after hunting
about "a hours, the Senator sent word
that he could be found at the Office of
Col. Cook, one If his counsel. Immedi-
ately after the formal arrest the Senator
was taken before Justice Humphreys on
an application for writ ofhabeds corpus
who allowed Mr.. Patterson till the 18th
inst to make objection to his rendition.
Bail was fixed, and promptly furnished,
at $500.
So far as can be picked out from the
official dispatches, it appears that Ell
Passo county, Texas, is almost wholly in
habited by Mexicans; that making a
claim Of Judge Howard to some salt
lakes in that county pretext, the Mex
leans have risen en- masse, thrown every