The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1878-07-04
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER.

Lack OF iedde1shtP, ana tdcE OIL !
policg--TAe Potter Committee-n
Mrs jerks, NOT of The Horse-Ma e
rines-Butler sat upon. \
[From our regular Correspondent.1
WASHINGTON d. C. june 18th, rs. /,
But few very good results were &C
complishcd by the Congress just clos
ed. Far more could have been done !,
with as many splendid opportunities
a; its disposal-an administration
with a democratic majority of only
twelve in the House and a republican
majority of two in the Senate. I'm
fortunately for the country, Mr..
Hayes has no views. He is honest
and in favor of economy, but he has
no policy, and declared frankly at
the outset that he meant to have
none. His notion is that the Execu
tive is 10 execute the laws, that the
Congress is to adopt them without
influence from him, and he has per-
sistently adhered to his theory. He
vetoed the silver bill because it at
tackled the national credit, but any
of his predecessors would easy have
prevented its passage. Probably no
President ever exercised as little in
fuence upon legislation, and proba
bly, no Presidents ever had as great OPP
portunities of influencing a Congress
for the good of the country if he had
chosen to. A considerable part of
the session he spent in a private war
with the, Senate over the appoint
ments, in which Mt last the Senate
brought him to submission, and the
best that can be said of him is that
he held out much longer than Cen
eral Grant. He failed in the struggle,
tiust as Grant broke down, because
he wanted to appoint his own friends
and favorites; and to get them con-
t irmed the Senate forced him at the
last to appoint also men pleasing to
itself. Civil service reform, after
many promises, has n c more failed,
and will fail until the Tenure of Of
, flee act is repealed.
If the time when Congress is not
I. in session is to be spent in hunting
: up party rascalities for consumption
in the fall campaign, no n could
: not wish for a more e%nlivening in.
vestigation than that over which Mr.
;, Potter presides. The nation has
pretty well made up its mind in re.
!, gard to who is entitled to the Presi
u dency, but between the casting o
!. the ballots and the sending of the
notes of the States to Washington
something was done which left thu
White House door open for Mr.
Hayes and then closed it on Mr.. Til
den. Legerdemaiu, or r~aseality, o
eternal Providence, or whatever i
u was, there was no way of going be
, hind to undo it. But a great man.
a people, Democrats and Republicans
T. wanted to know just how it was done
J. and Mr.. Potter, in the strange com
e. pany of Mr.. Butler, is endeavnrin
II to enlighten u.s. 1t vas thought, q
lie first, that they had discovered q yer
damaging letter of Secretary Shel
&c mans, and Mr.. Sherman himse
is does not seem to have been sure tbs
ID they had not. The discovery of Al
ne derson seemed at first very promi'
q ing, but although he personitied til
y. tortourness and uncleanness of Lol
Us isiana politics, lie became merely il
teresting as a type.
In Mrs. jerks, however, Gener'
aEButler and Mr.. Potter have made
valuable discovery for the heate
term. She is so cool. Unfortunatl
lle ly for the fact hunters, she has gi
Ii. en- off very little in their line. 1t
IN not so much what she has said as he
ill she has said it. With such clev
questioners as General Butler, NJ
Mcmahon and Mr.. Springer, and
smart a woman to answer them, Il
err result has been necessarily side-spl
ng ing. Usually in an examination
this kind somebody is badly wors
ed, lawyer or witness, but in the ca
of Mrs. jerks, no sooner has s
made a point than General Butt
In produces some awkward letter wi
es- one of his sweetly malignant smile
la and the parties are level again. FL
te- she details her actions like a MOD
IS. witness and then suddenly brea
ere off with delightful inconsequence al
becomes shadowy and mysterior
She came, she said, to eXonera
ri Mr.. Sherman, and to take the "E
rm 1itical iniquity'' of promising gu
pro quo to Anderson upon herse
the And yet she would not admit s
al wrote the letter herself, would r
admit she had an amanuensis. ]
va stead ola direct answer she sa
In aThe pen is a mechanical instl
ear ment.n She was a clerk in the Tr'
'ar- sury for two months in 1875, s
OF said, and during that time went
ap- the Treasury quite often-in 70
when she "had nothing else to d
po- The summer season may be bat
hrs. ward, but we're one to fan ones S
MS with her testimony during the h
ne test day in August a February CO
'ole ness should result. She may, l
Anderson, prove to be only a type
'ple the political women in louisa
ces, but even if it should be so, the
tlai ton cannot be congratulated on a
'ust great addition to its resources.
ase To have found a man who swe
i;ts that black is white, and then 70
change, that white is black; to III
discovered q woman, who in a sau
as. fippant way, comes to take "poli
ais cal iniquity' upon herself to a lii
,sn ted extent, are not great results
az Ivy a mighty Congressional commit
: though they might do well for
= VI manager of light summer establi
ment.
Mr.. Sherman's uncertainty whe
err he wrote such a letter as that
1iOii A ndorcon 10 nc uncoticfoo tory a @ n