The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1878-06-21
SPEAKER RANDALL AND TIE WEST
AND SOUTH.

The Southern and Western members Of
Congress are left 10 contemplate, as the re-
suit Of their singular infatuation for Mr.. Ram
dali, the defeat of every scheme looking to
the protection and advancement Of the inter
ests of their particular sections, and especial
" all those measures which we're devised for
the special benefit of the great Mississippi
Valley. In the miscarriage Of all these neas-
ures the hand of Mr.. Randall Is plainly visi-
bIe but specially d 1t so in the Brazilian mail
contract. This measure, In which the great
West was vitality interested, owes Its defeat
to an arbitrary ruling OF his as Speaker,
which was an abuse of his office and authori-
ty so scandaIGus as to occasion universal re-
mark and very just denunciatlon from the
friends of that measure. When Mr.. Waddell,
Of North Carolina, the chairman Of the Pos
tai Committee, from which the bill was re-
ported, endeavored TO call UP the bill for con-
sideratiOn of the Senate amendment making
the appropriation for the Brazilian steamship
line. Speaker Randall refused arbitrarily to
hear him, saying that the bill was In the
hands Of Cannon, q minority member Of the
committee and bitter Radical, who had op-
posed the bill I'm committee with the
utmost persistence and bitterness, and
chiefly because IL was regarded as OF peculiar
benefit to the South. What right the Speaker
| had to assume that bill was in charge of
any member Of committee other than the
chairman does not appear; but to forbid the
chairman of committee calling up a bill on
the ground that II was in anybodys hands,
much less those Of minority member known
TO have bitterly opposed 1t In committee, was
scandaious outrage end an arbitrary abuse
of power which merits unmeasured denuncia-
ton. It simply means that Mr.. Randall was
opposed to the measure and determined to
use and abuse every means at his command
to accomplish Its defeat. Such man is, as
general proposition, unfit for the high position
of Speaker, and he has certainly not acted
even with honesty and candor towards the
majority Of the men who placed him in the
Speakers chair.
At the time Of RandaIl's candidacy we sus-
peeted his disposition towards the South and
West. and opposed his election. His candi-
dacy, II will be remembered, was most disin-
genuous and uncandid. We attracted atten-
tion 10 this fact at the time, and appealed to
the South and West to stand together for the
protection Of their mutual interests. Our
owr choice for the speakership was Hon.
Milton Sayler, whose views with reference to
the great interests Of the West and Southwest
were pronounced and met with our full In
dorsement Yet we were willing to accept
any Western man holding the same views, |,
We believed that no Eastern Democrat could
advocate these measures without sacrificing |
himself with his own constituency, and we
had special dlstrust Of Mr.. Randall.
The extreme earnestness with which his
candidacy was urged by the New York Sun, |
whose hostility TO the South and West is not |
less pronounced than that Of the Inter Ocean,
first aroused our suspicion The Sun asserted
most positively that Mr.. Randall was pledged
to oppose oil the schemes for the improve
ment of the Mississippi. the levee bill, the
Texas Pacific bill, and other measures looking
to the internal improvements of the West and
South. But, in opposition to these averments
OF the San, the Galveston NetCs published
purporting to be authorized by
Randall himself, which fatty and explicitly
contradicted the averments of the Sun
The Sun, however, still chung to its
original statements, and to Mr.. Randall
In the meanwhile Mr.. Randall said
nothing, but maintained stolid
silence. refusing to disclose his honest con-
victions and permitting the various interests
to interpret his oracular caiolery TO suit
themselves. I he result was that he got In by
being all things to all men and allowing both
sides to expect his favor, or at least his per-
feet fairness and impartiality. How these
promises were redeemed is now disclosed |
The results show the correctness Of our ap-
prehensions. and we trust that they will |
altogether secure that union between the
West and South which their mutually of In
terests demand, and their divorce from the
East, whose dictation only means, as it has |
always meant, the defeat Of those interests. |
Now that the two great producing sections of
the country are in power, let them use 1t for
the advancement Of their own interests, at
least equally with those of the money chang
ing and pawnbroking East, whose hand
maidens the South and West have ever been.