Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1878-06-21
THE work or CONGRESS.

public interests, or influenced by mercenary !
motives. It is the old story of the man
who, in trying to please everybody, succeed
ed in pleasing nobody.
The GLOBE does not believe that all Con-
gressmen, or even majority, are corrupt or
Indifferent to the public good. That they |
all make mistakes occasionally is but natural,
but there are very few who knowingly lend
themselves to corrupt measures. Some are
weak and easily Influenced, and it is not a
matter of surprise that they fall victims to
the lobby and advocate measures that to an
unbiased mind appear to be faint
ed with corruption. The GLOBE does
not Join in the wholesale denunciations
of Congress that are SO common nowadays,
but is willing to accord to a majority of the
Senators and Representatives an honesty of
purpose which at least entities them to fair
treatment.
The Congress that has just closed has had
it's faults just as preceding ones have had
theirs. It has not been an exceptionally
good nor yet an exceptionally bad one. It
has done many things that it ought not to
have done, and left undone many things it
ought to have done. But in neither of these
respects can it claim exceptional distinction
over it's predecessors. It is, however, mat
ter of congratulation that the Democratic
majority in the House can not be held re-
sponsible for the bulk of the most obnoxious
legislation of the session, and it can justly
lay claim to having defeated more than one
scheme of plumber which had received the
Endorsement of the other house, and with
having inaugurated or paved the way for re-
forms that shall be of lasting benefit to the
people.
At the outset many grave subjects called
for the action of Congress. For seventeen
years the government had been in the hands
of the Republican party, and many abuses
had sprung up in the service. The air was
charged with allegations of corruption, ex-
travagance and oppression which weighed
down the people and caused our name to be a
kissing and byword among all the nations
of the globe. 10 expose these corruptions, to
put astop to these extravagances, to check the
expressions became the first duty of Con-
| gress. But little aid could be expected from
the Republican majority in the Senate, for
| their sense of party fealty seemed to over
| top their feeling of duty to the people.
Single handed, therefore, the House under
took the task of cleansing the Augean
stables. The navy department. had been
managed with the utmost recklessness, the
late secretary having been mere creature
of clay in the hands of lot of unscrupu-
lous contractors who were filling their Golfers
from the public treasury by the most daring
schemes of robbery ever permitted to exist
in any country. The committee having
charge of this matter succeeded in develop
ing facts which have warranted them in re-
ferring the testimony to the attorney general
with a view to the criminal prosecution OF
Secretary Robson and his assistant
The moral rottenness of the department has
been found to be greater, even, than had
been alleged.
The management of the treasury depart
ment and the mint have called for investiga.
ton. In the former the books were found
to be loosely kept, and their examination
has developed a deficiency amounting tc
many millions of dollars. A few tsclerica
errors" says the secretary, will account fol
the apparent deficiency. But what must bt
said of system under which clerical er
rors" Of such magnitude can occur? The in
quiry into the conduct of the mint hat
shown that many illegal charges for the pur
chase and transportation of bullion have
been allowed that there is shortage O.
hundreds of thousands of dollars in the &C
counts of the assay offices, and that the di
rector has expended thousands of dollars
without warrant of law for the express ben
eft of his own relatives. The accounts art
also in hopeless state OF confusion.
To investigate the allegations of fraud il
the Presidential election was also duty
placed before Congress. This has beer
commenced, and the developments thus fa1
show the existence of an Infamous con
spiracy to defraud the people, involving in
; questionable transactions some of the high
} just commenced, this inquiry will withou
doubt rebound to the great and lasting ben.
! eft Of the country by showing the scoun-
drelly instigators of the fraud that the Amer
lean people will not quietly submit to being
robbed of the fruits of their franchise.
The expressions of the executive through
the illegal use of the army had become ,
crying evil. This was checked by the firm
} stand taken by the Democrats in the House
insisting that the army should not be uset
as a posse conpitdtus except as provided b,
the constitution.
All through the session the Democrats
} have pursued these objects with unfinchint
} bravery in the face of storms of abuse ant
misrepresentation from the Republicans, en-
during insults at every step, but never devi
ating from their course. The results &C
complished are sufficient vindication O
their conduct.
Towards the last of the session the Demo
Gratis of the House succeeded, in the face o.
the most determined efforts of the Senate ani
in defiance of the brides, threats and cajolery
of large and influential lobby, in defeat,