The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1878-04-11
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER.
From our regular Correspondent

WASHINGTON, D. c., April 9th '7S.
Suggestion for the improvement of
the House of Representatives
The defects Of the present Hall
What a shot gun would have done,
The Presidential and Congression-
al excursion to Chester, Pain
Ohio man Uho did not come to
Washington-Ihe neW Dolafs-
The Cameron-Sherman Wedding4
de-, dc.
1t has long been a source of dis
satisfaction and complaint, that I'M
der the present organization and ar
raignment of our House of Represen-
tatives, it is almost impossible for a
speaker on the floor, unless he be
gifted with extraordinary vocal and
respiratory powers, to make himself
heard by his colleagues in distant
portions of the hall, and in the re-
porters' gallery. My daily visits to
Congress have convinced me of the
Justice of this complaint, and of how
much better it would be if some plan
like that recently suggested by MI.
Hewitt, of New York, were adapted,
by which most, ifnot all, of the phys
ical obstacles to debate which now
exist would be removed; improving
the style of speaking and making the
House a far more attractive field for
all men.
Mr.. Hewitt's plan is, briefly, to di.
vide the hall of the House in two,
arrange one-half of it with benches
facing each other on the two sides
of the House, as is the case in the
English House. of Commons. This
hall of the House should be sacred
to debate, and no business should be
permitted there but the discussion of
bills and resolutions, and action up
on them. The other half of the
House should be fitted with desks, as
at present, and at the doors between
the two halls there should be a gong
or bell to notify the members when a
division was demanded or a vote to
be taken. Those who chose to listen,
or take part in the debate, would be
in the hall with the benches, while
those who had more important duties
to attend to would be in the hall with
desks, within a single step of the
other hall. With such a change
would come ease of speaking, a quiz
eter tone, better thinking IN the feet,
better taste in oratory, better pro-
gress in everything that makes profit
able business discussion, and better
progress also in the public BUSINESS.
AS returned from the reporters
gallery yesterday, after having listen
ed for an hour or so to an amusing
sally between Ben But Ter and Mr..
Cox, of New York, in reference to the
much contested Doorkeepership
(made vacant by Mr.. Folks summa-
ry dismissal on Thursday,) and was
on my way to the Senate to see what
was going on there, | saw standing
together in the lobby of the Senate
Chamber, engaged in free and easy
conversation, Col. Tom Scott, Jay
Gould, C. P. Huntington and Sidney
Dillon. At the distance Of few feet,
with his larboard a elevated to the
proper angle of communications, was
John Roach, the famous iron-ship
builder, of Chester Pa. A shotgun
loaded with buckshot and discharged
by an accomplished fowler would
have swept the famous qufntette
clear out of the region of interest in
sublimary oncerns At a fair cal
eulation, these five men represented
not less than two hundred millions
of dollars, and could probably have
their checks honored for more mon
ey than any other five men gathered
together in any other city in the
country. And yet there are people
who say that Washington is not a
big ethyl
Tom Scott, Jay Gould, and their
c~onfreres are here to lobby for their
railroad, and the object of Mr. Roach's
visit was to invite his Senatorial
friends to join the excursion which
left for Chester this morning to wit
ness the launching of one of his large
steamers 1.-THE "City of Rio J%anerio,'
1 believe.) This party included the
President, and all the members ot
the Cabinet, with the exeepsion Of
Postmaster General Key, who is or
his way to Havana, Cuba, many
members of the corps diplomatique
and about a hundred Senators anC
members of Congress-. They viii
leave Chester this evening, sleep of
their headaches tomorrow, Sunday
and be "on deck" again Monday
morning.
The rumor extensively circulated
in the press that Mr.. Hayes will
spend the summer in Ohio proves
upon inquiry at the White House, t.
be untrue. He will take up his ole
last summer quarters il n of thu
cottages in the grounds of the "Sol
diers' Home;" the same which til,
late President Lincoln occupied witt
his family; but it has been enlarged
and improved since his time.
Naturally when an Ohio man i
missing from his native hearth, hi
friends look for him in Washington
and so when ex-C congressman Vanc
left home and didn't turn up here a
: expected, it was at once conclude
that he had been killed, or wa
crazy, or was a defaulter, or had ra
off with a woman, to account for hi
abnormal and extraordinary defeC
l ton from the road to the seat Of GOV
eminent and to office. Mr.. Vanc
e has many friends here, who are lot
> to believe that he has been guilty c
:, any wrong, and denounce as fabrics
l tions the sensational stories recent
telegraphed from here by the CORE:
D pondent of the N. Y. Tribune, whic
assert that he had been guilty {
petty thefts, such as the p%urloinin
{ of books from stores, &C., and {
even still graver offences whic
would subject him, iffound, to GRIN
linal prosecution.